Evidence Music
SUN RA

SUN RA - lanquidity - click for more info SUN RA
lanquidity
LIST PRICE: $15.98

More Info Buy Now - Add to Cart Buy Now - Add to Cart View Cart
SUN RA - we travel the spaceways/ bad and beautiful - click for more info SUN RA
we travel the spaceways/ bad and beautiful
LIST PRICE: $15.98
 
SUN RA - cosmic tones/art forms - click for more info SUN RA
cosmic tones/art forms
LIST PRICE: $15.98
 
SUN RA - sound sun pleasure - click for more info SUN RA
sound sun pleasure
LIST PRICE: $15.98
 
 
 
Of all the jazz musicians, Sun Ra was probably the most controversial. He did not make it easy for people to take him seriously, for he surrounded his adventurous music with costumes and mythology that both looked backwards toward ancient Egypt and forwards into science fiction. In addition, Ra documented his music in very erratic fashion on his Saturn label, generally not listing recording dates and giving inaccurate personnel information, so one could not really tell how advanced some of his innovations were. It has taken a lot of time to sort it all out (although Robert Campbell's Sun Ra discography has done a miraculous job). In addition, while there were times when Sun Ra's aggregation performed brilliantly, on other occasions they were badly out of tune and showcasing absurd vocals. Near the end of his life, Ra was featuring plate twirlers and fire eaters in his colorful show as a sort of Ed Sullivan for the 1980s.

But despite all of the trappings, Sun Ra was a major innovator. Born Herman Sonny Blount in Birmingham, AL (although he claimed he was from another planet), Ra led his own band for the first time in 1934. He freelanced at a variety of jobs in the Midwest, working as a pianist/arranger with Fletcher Henderson in 1946-1947. He appeared on some obscure records as early as 1948, but really got started around 1953. Leading a big band (which he called the Arkestra) in Chicago, Ra started off playing advanced bop, but was early on open to the influences of other cultures, experimenting with primitive electric keyboards, and playing free long before the avant-garde got established. After moving to New York in 1961, Ra performed some of his most advanced work. In 1970, he relocated his group to Philadelphia, and in later years alternated free improvisations and mystical group chants with eccentric versions of swing tunes, sounding like a spaced-out Fletcher Henderson orchestra. Many of his most important sidemen were with him on and off for decades (most notably John Gilmore on tenor, altoist Marshall Allen, and baritonist Pat Patrick). Ra, who recorded for more than a dozen labels, has been well served by Evidence's extensive repackaging of many of his Saturn dates, which have at last been outfitted with correct dates and personnel details. In the late nineties, other labels began reissuing albums from Sun Ra's vast catalog, an effort that will surely continue for years to come.

Author: Scott Yanow :: Source: All Music Guide (www.allmusic.com)

 

SUN RA - lanquidity SUN RA
lanquidity
RELEASE DATE: 09/26/2000
LIST PRICE: $15.98
SUN RA - greatest hits: easy listening for intergalactic travel SUN RA
greatest hits: easy listening for intergalactic travel
RELEASE DATE: 09/26/2000
LIST PRICE: $15.98
SUN RA - pathways to unknown worlds/ friendly love SUN RA
pathways to unknown worlds/ friendly love
RELEASE DATE: 09/26/2000
LIST PRICE: $15.98
SUN RA - the great lost sun ra albums: cymbals & crystal spears (2 cds) SUN RA
the great lost sun ra albums: cymbals & crystal spears (2 cds)
RELEASE DATE: 09/26/2000
LIST PRICE: $29.98
SUN RA - when angels speak of love SUN RA
when angels speak of love
RELEASE DATE: 09/26/2000
LIST PRICE: $15.98
SUN RA - the singles (2 cd's) SUN RA
the singles (2 cd's)
RELEASE DATE: 09/24/1996
LIST PRICE: $29.98
SUN RA - soundtrack to space is the place SUN RA
soundtrack to space is the place
RELEASE DATE: 11/25/1993
LIST PRICE: $15.98
SUN RA - the magic city SUN RA
the magic city
RELEASE DATE: 11/25/1993
LIST PRICE: $15.98
SUN RA - fate in a pleasant mood/ when sun comes out SUN RA
fate in a pleasant mood/ when sun comes out
RELEASE DATE: 11/25/1993
LIST PRICE: $15.98
SUN RA - atlantis SUN RA
atlantis
RELEASE DATE: 11/25/1993
LIST PRICE: $15.98
SUN RA - angels and demons at play/ nubians of plutonia SUN RA
angels and demons at play/ nubians of plutonia
RELEASE DATE: 11/25/1993
LIST PRICE: $15.98
SUN RA - my brother the wind vol. ii SUN RA
my brother the wind vol. ii
RELEASE DATE: 11/20/1992
LIST PRICE: $15.98
SUN RA - sun ra visits planet earth/ interstellar low ways SUN RA
sun ra visits planet earth/ interstellar low ways
RELEASE DATE: 11/20/1992
LIST PRICE: $15.98
SUN RA - we travel the spaceways/ bad and beautiful SUN RA
we travel the spaceways/ bad and beautiful
RELEASE DATE: 11/20/1992
LIST PRICE: $15.98
SUN RA - other planes of there SUN RA
other planes of there
RELEASE DATE: 11/20/1992
LIST PRICE: $15.98
SUN RA - cosmic tones/art forms SUN RA
cosmic tones/art forms
RELEASE DATE: 11/20/1992
LIST PRICE: $15.98
SUN RA - supersonic jazz SUN RA
supersonic jazz
RELEASE DATE:
LIST PRICE: $15.98
SUN RA - sound sun pleasure SUN RA
sound sun pleasure
RELEASE DATE:
LIST PRICE: $15.98
SUN RA - monorails & satellites SUN RA
monorails & satellites
RELEASE DATE: 02/06/1992
LIST PRICE: $15.98
SUN RA - jazz in silhouette SUN RA
jazz in silhouette
RELEASE DATE: 02/06/1992
LIST PRICE: $15.98
SUN RA - holiday for soul dance SUN RA
holiday for soul dance
RELEASE DATE: 02/06/1992
LIST PRICE: $15.98

 

LANQUIDITY

Rating:      Lanquidity [02.24.2008]
This album is a genuine oddity. Recorded in 1978 at the height of the disco era, it quickly disappeared but its' influence has remained especially amongst trip hop and acid jazz devotees. George Clinton would have been very happy with the weird sounds oozing from the speakers. The cd should be heard for the truly uneartly beauty of "There Are Other Worlds (They Have Not Told You Of ), possibly his greatest space ballad and the real soundtrack to "The Matrix".......
  -  Rob J
from Hertfordshire, England
THE SINGLES (2 CD'S)

Rating:       Sun Ra - The Singles [02.24.2008]
This astonishing collection features the oddest 45 rpms
ever. What the hell was Ra thinking when these singles
were originally issued ? Did he honestly think they would reach the national US charts with deranged tracks such as "Muck Muck", which even The Cramps would baulk at ? Whatever the reasons, they make thrilling listening especially "State Street" which captures Sun Ra and his Arkestra with a swing that Cannonball Adderley would have envied. The fact Ra did not bother to pursue this option when he obviously could, have makes this set all the more enigmatic. Fascinating music from a true original.      
  -  Rob J
from Hertfordshire, England
THE MAGIC CITY

Rating:        The Magic City [03.01.2008]
Utterly breathtaking avant garde music by the fearless Sun Ra. Even John Coltrane's "Ascension" sounds tame when compared to this offering. Not surprisingly, the few jazz critics that heard it were completely hostile to the set. But Ra didn't care. Bemusement, sometimes outright hatred followed him most of his musical life. Even so, the mood of rage that dominates the title track was totally in sync with the seething anger experienced by African Americans in 1965 which was the year of race riots.
Ra never followed the path of this album, but then why should he ? This was unrepeatable, which would explain why he never performed this challenging music onstage.
  -  Rob J
from Herts, England
SOUND SUN PLEASURE

Rating:        mr [12.22.2008]
With this release, Mr. sunny reveals his talent as a master arranger with his one -of -a-kind take on these great old standards. Enlightenment Is one of the the most beautiful and emotional tunes I have ever heard. As usual,his arkestra plays flawlessly.Joe Macbride
  -  Joseph P. Macbride
from grafton,N.H.03240 usa
JAZZ IN SILHOUETTE

Rating:        Jazz In Silhouette [02.23.2008]
This is a GREAT album. Ra made many fine albums, but this is his magnum opus. Originally sold at his concerts only, the fact that it was not made readily available through more conventional methods meant that it never received the iconic respect given to "Kind Of Blue", "Mingus Ah Um" or "Giant Steps".
From the first track "Enlightenment" to the thrilling "Blues At Midnight", this is a timeless record
which has remained unfairly overlooked since the fifty years of its' original release. This is the jewel in the Evidence crown of their reissue programme, jazz or otherwise.
Beg, steal or borrow.......   
  -  Rob J
from Hertfordshire, England
Rating:        Jazz In Silhouette [02.23.2008]
This is a GREAT album. Ra made many fine albums, but this is his magnum opus. Originally sold at his concerts only, the fact that it was not made readily available through more conventional methods meant that it never received the iconic respect given to "Kind Of Blue", "Mingus Ah Um" or "Giant Steps".
From the first track "Enlightenment" to the thrilling "Blues At Midnight", this is a timeless record
which has remained unfairly overlooked since the fifty years of its' original release. This is the jewel in the Evidence crown of their reissue programme, jazz or otherwise.
Beg, steal or borrow.......   
  -  Rob J
from Hertfordshire, England
Rating:        Jazz In Silhoutte [02.23.2008]
This is a GREAT album. Ra made many fine albums, but this is his magnum opus. Originally sold at his concerts only, the fact that it was not made readily available through more conventional methods meant that it never received the iconic respect given to "Kind Of Blue", "Mingus Ah Um" or "Giant Steps".
From the first track "Enlightenment" to the thrilling "Blues At Midnight", this is a timeless record
which has remained unfairly overlooked since the fifty years of its' original release. This is the jewel in the Evidence crown of their reissue programme, jazz or otherwise.
Beg, steal or borrow.......   
  -  Rob J
from Hertfordshire, England