Space Is the Place
Released
Not to be confused with the soundtrack to jazzman Sun Ra’s 1974 sci-fi film of the same name, this five-song album remains the Afrofuturist bandleader’s most famous album. The title track features singer June Tyson intoning “space is the place” ad infinitum over spirited saxophone, clarinet, bass and organ from the Astro Intergalactic Infinity Arkestra. Chaotic free form jazz dominates the aptly titled “Sea of Sounds,” while “Images” (structured around Sun Ra’s piano melody) sounds far more traditional than other avant-garde compositions in his catalog. The sounds of Saturn were never more accessible.