Sun Ra - Space Is the Place
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Free Music Notes for Space Is the Place
Free Music Review: There's no limit...
Hit: 4 Stars
This is probably the best place for neophytes to Sun Ra to start. It contains music that is both reasonably "in" and completely "out," and the extraterrestrial "Space is the Place" is both dissonant and catchy simultaneously. The band is inspired and inspiring, with "Images" and "Discipline" sounding something like Duke Ellington if Duke had been from Alpha Centauri. "Sea of Sounds" is a sound sculpture that can't exactly be described; it must really be experienced. "Rocket Number 9" is an oddity that closes off the album in a not-so-serious way, dropping you back down to earth after the extended space excursions of the other tracks. This is music that is absolutely great to listen to with your eyes closed; it invites your imagination to conjure up all kinds of imagery. In spite of the fact that this is very much oriented towards free jazz, there is a great deal of structure here; it's just not obvious structure. Even more importantly, there is a warmth and a communal joviality in this music that is missing from a lot of free and avant-garde jazz, a sense of play and amusement that makes "Space Is The Place" a lot more accessible than most free/avant jazz allows itself to be. Highly recommended for either the advanced space traveller or those still contemplating boarding Rocket #9.Free Music Review: space IS the place
Hit: 4 Stars
sun ra was an experimental artist and an eccentric--he claimed to hail from saturn--who started out with big band bop in the 1950s, and then gradually moved into his own sound, "space" music, that melded bop with free jazz becoming an influential musician to people like ornette coleman, albert ayler, but also MC5, sonic youth, among others. what caught their ear is apparent here. on the one hand, sun ra stayed true to the standard songs jazz is built upon, engaging improvisationally with melody, chord structures, and modes; but at the same time pushing the envelope as to what constituted music, particularly in light of 20th century classical as well as the radical statements of free jazz. this blending leads to free forms that stay in touch with melody and, for lack of a better term, the singing nature of song structures. the title track reveals this well--it swings with funk, but at the same time is all over the place, somehow holding together, though. it is just plain fun for twenty minutes without getting dull or repetitive. the remaining tracks alternate between boppish tunes and free jazz shouts. to some, it may just sound confused, but with repeated listening and an open ear, there is much to explore and discover.Free Music Review: A good start to Saturn
Hit: 4 Stars
"Space is the Place" is the first so-called "free jazz" record I ever heard, and I really had to laugh when I first heard it. It reminded my of a fire alarm in the zoo, and Sun Ra's "space organ" sounds like a Nintendo game boy (especially in the title piece and "Rocket Number Nine"; these two pieces include also vocals by "Space Ethnic Voices"). "Images" is a more conventional big band piece, and "Discipline 33" is a typical free-flowing dissonant composition. "Sea of Sounds" finally is a free jam with squealing saxophone playing by John Gilmore and Marshall Allen. The Impulse! remastering contains some Sun Ra poems that perhaps help better to "understand" the music than any normal liner notes.Free Music Review: Some great somewhat dated work intermixed w/ junior high
Hit: 3 Stars
The title track, Space is the Place, is great. The free 70's jamming fusion sound works well even if dated. There's some great vocal jamming especially from the male voice. Some spots get thin, but overall it works. The second track, Images, starts with a beautiful piano intro. When the ensemble comes in it sounds like a junior high group. The trumpets are out of tune and their tones don't blend. This junior high ensemble playing also taints Discipline. The saxes & drums always sound good. The trumpet solos in Discipline and Sea of Sound work well especially the 2 trumpets squealing on Sea. The trumpet solo on Images made me want to turn off the system. Stylistically, the second & third tracks sound more like standard jazz works while the other three tracks are fusion jamming.Free Music Review: Get the Soundtrack
Hit: 3 Stars
This is a spin off of some sorts. The soundtrack to the Film (of the same name) is a really good release. This album is good but the soundtrack is one of the best of his CD's. RELESE SUB UNDERGROUND ON CD with something else SATURN.