Sun Ra Arkestra: Lights on a Satellite

As befits a being whose life encompassed much of the Solar System, from his origins on Saturn to his long earthly sojourn that ended in 1993, Sun Ra composed, played and recorded an astronomical panoply of musical styles across six decades. Lights On A Satellite, a new double album released by Germany's In+Out Records, presents a varied program that serves as a dual tribute to both Ra and Marshall Allen, the recent centenarian who has directed the Sun Ra Arkestra since its founder's passing. Just weeks after he turned 100, Allen took the 24-piece band into New York's Power Station to lay down 11 tracks, which encompass Sun Ra's career from 1930's and 1940's big band tunes ("Big John's Special," "Way Down Yonder in New Orleans," "Holiday for Strings") to songs found on Ra's classic Saturn LPs ("Images," "Dorothy's Dance," "Tapestry From An Asteroid," the title track) to latter-day Arkestra live material ("Joy Delight," "Baby Won't You Please Be Mine"). The result is a fun swinging tour through nearly a century of idiosyncratic jazz and cosmic music, featuring lush arrangements and excellent sound quality. The pressing of the double vinyl release is flawless and features a gatefold with extensive liner notes, lyrics, and credits; CD and streaming versions are also available.

The celebration kicks off with a 10-minute version of the title track, first heard on 1961's Art Forms of Dimensions Tomorrow (Saturn). A lovely melodic line is repeated, mantra-like, throughout, creating a serene and spacey mood over which Allen comments effectively on alto sax, spurring simultaneous stereo tenor responses from Nasir Dickerson and James Stewart. "Dorothy's Dance," which appeared on 1960's Holiday for Soul Dance (Saturn), is a delightfully swinging tune with a standout solo by trombonist Brent White and an intriguing excursion for Melanie Dyer's viola. "Big John's Special" was arranged in 1937 by bandleader Fletcher Henderson, with whom Ra would work a decade later (under his initial earthly name, Herman Poole Blount). It is a fun vintage big-band tune, though it sits a bit uneasily among the more cosmic tracks. A standout from among these is "Reflects Motion," a delightfully cacophonous free piece with bleeps and bloops from the two guitarists, an effective drum solo by George Gray and exploratory interjections from Anthony Nelson on baritone sax and Cecil Brooks on trumpet. Perhaps less successful is the 13-minute "Friendly Galaxy," from 1962's Secrets of the Sun (Saturn): Gray's solid backbeat on the dreamy and static tune is hypnotic at first, but at length feels a little unrelenting as the minutes tick by. Chris Hemingway's alto solo highlights "Joy Delight," a raw and funky tune with more than a bit of New Orleans in it, and the Crescent City appears explicitly in "Way Down Yonder in New Orleans," a 1920's vocal feature for guitarist Carl LeBlanc that brings the album to a fun, upbeat close.

All together, the 24 talented musicians on Lights On A Satellite effectively shine starlight on Sun Ra's massive musical and spiritual legacy and celebrate the achievement of Allen, his loyal lieutenant, as he guides the Arkestra into his second century. Joy delight, indeed.

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