The Antique Blacks, by Sun Ra & His Arkestra

The Antique Blacks

by Sun Ra & His Arkestra

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masaki undeniably catchy and mysteriously profound Favorite track: This Song Is Dedicated to Nature's God.

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1.	The Antique Blacks Suite 24:38	info	buy track
2.	This Song Is Dedicated to Nature's God 03:55	info	buy track
3.	The Ridiculous "I" and the Cosmos Me 04:36	info	buy track
4.	Song No. 1 08:46	info	buy track
5.	Would I For All That Were 02:52	info	buy track
6.	Space is the Place 08:02	info	buy track

about

THE ANTIQUE BLACKS

The Antique Blacks, original copies of which are quite rare, was one of those LPs that Sun Ra pressed in very limited quantities to sell at concerts and club dates. The recordings apparently originated from a 1974 Temple University (Philadelphia) radio broadcast. Like many independently pressed and self-released albums on Ra's Saturn label, it's a mixed bag of material with little continuity or consistency. That's not a bug—it's a feature. It contains a jaunty jam ("Song No. 1"), a few songs, and lots of Sunny's declamatory (and inscrutable) sermonizing.

After a 30+ year absence from the market , it was reissued on CD in 2010 by the U.K. label Art Yard, who replicated the LP sequence. In fact, due to the absence of tapes, a vintage vinyl copy was used for the reissue, which included a mono bonus track, "You Thought You Could Build a World Without Us."

After the completed CD production, Michael D. Anderson of the Sun Ra Music Archive discovered the master tapes from the date. One of the revelations was that three tracks from the LP, "There Is Change in the Air," the above-named bonus track, and the album title track, were actually part of a continuous 24-1/2 minute suite. When the original LP was compiled, some bridge material had been edited out, and three components of the suite were isolated as standalone tracks. For this digitally remastered edition, the entire suite is presented for the first time (and in full stereo). In addition, "Song No. 1," which was the opening track on the LP, has been placed where it stands in sequence on the tape, as track 4.

What sounds like an audio glitch at 7:21 in "Space is the Place" is in fact a four-second patch of tape spliced in reverse—Sun Ra's contribution to the sinister '70s practice of lyrical backmasking.

There was some speculation about the source of "You Thought You Could Build A World Without Us." Based on comments made by Sun Ra himself on WKCR in 1987 (when it was aired), Sun Ra discographers Robert Campbell and Christopher Trent speculated that the track was an outtake from the 1972 film soundtrack for Space is the Place. However, RC/CT note that electric guitarist Dale Williams did not join the Arkestra until 1974. The discovery of the master tape confirms the provenance of the performance.

Historical footnote: Producer Hal Willner claims he witnessed these sessions at Temple University. Ask him about it.

– I.C.

credits

released October 30, 2015

Recorded at Temple University, Philadelphia, August 17, 1974; pressing dates 1974, 1978, maybe others

2015, Enterplanetary Koncepts
All tracks produced by Sun Ra

PERSONNEL:
Sun Ra: Rocksichord, Mini-Moog, synthesizer, vocal
Marshall Allen: alto sax
John Gilmore: tenor sax, vocal, percussion
Danny Davis: alto sax
James Jacson: bassoon, Infinity-drum
Clifford Jarvis: drums
Atakatune: conga
Dale Williams: electric guitar
Akh Tal Ebah: trumpet, vocal

Tape transfers by Michael D. Anderson of the Sun Ra Music Archive
Digital restoration by Michael D. Anderson and Irwin Chusid
Special thanks to Peter Dennett/Art Yard

All titles composed by Sun Ra © Enterplanetary Koncepts (BMI)

Issued under license from Sun Ra LLC
Cover design by Irwin Chusid

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Sun Ra New York, New York

A Helpful Guide to the Many Sun Ra Albums on Bandcamp: daily.bandcamp.com/2017/10/13/sun-ra-album-guide
The foremost figure in musical Afro-futurism and space-jazz. Keyboardist, composer, Arkestra leader, arranger, philosopher-jester, fashion icon, cosmic guide. Born Herman Blount in Alabama, 1914, left the planet in 1993, giving Earthlings a monumental catalog of recordings that transcend genre. ... more

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