Sun Ra - The Magic Sun

Sun Ra - The Magic Sun


Starring:Sun Ra, Sun Ra
Studio: Music Video Dist.
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Product Description
MAGIC SUN (SUN RA)
Amazon.com
Sun Ra was no ordinary musician. His "free" approach to jazz was more Thelonious Monk or Ornette Coleman than Glenn Miller or Benny Goodman. His sartorial style was more George Clinton than Miles Davis. Just as Space is the Place, his best known cinematic effort, was no ordinary feature film, Magic Sun is no ordinary performance film. Phill Niblock's 16-minute vision of the late keyboard player/bandleader and 12-piece Arkestra, including John Gilmore and Marshall Allen, is painted in expressionistic shades of black and white--heavy on the black. The pieces are "Celestial Fantasy," "Shadow World," and "Strange Strings." The effect is strange, otherworldly, and disorienting. Magic Sun is accompanied by a 15-minute collection of stills and recitations from the same New York-based period (1963-1967). For the uninitiated, it may not be the best place start, but for the faithful, this previously obscure document is sure to be of great interest. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
Sun Ra - The Magic Sun
Average customer rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
  • Beware of faulty dvds in this edition
  • "The Space Age calls for Space Wares...that is, Far Out in a Cool manner," - Sun Ra
  • Out there a few minutes
 Sun Ra - The Magic Sun
Starring: Sun Ra , and Sun Ra
Manufacturer: Mvd Visual
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Similar Items:
  1. Sun Ra - A Joyful Noise
  2. Sun Ra - Space Is The Place
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ASIN: B0006U3UBK
Release Date: 2005-03-08

Product Description

MAGIC SUN (SUN RA)

Amazon.com

Sun Ra was no ordinary musician. His "free" approach to jazz was more Thelonious Monk or Ornette Coleman than Glenn Miller or Benny Goodman. His sartorial style was more George Clinton than Miles Davis. Just as Space is the Place, his best known cinematic effort, was no ordinary feature film, Magic Sun is no ordinary performance film. Phill Niblock's 16-minute vision of the late keyboard player/bandleader and 12-piece Arkestra, including John Gilmore and Marshall Allen, is painted in expressionistic shades of black and white--heavy on the black. The pieces are "Celestial Fantasy," "Shadow World," and "Strange Strings." The effect is strange, otherworldly, and disorienting. Magic Sun is accompanied by a 15-minute collection of stills and recitations from the same New York-based period (1963-1967). For the uninitiated, it may not be the best place start, but for the faithful, this previously obscure document is sure to be of great interest. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Customer Reviews:

1 out of 5 stars Beware of faulty dvds in this edition.......2006-04-30

My copy of the DVD seemed to be missing 3 of the "astonishing features" :-( It had the main film The Magic Sun which is wonderful and the 5.1 surround mix is great but it only had the photo montage and one "astonsishing extra". My copy had 5 short apocryphal clips of some IMHO very bad rock music clips, these were not complete and looked like they got stuck on by mistake in the copy run I received. Make sure you get the real thing. I have told Caiman about this who said tell Amazon so Amazon is advised and Atavistic. Perhaps they will reply here and enlighten us all.

5 out of 5 stars "The Space Age calls for Space Wares...that is, Far Out in a Cool manner," - Sun Ra.......2006-02-04

Now, wait a second -- this feature is far better than you are being led to believe by the official Amazon &/or prior reviews...there IS a 16 minute film at the start, which could be summed up as a series of "close-ups in the dark" of the movement of hands playing instruments, eyes blinking, abstract moments interacting...but that is not all by any stretch.

The real gem here is the additional Ra footage that has a dense homemade witchcrafty appeal with Ra's whispered vocals, tape clicking, and general 'space-armchair-philosophizing' that is the true forte of this eccentric original in music history. Even though many stills are used to visually move Ra's musings forward, it never feels cheap artistically. The style works for the material.

Any Sun Ra archivist who can do without the features "Ra Speaks", "Eternal Ltd", "My Children" and "Truth is Bad" on this DVD is missing an arm and leg in this most unusual artist's body of work. MORE SILENCES than Ra enthusiasts will be used to in such an 'official' production, the focus of the disc really hones in on the entity that is the Man, more than the band.

"The Ancient Egyptians were the first to speak of Solar Boats, thousands of years ago..." Ra tells us. "We sail the galaxies through the medium of sound and take our audiences with us, whether they want to go or not!"

Make no mistake, "THE MAGIC SUN" is the part B appendix to the "Space Is The Place" Sun Ra classic. Do not miss the ride.

5 out of 5 stars Out there a few minutes.......2005-03-16

It's hard to think of anything you could order now that would give you a more concentrated dose of Sun Ra than this disc. The music represents the height of the Arkestra's studio power. It's great to hear Shadowlands with such clarity. The film, short as it is, is only watchable with frequent distractions, but Niblock's optical effects are as intense as the best 60's light show. Ra's recitations, with accompanying photos, are no less mind bending.

Both film and photos are well wrought to burnish the cosmic image that Ra sought to project. All the awe without the tinsel. For the music alone, this is going to be a frequent flier on my powerbook.

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