Fantastic. Another rare Saturn release makes its way into the digital realm. This time, it's
Some Blues But Not the Kind That's Blue, a nice 1977 date that's heavy on standards. Aside from the two
Sun Ra tunes (one of which had been unreleased prior to this), this is a pretty inside date with some major statements from
Ra on piano and
John Gilmore on tenor. Everyone gets a bit of solo room, and the flutes and bass clarinet add some nice colors, especially on "My Favorite Things," a song so closely identified with the John Coltrane Quartet that this version is almost startling in its contrast to
Coltrane's myriad versions.
There is no bass player present, with the low end falling mostly to
Ra's piano.
Luqman Ali's drumming, as always, is remarkable in its tasty understatement. Although recorded about a decade apart,
Some Blues But Not the Kind That's Blue is of a piece with
Blue Delight: a mostly standards albums that really put the spotlight on
Sun Ra's piano playing and the tenor artistry of
John Gilmore. Although the
Arkestra is notorious for its outside playing and cacophonous tendencies, this album shows they could play it straight as well as anyone in the game. Wonderful stuff. [This release was remastered and co-produced by
Michael D. Anderson (of the Sun Ra Music Archive) and
Irwin Chusid, under the auspices of Sun Ra LLC, the heirs of the late music legend. Original session tapes were used when available and sound quality should surpass all previous CD/digital editions.] ~ Sean Westergaard