Sun Ra and his Solar-Myth Arkestra / THE SOLAR-MYTH APPROACH (VOL. 2)

THE SECOND INSTALMENT OF LANDMARK SESSIONS BY ONE OF THE MOST UNIQUE FIGURES IN BLACK MUSIC IS A SHOWER OF SOUNDS THAT HAVE COME STRAIGHT FROM ANOTHER WORLD.

In a typical burst of creative energy Sun Ra and an ensemble he dubbed The Solar-Myth Arkestra produced enough material to be spread over two albums. These two volumes are a grab-bag of tracks from various undocumented US sessions in the 60s, while some possibly date to the late 50s. A kind of sonic odyssey which has no end of twists and turns, as befits a group of such singular character.

This second installment picks up where its predecessor left off but also has several interesting new focal points. While the echoes of Ellington are clear throughout the session there are compelling passages of Afro-centric polyrhythmic invention as the spotlight falls on drummers and percussionists Clifford Jarvis, Lex Humphries and Nimrod Hunt. But it is vocalist June Tyson, perhaps one of the most overlooked of Ra’s accompanists, who takes a star turn on the mesmerising ‘Strange Worlds’.