Sun Ra
Of all the jazz musicians, Sun Ra was probably the most controversial. He did not make it easy for people to take him seriously, for he surrounded his adventurous music with costumes and mythology that both looked backward toward ancient Egypt and forward into science fiction. But despite all of the trappings, Sun Ra was a major innovator, starting off playing advanced bop, but early on was open to the influences of other cultures, experimenting with primitive electric keyboards, and playing free long before the avant-garde got established.
Of all the jazz musicians, Sun Ra was probably the most controversial. He did not make it easy for people to take him seriously, for he surrounded his adventurous music with costumes and mythology that both looked backward toward ancient Egypt and forward into science fiction. But despite all of the trappings, Sun Ra was a major innovator, starting off playing advanced bop, but early on was open to the influences of other cultures, experimenting with primitive electric keyboards, and playing free long before the avant-garde got established.
Singles (The Definitive 45's Collection 1952–1991)
Strut present the part one of the definitive collection of singles released by Sun Ra across his illustrious career, spanning 1952 to 1991 - including all Saturn releases, planned singles, posthumous releases and magazine giveaways!
Singles (The Definitive 45s Collection Vol.2: 1962-1991)
*2022 stock. In process of stocking* Following 2016's definitive collection of singles released by Sun Ra from across his illustrious career, Strut present the second volume of the vinyl edition on 3LP format which focus on Ra's later 1962-1991 perio…
Esp-Disk
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock* In October 2018, Steve Holtje, the mastermind of the pioneering American music label ESP, was invited by the 8th OCT-LOFT International Jazz Festival to give a lecture in Shenzhen entitled "55 Years of Pioneering …
The Futuristic Sounds Of Sun Ra
This special 60th Anniversary reissue of groundbreaking jazz artist Sun Ra’s iconic 1962 album The Futuristic Sounds of Sun Ra features all-analog re-mastering by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio, pressed on 180-gram vinyl at RTI. The package includes T…
Dance Of The Cosmos Aliens / Door Of The Cosmos
* Pressed on a heavy weight single 70g magenta vinyl with a picture sleeve * A couple of magnificent Sun Ra gems on this heavyweight 7". Pressed at 33RPM on neon magenta vinyl. Side Epic - The Sun Ra Quartet, Dance of The Cosmo Aliens from Sun Ra's D…
In Egypt
Strut present the final instalment in their series of reissues of Sun Ra’s historic recordings in Egypt with The Sun Ra Arkestra meets Salah Ragab in Egypt plus the Cairo Jazz Band, originally released on Greek label Praxis in 1983. Salah Ragab firs…
Disco 3000 -Complete Milan Concert 1978-
Disco 3000 is yet another release by the Sun Ra Quartet, recorded during an incredibly prolific period in Italy in January of 1978. The players are Ra (keys), John Gilmore (tenor sax), Michael Ray (trumpet), and Luqman Ali (drums), with assistance fr…
Media Dreams
CD edition, comes in mini LP replica with obi & Japanese insert. Media Dream is a live recording of the Sun Ra Quartet, from January of 1978 in Italy (all the quartet recordings were done that month). It's a mostly free date, with "Constellation" and…
Ra to the Rescue
'Ra to the Rescue was initially pressed in limited quantities in 1983, but several of its tracks subsequently were reissued with incongruous tracks on the albums (commonly referred to as) When Spaceships Appear, Cosmo-Party Blues, Somewhere There, an…
Art on Saturn: The Album Cover Art of Sun Ra's Saturn Label (Book)
Drawn from private collections around the world, this is the first comprehensive collection of the Saturn label’s printed record covers, along with hundreds of the best hand-designed, one-of-a-kind sleeves and disc labels decorated by Sun Ra and memb…
Omniverse
** Purple Vinyl ** Recorded in New York in 1979 and released that year on Sun Ra's Saturn label, this is a solid, overlooked set in the vast Ra canon. The tracks aren't so much compositions as excursions, pure jazz, lots of reflective piano in trio, …
Beautiful Young Generation
* Limited Edition 180-Gram white vinyl. Comes in a deluxe matte laminate gatefold sleeve * Newly mastered from original BYG tapes. BYG were a pioneering independant record compagny, one of the first labels to actively promote diversity and support b…
Angels and Demons at Play (7")
* Pressed as a heavy weight single 70g with a picture sleeve. Edition of 750 * Angels and Demons at Play featuring Marshall Allen. Tracks include "Angels and Demons at Play" recorded in 1960, "Between Two Worlds" recorded in 1960. "Spontaneous Simpli…
My Brother The Wind, Vol. I (Expanded Edition)
CD digipack. "My Brother The Wind, Vol. 1 captures Afrofuturist visionary Sun Ra's initial 1969 encounter with the Moog synthesizer. The album has been meticulously remastered from archival session tapes and includes rare and previously unreleased st…
Lanquidity
** 2CD version is housed in foil digipak** Strut present the definitive edition of Sun Ra’s classic ‘Lanquidity’ album from 1978 . Recorded overnight at Bob Bank’s Blank Tapes on 17th July 1978 after the Arkestra had appeared on Saturday Night Live, …
Super-Sonic Jazz
** Limited Edition 500 Copies Individually Numbered On Clear Vinyl! ** Despite the futurism that the title of the set might imply, the material on this LP is actually some of Sun Ra's earliest, and dates back to the years when the Arkestra was first …
When Angels Speak of Love
"One of a number of sessions cut at the Choreographers' Workshop, this
1963 set establishes Sun Ra's Arkestra as a New York band, sonically
coupled to developments in the decidedly urbane downtown arts
underground. The stargazing clamor of the mus…
A Black Mass
* 2021 stock * 'A Black Mass' is an ultra rare recording of a play by Amiri Baraka (LeRoi Jones), featuring Sun Ra & the Myth-Science Arkestra. Originally released by Jihad Productions on vinyl 1968. It has only been briefly available on CD previousl…
Celestial Love
* Featuring contributions from the queen of afrofuturism, June Tyson. Includes a bonus cut from the same sessions, not available on the original LP. * True studio albums of Ra with the Arkestra are rare on this planet or beyond. This studio saucer is…
Extensions Out, Plus: Four Poetry Books 1957-1972 (4x Books)
Corbett vs. Dempsey announce the release of four books of poetry by Sun Ra. Two of these were pamphlets that accompanied early Sun Ra albums issued in the late 1950s; the other two were published more than a decade later by Infinity Inc./Saturn Resea…