In celebration of Cauleen Smith's amazing work, Black Utopia, I want to re-introduce this fantastic 1979 set performed in NYC. This is a great recording of a fantastic performance and Disc 2 (Japanese release only) features a full hour-plus-long lecture reminiscent of the stories featured in Smith's audio movie. In the lecture, Ra delves into double-meanings and word/phonetic equation/dualities with a humor and insight like no other recitation I've heard. It's a riveting 72 minutes like no other.
Live from Soundscape is a document of a 1979 show at the Soundscape performance space in New York City. June Tyson starts things out singing Astro Black which quickly heads into freakout territory. After the beautiful flute duet, "Where There Is No Sun," we get a couple nice vocal numbers before the classic 70's instrumental pieces, "D27" and "Watusi." The set closes with the ever popular Space Chants "Space is the Place," "We Travel the Spaceways" and "On Jupiter, the Skies Are Always Blue." Sound quality, while good, is not perfect, gearing the release more towards the serious fan. (Initial pressings included a second bonus disc with a fascinating lecture by Sun Ra entitled "The Possibility of Altered Destiny.")
AMG Review by Sean Westergaard
The Possibility of Altered Destiny
DIW 388 was issued in 1994 as the first disk in a limited-edition two-CD set titled Live at Soundscape. According to a poster reproduced in the leaflet for the companion disk DIW 388B, there were shows at 3 and 8 pm on November 11; it is not known which one was recorded. The second CD pressing, which appeared in Japan in 1996, consists of the concert CD without the lecture.
The CD is not a full set of music. Additional items from this same set (seemingly recorded from a different vantage point and with greater stereo separation -- in fact, Sun Ra's keyboards threaten to take over the whole left channel) were broadcast on WKCR-FM during the April 1987 Sun Ra Festival. Thanks to Stephen Ramirez for information about the broadcast; it ran 87 minutes. "Watusi" was placed at the end of the broadcast but was obviously shifted there from its spot before "Space Is the Place," as can be heard on the CD. "On Jupiter" is faded right after the beginning of the space chant on the CD; on the radio broadcast, it continues with a trumpet duet, a long synthesizer solo in the "dentist drill" manner, a shout of "All out for Jupiter!" and a freakout ensemble, then trails off with vibes and drums.
"Keep Your Sunny Side Up" is a chant by Sun Ra, not the standard. Personnel identified by Bradford Graves and Verna Gillis by rlc from the tapes; no other documentation of the concert survives.
Live from Soundscape
Sun Ra (org, syn, declamation); Michael Ray (tp); Walter Miller (tp); Charles Stephens (tb); Vincent Chancey (Fr hn); Marshall Allen (as, fl, picc, perc); Danny Davis (as, fl, perc); John Gilmore (ts, cl, timb, voc, announcement); Eloe Omoe (bcl, fl, perc); James Jacson (bsn, fl, Inf-d); Danny Ray Thompson (bars, fl, perc); Skeeter McFarland (eg); Damon Choice (vib); Richard "Radu" Williams (b); Luqman Ali (d); Atakatune (cga, perc); June Tyson (voc); Bill Sebastian (light show); unidentified dancers.
Soundscape, NYC, November 11, 1979
info from Campbell / Trent The Earthly Recordings 2nd ed
Sun Ra & His Arkestra
Live from Soundscape on November 11, 1979
CD 1
Astro Black
Where There Is No Sun [Pleiades]
Living In The Space Age
Keep Your Sunny Side Up
D. 27
Watusi
Space Is The Place
We Travel The Space Ways
On Jupiter, The Skies Are Always Blue
CD 2
SUN RA Talks On "The Possibility of Altered Destiny"
November 10, 1979
or
