The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra, Volume One
Encyclopedia
The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra, Volume One is a 1965 album by the jazz
musician Sun Ra
. The back cover describes it as an "album of compositions and arrangements by Sun Ra played by Sun Ra and his Solar Arkestra".
The album is a notable example of the radical break which Sun Ra's music of that time had made with "previous notions of melody or harmony". Although heavily percussive, the music also dispenses with a continuous beat; instead Ra's music is reconstructed around "interweaving compositional and improvisatory creative principles with programmatic affects".
The album was originally released as The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra, with a B/W sleeve designed by Ra himself. This was replaced with a new orange and red sleeve by Howard Bernstein & Baby Jerry - showing Sun Ra with the third eye
- and the appendage Vol. 1 added when The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra, Volume Two
was released in 1966.
Gene Tyranny describes the album in his review as
described the recording of the album in John F Szwed's biography of Ra, Space Is The Place;
Side B:
Recorded at Studio RLA, New York, April 20, 1965. Engineered by Richard L Alderson.
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
musician Sun Ra
Sun Ra
Sun Ra was a prolific jazz composer, bandleader, piano and synthesizer player, poet and philosopher known for his "cosmic philosophy," musical compositions and performances. He was born in Birmingham, Alabama...
. The back cover describes it as an "album of compositions and arrangements by Sun Ra played by Sun Ra and his Solar Arkestra".
The album is a notable example of the radical break which Sun Ra's music of that time had made with "previous notions of melody or harmony". Although heavily percussive, the music also dispenses with a continuous beat; instead Ra's music is reconstructed around "interweaving compositional and improvisatory creative principles with programmatic affects".
The album was originally released as The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra, with a B/W sleeve designed by Ra himself. This was replaced with a new orange and red sleeve by Howard Bernstein & Baby Jerry - showing Sun Ra with the third eye
Third eye
The third eye is a mystical and esoteric concept referring in part to the ajna chakra in certain spiritual traditions. It is also spoken of as the gate that leads within to inner realms and spaces of higher consciousness...
- and the appendage Vol. 1 added when The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra, Volume Two
The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra, Volume Two
The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra, Volume Two is a 1965 recording by the jazz musician Sun Ra and his Solar Arkestra. Where Volume One of the Heliocentric Worlds series had predominantly featured short abstract pieces, Volume Two features longer pieces performed by a smaller group, making it closer...
was released in 1966.
Gene Tyranny describes the album in his review as
The astonishing sessions that went light years beyond "free jazz" improvisation to create a music of deeply felt explosive and gentle gesture made from sound itself without reference to previous notions of melody or harmony.
Recording the album
Marshall AllenMarshall Allen
Marshall Belford Allen is an American free jazz and avant-garde jazz alto saxophone player. He also performs on flute, oboe, piccolo, and EVI ....
described the recording of the album in John F Szwed's biography of Ra, Space Is The Place;
"Sun Ra would go to the studio and he would play something, the bass would come in, and if he didn't like it he'd stop it; and he'd give the drummer a particular rhythm, tell the bass he wanted not a "boom boom boom," but something else, and then he'd begin to try out the horns, we're all standing there wondering what's next...
"I just picked up the piccolo and worked with what was going on, what mood they set, or what feeling they had. A lot of things we'd be rehearsing and we did the wrong things and Sun Ra stopped the arrangement and changed it. Or he would change the person who was playing the particular solo, so that changes the arrangement. So the one that was soloing would get another part given to him personally. 'Cos he knew people. He could understand what you could do better so he would fit that with what he would tell you." Marshall Allen
12" Vinyl
Side A:- "Heliocentric" – 4:00
- "Outer Nothingness" – 7:40
- "Other Worlds" – 4:18
Side B:
- "The Cosmos" – 7:20
- "Of Heavenly Things" – 5:40
- "Nebulae" – 3:16
- "Dancing in the Sun" – 1:50
Recorded at Studio RLA, New York, April 20, 1965. Engineered by Richard L Alderson.
Musicians
- Sun RaSun RaSun Ra was a prolific jazz composer, bandleader, piano and synthesizer player, poet and philosopher known for his "cosmic philosophy," musical compositions and performances. He was born in Birmingham, Alabama...
- Piano, Bass marimba, Electric Celseste, Timpani - Chris Capers - Trumpet
- Teddy Nance - Trombone
- Bernard Pettaway - Bass Trombone
- Marshall AllenMarshall AllenMarshall Belford Allen is an American free jazz and avant-garde jazz alto saxophone player. He also performs on flute, oboe, piccolo, and EVI ....
- Piccolo, Alto sax, Bells, Spiral Cymbal - Danny Davis - Flute, Alto Sax
- Robert Cummings - Bass Clarinet, Woodblocks
- John GilmoreJohn Gilmore (musician)John Gilmore was an American jazz tenor saxophone player best-known for his long tenure as a member of Sun Ra's Arkestra...
- Tenor Sax, Timpani - Pat Patrick - Baritone Sax, Timpani
- Ronnie BoykinsRonnie BoykinsRonnie Boykins was a jazz bassist and is best known for his work with pianist/bandleader Sun Ra, although he had played with such disparate musicians as Muddy Waters, Johnny Griffin, and Jimmy Witherspoon prior to joining Sun Ra's Arkestra.-Biography:He joined the Arkestra during the Chicago...
- Bass - Jimhmi Johnson - Drums, Percussion, Timpani