Sun Ra

Did you ever see Sun Ra live? His band was a lot of fun, and the shows were great, sort of space-themed three ring circus with stellar musicians (and I mean stellar, these guys could go play anything, and play it well). For those of you who missed it, here is a clip from a 1981 show in Chicago, complete with a burning free jazz sax solo:

Apparently there is a fellow out there who likes to set anime to Sun Ra music. I don't care much for anime, but it is a great excuse to hear a really good studio recording from Sun Ra:

Maybe Dear Margo could learn a thing about giving advice from Sun Ra:

Part of the deal with the Sun Ra Arkestra is that all the musicians doubled on percussion, so that you could get some interesting interludes going on. Like Duke Ellington before him, Sun Ra had members who stayed with him for decades. Some left for awhile for more lucrative and prestigious bands, and did well, but came back because what other band could have been more fun than this: