Sun Ra Charts

This collection came to me by way of Eugene Chadbourne, who got it from a guy who offered him a copy of “the Sun Ra band book” a few years ago. No idea who that guy was, or if this was actually the band book at one point (see comment below), but he provided a very nice collection of over 90 charts from Sun Ra covering 1936-1978. Most were composed by Sun Ra, but there are also charts by Ronald Boykins, Julian Priester, Marshall Allen and others.

For me, part of the fascination with this music is seeing the evolution of Sun Ra’s name. The earliest chart, from December 1936, is credited to Sonny Blount. A few years later we see the introduction of Herman Poole Blount. 1952 is the first time in this collection that credit is given to “Sun Ra” followed by variations including Le Sonyr Ra (or Le Sony’r Ra) or Le Sun Ra. John Szwed’s “Space Is The Place” includes some interesting discussions on the evolution of Sun Ra’s name and the various names for the Arkestra.

With a couple of exceptions all of these charts appear complete. Many are fairly basic lead sheets or piano versions (though interestingly many do not have written chord changes), a few are fully fleshed out arrangements. Based on the date and this post, I believe the “unknown” chart to be “Out of Sight” but I cannot find a recording for comparison.

All of these charts are provided for academic purposes only. Buy Sun Ra’s recordings, go see the Arkestra if they come to your town, support the music as best you can, preferably by performing these tunes to keep the music alive.

If you find any errors, please let me know!

If you have any charts not here, I would love to have copies!

Download the collection here.

tone science 126

[track – artist – album – year]

1. Tanking / Foster Mural – Jeb Bishop & Tim Daisy – Old Shoulders – 2012
2. Absolute Zero / Refraction – Ellery Eskelin, Susan Alcorn, Michael Formanek – Mirage – 2013

3. Boom Goes The Moon – Joshua Abrams Quartet – Unknown Known – 2013
4. Ayler Children – Black Host – Life in the Sugar Candle Mines – 2013
5. I launch an attack…. / HARD LOVE – Marina Rosenfeld – P.A. – Hard Love – 2013
6. Insext – Daniel Wohl, Transit – Corps Exquis – 2013

7. When Under Ether – PJ Harvey – White Chalk – 2007
8. yes is a pleasant country – Susanne Abbuehl – April – 2000
9. Harry Partch Laments the Dying Of the Moon… and Then Laughs – Eric Revis, Kris Davis, Andrew Cyrille – City of Asylum – 2013
10. Planet – The Engines, John Tchicai – Other Violets – 2013

11. Elephant Gun – Whatever Brains – Whatever Brains – 2013
12. The Space Beneath My Grey Heart – Okkyung Lee – Ghil – 2013
13. Part IV – Konstruckt, Peter Brotzmann – Ekilisia Sunday – 2013
14. Chimay Blues – Desert Heat – Cat Mask at Huggie Temple – 2013

15. Art Decade – David Bowie – Stage – 1978

originally broadcast July 14, 2013

tone science 125

[track – artist – album – year]

1. Phantasia – Jessica Rylan – Interior Designs – 2007

2. Cool Copy / Looking – The Engines, John Tchicai – Other Violets – 2013
3. Vadim / Egon – Eric Revis, Kris Davis, Andrew Cyrille – City of Asylum – 2013

4. Hana – Joni Mitchell – Shine – 2007
5. Berlin Ballad – John Tchicai, Vitold Rek – Satisfaction: Art of the Duo – 1991
6. Waltz After David M – Gary Peacock, Marilyn Crispell – Azure – 2013
7. Moss Garden – David Bowie – “Heroes” – 1977

8. Schtyx (1991) – Alvin Curran – Schtyx – 1994

9. Contrasts, Sz 111 – Béla Bartók, Benny Goodman, Joseph Szigeti – Bartók: Contrasts, Mikrokosmos – 1940

originally broadcast July 7, 2013

tone science 124

[track – artist – album – year]

1. Darco / Cardio / Micro – Piotr Tkacz & Alice Hui-Sheng Chang – Micro – 2013

2. Rainbands – Sarah Davachi – The Untuning of the Sky – 2013
3. Obstacle of Sleep – Peter Garland – Three Strange Angels – 2008
4. A Beautiful View – Bill Frisell – Big Sur – 2013

5. The Tree of Strings – Harrison Birtwistle/Arditti Quartet – Complete String Quartets – 2012

6. A Visitation From the Wrath of Heaven – Locrian – Return to Annihilation – 2013
7. Nightmare Logic -Lukas Ligeti – Afrikan Machinery – 2008
8. Natural Selection – Rara Avis – Mutations – 2013

9. Marshall – Brian Harnetty – The Star-Faced One (From the Sun Ra Archives) – 2013
10. Human Encore – Trespass Trio, Joe McPhee – Human Encore – 2013
11. Hrim – Anna Thorvaldsdottir/CAPUT Ensemble – Rhizoma – 2011

12. Violin – C. Spencer Yeh – None – 2013

originally broadcast June 30, 2013

tone science 123

[track – artist – album – year]

1. Dance in The Rain – Toddlers –  19 EP – 2013
2. This Is Ekstasis – Julia Holter – Ekstasis – 2012
3. Victim Of Sound Bite – Jon Butcher, Phil Durrant, John Russel – Concert Moves – 1992

4. Somebody Special – The Whammies – Play the Music of Steve Lacy vol. 2 – 2013
5. presentation (for Buckminster Fuller) – Made To Break – Provoke – 2013

6. Space Speed Suicide – Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraiso U.F.O. – In Search Of The Lost Divine Arc – 2013
7. Ke ala ke aloha me ka hikina – Anthony La’akapu Lenchanko – Hawaiian Drum Dance Chants – 1989
8. String Trio – Caleb Burhans, Nadia Sirota, Clarice Jensen – Joseph Byrd: NYC 1960-1963 – 2013

9. Brown Rice – DKV Trio – Past Present – 2008
10. Refutable Logic – Sean Conly – Re:Action – 2008
11. String Quartet No. 5 (Bela Bartok) – Takacs Quartet – The 6 String Quartets – 1998

12. Isis and Osiris – Alice Coltrane – Journey in Satchidananda – 1979
originally broadcast June 23, 2013

tone science 122

[track – artist – album – year]

1. Tetras – Iannis Xenakis/JACK Quartet – Complete String Quartets – 2009

2. Chakapa Vomit – Nathan Bowles & Scott Verrastro – Polar Satellites – 2013
3. Providence – King Crimson – Red – 1974
4. Broken Music 2 – Fire Room – Broken Music – 2008

5. Manta – Satoko Fujii Trio – Trace a River – 2008
6. Omaggio A Emilio Vedova (1960) – Luigi Nono – Complete Works for Solo Tape – 2006
7. Duo Flow – Richard Carrick – The Flow Cycle for Strings – 2011

8. Lo Haze – Jonathan Finlayson & Sicilian Defense – Moment & the Message – 2013
9. Nightgaunts – Rudimentary Peni – Cacophony – 1989
10. 1000 Words – Jeb Bishop, Jorrit Dijkstra – 1000 Words – 2012
11. Cielostraat – Mark Dresser/France-Marie Uitti – Sonomondo – 2006
12. Wells – Ingebrigt Haker Flaten Chicago Sextet – Live At Jazzfest Saalfelden 2011 – 2012

13. Plight of the Mocking Birds – Jack Wright & Bob Marsh – Birds in the Hand – 2003
14. String Quartet No. 2 – Milton Babbitt – Occasional Variations – 2003

originally broadcast June 16, 2013

tone science 121

[track – artist – album – year]

1. Thoughts Under a Dark Blue Light – Sun Ra – Cymbals – 1973

2. Lyons In Lyon (For Jimmy Lyons) – Dennis Gonzalez’s Inspiration Band + Henry Grimes – Nile
River Suite – 2004
3. Solo For Voice 23 / 0’00” Nº2 – Rafael Toral – LOVE: Rafael Toral plays John Cage – 2013
4. Skull Bowl – Jeremiah Cymerman’s Amplified Quartet – Sky Burial – 2013

5. Jasper (Christian Wolff) – Robert Black – Look She Said: Complete Works for Bass – 2002
6. Cat’s Squirrel 2 – Merzbow & Oren Ambarchi – Cat’s Squirrel – 2013
7. Virgoan Ways – Ingebrigt Håker Flaten Chicago Sextet – Live At Jazzfest Saalfelden 2011 – 2012

8. Asymptotic Gravity I & II – Nathan Bowles & Scott Verrastro – Polar Satellites – 2013

originally broadcast June 9, 2013

tone science 120

[track – artist – album -year]

1. Three Songs of Mad Coyote – Peter Garland – Three Strange Angels – 2008

2. The Horrors In The Museum – Rudimentary Peni – Cacophony – 1989
3. Dead Level – Pipe – Slowboy -1997
4. Annihilator Gators – Rafiq Bhatia – Yes It Will – 2012
5. Sky Burial – Jeremiah Cymerman’s Amplified Quartet – Sky Burial – 2013
6. Animals – American Contemporary Music Ensemble – Joseph Byrd: NYC 1960-63 – 2013

7. Soldier-Talk – The Red Crayola – Solder-Talk – 1979
8. A.I.R. (All India Radio) – Carla Bley – Escalator Over the Hill – 1971
9. Jamaica – Jeanne Lee – Conspiracy – 1975
10. Untitled, 1968, Bing Cherry Juice, KY Jelly, Ketchup On Vellum – Jeff Parker & Scott Fields – Song Songs Song – 2004

11. Hymn For The Ashes of Saturday – Dennis González’s Inspiration Band & Henry Grimes – Nile River Suite – 2004
12. The Steamship Authority – Father Figures – Bad Bad Birds – 2012
13. Mothra – Fight the Big Bull – All is Gladness in the Kingdom – 2010
14. The Satellites Are Spinning – Sun Ra and his Solar Arkestra – Horizon – 1971

15. Winter Song – Rain Machine – Rain Machine – 2009

originally broadcast June 2, 2013

tone science 119

[track – artist – album – year]

1. Last Famous Words / Theme From Konono No. 2 – The Ex & Brass Unbound – Enormous Door – 2013

2. Couch Ogah – Jeb Bishop, Jaap Blonk, Lou Mallozzi, Frank Rosaly – At The Hideout – 2012
3. The Flame Alphabet – Rodrigo Amado Motion Trio + Jeb Bishop – The Flame Alphabet – 2013
4. Shadow Flow – Richard Carrick – The Flow Cycle for Strings – 2011

5. Dead Battery – Ches Smith & These Arches – Hammered – 2013
6. After After – Joelle Leandre – Nicole Mitchell – Dylan Van Der Schyff – Before After – 2011
7. Lightheaded and Heavyhearted – Annie Gosfield – Lost Signals and Drifting Satellites – 2004

8. Drummer’s Corpse – Mike Pride – Drummer’s Corpse – 2013

originally broadcast May 26, 2013

tone science 118

[track – artist – album – year]

1. Satie (First Gnossienne) – Big Blood – Strange Maine 1.20.07 – 2007
2. Vitamin C – Big Blood – Sew Your Wild Days Tour Vol. 1 – 2007

3. Rockabilly – Fe-Mail – Blixter Toad – 2006
4. I Am Here – Savages – Silence Yourself – 2013
5. In a Dream-Home – Lasse Marhaug & Bruce Russell – Virginia Plane – 2013
6. Duo C/Z #3  – Charlemagne Palestine, Z’ev – Rubhitbangklanghear Rubhitbangklangear – 2013

7. Side B – Bill Orcutt & Chris Corsano – The Raw and the Cooked – 2013
8. La Reine de la Salle / Acrid Landscape – John Hebert – Byzantine Monkey – 2009
9. Calling All Portraits – Mary Halvorson, Jessica Pavone, Devin Hoff, Ches Smith – Calling All Portraits – 2008

10. Glass Room at the Airport – Pan American – Cloud Room, Glass Room – 2013
11. Lamru – Mammane Sani et son Orgue – La Musique Electronique du Niger – 2013
12. Subterraneans – David Bowie – Low – 1977
13. You Used To Say I Love You But So What Now – Scott Fields Freetet – Bitter Love Songs – 2008

14. Twilight – Steve Lacy Trio – The Window – 1988

originally broadcast May 19, 2013