The wonderful world of Sun Ra: Remembering the jazz icon’s ‘Happy New Year to You’ single
He wasn’t born Sun Ra, he was born Herman Poole Bloun in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1914—not that he believes he was ever really born in the traditional sense to begin with. At one point in his metaphysically unending journey, which is frankly hard to determine (but roughly translates to the early 1940s in layman’s terms), he was baptised in the heady zeitgeist of the jazz scene and took up the legal moniker of Le Sony’r Ra, later shortened to Sun Ra in homage to the Egyptian God of the Sun. He believed that he was an angel from Saturn. As you might expect, he was known in the local papers as “an eccentric character”.
The budding jazz musician would proudly proclaim: “I am Sun Ra ambassador from the intergalactic regions of the council of outer space.” And he certainly pushed jazz to lofty new heights. Aside from the obvious eccentricities and the credo of iconoclasm that he sported; he was also defined by virtuoso talents that have inspired a generation of musicians from all sorts of genres. As a pianist and bandleader and encompassing etcetera, Sun Ra was everything that comes under the term ‘renaissance man’. In fact, he exposes the limits of that particular phrase. He is a man that even Bob Lazar can’t explain.
Ultimately, although it is not easily discernible, it would seem that his aim was to embalm the hardships of the black American experience with some sort of celestial abstraction of humanity’s primordial roots on the banks of the Nile. This philosophy might not have stood up to the tests of white-coated anthropologists, but Sun Ra didn’t really pay any mind to anything that wasn’t enshrined in the ether of mysticism. In philosophy as in life and music, he walked the road less travelled.
As he poetically recited in ‘Space is the Place’:
“I’m not real, I’m just like you. You don’t exist in this society. If you did your people wouldn’t be seeking equal rights.
You’re not real, if you were you’d have some status among the nations of the world. So we are both myths.
I do not come to you as a reality, I come to you as the myth because that is what black people are: myths.
I came from a dream that the black man dreamed long ago. I’m actually a presence sent to you by your ancestors.”
In short, you really can’t state enough how much of a tenet mysticism was to his art. And part of that was not philosophise into oblivion – quite the opposite, in fact – it was to look at important things with a bit of knees up that appeals to our curious human nature. Thus, when it comes to the grand party of new year’s eve, he was happy to fall back on good old doo-wop fun.
This sensationally invigorating anthem is as refreshing as bucks fizz. He recorded the track for an EP titled The Qualities at home. Sun Ra takes the lead on the harmonium and an unknown backing band chime in on guitar, bells and the trusty wood block. As ever, Sun Ra gives you plenty reason to give him a spin. Kickstart your new year in his wonderful world.
