To mark what would have been Sun Ra’s 100th birthday, Marshall Allen, the longest serving member of the Sun Ra Arkestra and current leader, has curated a new collection of highlights from over 25 years of music. Coming via Strut on September 22, In The Orbit Of Ra features music from the 60s through to the 80s, all mastered from the original tapes. It is trailed as "the first internationally released compilation to provide an introduction to the music of Sun Ra".
The album features a previously unreleased track from the Art Yard Records archives, the acoustic ‘Trying To Put The Blame On Me’ which was recorded live in Rome in 1977, as well as Part I of ‘Reflects Motion’, another previously unreleased offcut from the freeform jazz luminary. In addition to the track selection, the release also boasts recollections and contributions from core Arkestra members including Allen, Michael Ray, Knoel Scott and Danny Ray Thompson. In The Orbit Of Ra will be available in CD, LP and digital formats (the physical formats exclusively feature a full interview with Marshall Allen) and you can stream ‘Plutonian Nights’, taken from the collection, above.
