Home » Jazz Musicians » Michael Ray
Michael Ray
Marshall Allen's Ghost Horizons: Live in Philadelphia

by Mark Corroto
In 2025, the Collegium Cardinalium, or College of Cardinals--a body formed in the Middle Ages--convened a conclave in Rome to elect a new Pope for the Catholic Church. Nearly five centuries before the inception of such conclaves, Tibetan Buddhists established their own process of succession by searching for the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama, often discovered in the form of a child. These spiritual traditions of succession are vital for preserving the identity, rituals and philosophies of their institutions. Each ...
Continue ReadingSun Ra: Lights on a Satellite: Live At The left Bank

by Ian Patterson
Sun Ra aficionados seem to possess an insatiable appetite for archival recordings of the ever-evolving ensembles of the pianist, composer and bandleader. Born Helman Poole Blount, in Alabama, in 1914, Ra released possibly as many as 200 albums during his lifetime, including extremely limited pressings with hand-painted covers that he sold in person. You might think such a vast and collectable discography would be treasure-trove enough for even the most committed of Ra crate diggers, but no. Which brings us ...
Continue ReadingSun Ra Arkestra: Lights on a Satellite

by Joshua Weiner
As befits a being whose life encompassed much of the Solar System, from his origins on Saturn to his long earthly sojourn that ended in 1993, Sun Ra composed, played and recorded an astronomical panoply of musical styles across six decades. Lights On A Satellite, a new double album released by Germany's In+Out Records, presents a varied program that serves as a dual tribute to both Ra and Marshall Allen, the recent centenarian who has directed the Sun Ra Arkestra ...
Continue ReadingSun Ra: Lights on a Satellite: Live At The left Bank

by Mark Corroto
Sun Ra's 1978 performance at Baltimore's Left Bank Jazz Society ballroom had something for everyone. The great man and his Arkestra, along with singer June Tyson and dancers, performed jazz from its inception to what Ra predicted (correctly) as its future. This recording is the second unissued discovery from Zev Feldman, the Jazz Detective," and it follows the sprawling At The Showcase: Live In Chicago 1976-1977 (Elemental Music, 2024). These years, the late 1970s, were an interesting time for Ra. ...
Continue ReadingSun Ra: At the Showcase (Live In Chicago, 1976-1977)

by Giuseppe Segala
Moltissime sono le registrazioni di Sun Ra, alcune memorabili. In ognuna si nasconde una tessera, un elemento della sua vitalità inesauribile, della sua ricerca cosmica di torcere, frammentare, lacerare le convenzioni. Di toccare con mano meravigliata i materiali di cui dispone, quasi venissero da altri mondi, da altre dimensioni, da logiche differenti. Sun Ra trascende le convenzioni. Nel corso degli anni, il musicista ha ricevuto costanti attenzioni da parte del pubblico e delle etichette discografiche. Un pubblico che ...
Continue ReadingSun Ra: At The Showcase (Live In Chicago, 1976-1977)

by Mike Jurkovic
It is an unchallenged law of nature that wherever or whoever anyone happens to be when they encounter Sun Ra, they are certain to be somewhere and someone else after the meeting. That holds especially true of Sun Ra at the Showcase: Live in Chicago. Captured during two barn-burning performances at the Windy City's venerable Showcase Club in '76 and '77, this limited 2-LP, 2 CD set--released by the equally venerable Zev Feldman's Jazz Detective label to celebrate ...
Continue ReadingSun Ra: At The Showcase (Live In Chicago, 1976-1977)

by Glenn Astarita
Embark on a cosmic odyssey with Sun Ra and his Arkestra as they unveil At the Showcase Live in Chicago 1976-1977, a celestial offering dripping with mystique and intrigue. This transcendent collection not only unveils previously unreleased tracks but also grants access to the legendary Showcase Lounge, overseen by the venerable Joe Segal. Complemented by a captivating booklet featuring insights from Marshall Allen and reflections from jazz luminaries like David Murray and Matthew Shipp, this album becomes a veritable treasure ...
Continue Reading