Sun Ra created some trailblazing sounds that helped to change not only the sound of jazz, but several other genres as well. His space sounds helped to create the experimental music known as psychedelic and its '70s offshoot, space rock. With Atlantis, Sun Ra shows both sides of his personality, offering a side of smaller cuts and one long solid jam that helped define the sound of space jazz.
Atlantis is the first of Sun Ra's and probably the first jazz record as well to feature the brand new clavinet (dubbed the 'solar sound instrument'). Later on, musicians as diverse as Stevie Wonder and Herbie Hancock would create some of their finest compositions using the instrument. But here Sun Ra had introduced the solid funk groove of the clavinet to jazz.
His style changes give an introspective view of where Sun Ra was going with musical ideas. 'Mu' shows his interest in social, technological and musical diversity by building a track around acoustic and electronic instruments while having tenor-sax man John Gilmore lay out a raga styled solo. On the 21 minute title track, Sun Ra cuts one of his finest free (or space) jazz compositions ever. Atlantis is an amazing opus that features a larger band than the opening five tracks. Here Ra builds a masterpiece that twists and turns through many soundscapes and gives the whole track a diversity that stands apart from all of Sun Ra's other records. Atlantis is not only one of Ra's most eclectic albums, but overall is one of the finest he ever released.
1. Mu
2. Lemuria
3. Yucatan (Saturn Version)
4. Yucatan (Impulse Version)
5. Bimini
6. Atlantis
LINK
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