Visionary jazz masters Sun Ra Arkestra have been on a roll in the 2020s. Lights on a Satellite is their third release in five years, and it’s another triumph. The new record features the formidable tone scientists at full Arkestra power with a 24-person session that includes tracks ranging from old-school throwbacks to future-forward cosmic jams.
Not to be confused with a recent archival 1978 live album release of the same title on Resonance Records, this session was recorded in one day on 16 June 2024 in honor of saxophonist Marshall Allen‘s 100th birthday on 25 May. Allen stepped back from national touring in 2023. However, he still leads the group’s creative direction and plays gigs in Sun Ra Arkestra‘s home base of Philadelphia and other regional locations like New York City. For many fans, Allen now qualifies as one of the world’s great wonders as he continues to carry Sun Ra‘s vision forward as a centenarian.
Consider that Marshall Allen joined the Sun Ra Arkestra in 1958, first playing on the classic Jazz in Silhouette released that year. It’s been a historic tenure, a testament to the enduring power of this music and founder Sun Ra’s unparalleled cosmic vision. Claiming to have come to Earth from Saturn, the trailblazing philosopher, keyboardist, and tone scientist frequently spoke of using jazz music to awaken humanity to a more spiritual path and greater destiny than this crazy world has had to offer. What still works so well in the 2020s is how the Sun Ra Arkestra blends old-school swing with forward-looking space jazz in such an accessible and compelling way.
Recorded at New York’s Power Station, Lights on a Satellite brings the Arkestra’s high-level tone science into focus for a sonic journey across time and space. The title track leads off the proceedings with a new version of the longtime classic, with lots of space for the horn section. Allen stars here with some dazzling alto sax lines that feel like a sonic meteor shower, with a basic harmonic background serving as a trance-like starry sky.
“Dorothy’s Dance” features a toe-tapping swing sound that sets up the horns for more traditional jazzy solos with a ballroom dance vibe. “Big John’s Special” is an old-school New Orleans style throwback, a Horace Henderson tune arranged by his brother Fletcher Henderson (Sun Ra’s mentor in the early days of his career.) “Images” features lead vocals from Tara Middleton, with some charming ad lib support from saxophonist and now touring band leader Knoel Scott. The horn and string sections mesh well in one of the album’s top orchestrations, followed by swinging horn solos and a nifty piano solo from the intrepid Fareed Abdul-Bari Barron.
The track is an excellent setup for a big jam on “Friendly Galaxy”, a 13-minute exploration through a dazzling sonic landscape that serves as the record’s centerpiece. First appearing on 1965’s Secrets of the Sun, the Arkestra classic receives its most ambitious arrangement with a spacey and percussion-driven intro that sets a trancey tone for an intergalactic trip.
Dissonant piano and horns ride over waves of groovy percussion, like friendly aliens surfing their flying saucer across the cosmos to bring us a benevolent message of peace and harmony. “A friendly galaxy is waiting to welcome you,” Middleton and others sing, in contrast to the fearmongering of a national security threat with the recent UAP/drone flap in New Jersey. The Sun Ra Arkestra are at the top of their game with this “Friendly Galaxy” of collective group majesty.
“Baby Won’t You Please Be Mine” follows in contrast as a blast from the past that stays in traditional mode. It’s a torchy showcase for Middleton on a 1955 composition by Sun Ra, a tune Marshall Allen discovered in the estate archives six years ago. “Holiday for Strings” is another traditional tune dating even further back to 1942. Still, the Sun Ra Arkestra gives it a modern swing with a bouncy groove and squonking sax from Allen while charismatic trumpet player Michael Ray sings the vocal with a festive flavor.
“Tapestry from an Asteroid” is a classic dating back to 1956 as an instrumental, but it serves as a delightful showcase for a Tara Middleton space lounge number here. Her sultry vocals and the baritone sax from Knoel Scott make it feel like a dance number in the pub on a Starfleet starship with an epic view of the cosmos. “Reflects Motion” feels like it could be a jam through an asteroid field, with the horns darting around on a free jazz ride over wild percussion like the Millennium Falcon darting through the asteroids in The Empire Strikes Back. The full sonic force of the Arkestra is on display here for nine minutes of groovy goodness.
“Joy Delight” is a more stripped-down, straight-ahead number. The horns sync with the drums, almost like percussion instruments. An infectious melody builds as sax lines stretch out over the main melody for a hot groove that could fit right into the repertoire of a Mos Eisley Cantina band. “Way Down in New Orleans” brings the sound back to terra firma to close out the album with a Dixie-style vocal number in tribute to America’s jazz capital.
As per tradition, saxophonist Knoel Scott (an Arkestra member since 1979) now leads the band on tour, with support from longtime trumpet player Michael Ray (a member since 1978). The group carried the cosmic torch in high style when the Sun Ra Arkestra’s spaceship touched down at San Francisco’s Great American Music Hall for three shows from 22-24 November. “Lights on a Satellite”, “Big John Special” and “Holiday for Strings” were all featured. Meanwhile, sensational jams on “Angels and Demons at Play” and “Rocket #9” displayed the impressive collective improvisation heard on “Friendly Galaxy”.
The Sun Ra Arkestra’s sonic vision transcends time and space for these keepers of the cosmic flame, and that vitality comes through loud and clear with Lights on a Satellite.