A pure solar world : Sun Ra and the birth of Afrofuturism /
Youngquist, Paul,
A pure solar world : Sun Ra and the birth of Afrofuturism / Paul Youngquist. - First edition. - viii, 346 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (black and white) ; 24 cm. - Discovering America . - Discovering America. .
Includes bibliographical references, discography and index.
AcknowledgmentsPrelude to InfinityIntro: Wonder Inn1. Alien2. Marienville3. Bronzeville4. Thmei5. Egypt6. Washington Park7. Arkestra8. Immeasurable Equation9. El Saturn10. Isotope Teleportation11. Cry of Jazz12. Sputnik13. Rocketry14. Tomorrowland15. Interplanetary Exotica16. Space Music17. Myth Science18. Black Man in the Cosmos19. Space Is the Place20. Tokens of Infinity21. ContinuationOutro: Extensions OutNotesBibliographyDiscographyCredits and PermissionsIndex
Surveying the range of Sun Ra's extraordinary creativity, this book explores how the father of Afrofuturism brought "space music" to a planet in need of transformation, supporting the aspirations of black people in an inhospitable white world. Sun Ra said he came from Saturn. Known on earth for his inventive music and extravagant stage shows, he pioneered free-form improvisation in an ensemble setting with the devoted band he called the "Arkestra." Sun Ra took jazz from the inner city to outer space, infusing traditional swing with far-out harmonies, rhythms, and sounds. Described as the father of Afrofuturism, Sun Ra created "space music" as a means of building a better future for American blacks here on earth.A Pure Solar World: Sun Ra and the Birth of Afrofuturism offers a spirited introduction to the life and work of this legendary but underappreciated musician, composer, and poet. Paul Youngquist explores and assesses Sun Ra's wide-ranging creative output-music, public preaching, graphic design, film and stage performance, and poetry-and connects his diverse undertakings to the culture and politics of his times, including the space race, the rise of technocracy, the civil rights movement, and even space-age bachelor-pad music. By thoroughly examining the astro-black mythology that Sun Ra espoused, Youngquist masterfully demonstrates that he offered both a holistic response to a planet desperately in need of new visions and vibrations and a new kind of political activism that used popular culture to advance social change. In a nation obsessed with space and confused about race, Sun Ra aimed not just at assimilation for the socially disfranchised but even more at a wholesale transformation of American society and a more creative, egalitarian world.
9780292726369 (hbk.) : No price No price No price
2016005943
Sun Ra.
Jazz musicians--Biography.
Jazz--History and criticism.
Biography.
Biography & non-fiction prose
Musicians, singers, bands & groups
United States of America, USA
20th century, c 1900 to c 1999
Popular music
Composers & songwriters
Biography: general
Jazz
ML410.S978 / Y68 2016
781.65092
A pure solar world : Sun Ra and the birth of Afrofuturism / Paul Youngquist. - First edition. - viii, 346 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (black and white) ; 24 cm. - Discovering America . - Discovering America. .
Includes bibliographical references, discography and index.
AcknowledgmentsPrelude to InfinityIntro: Wonder Inn1. Alien2. Marienville3. Bronzeville4. Thmei5. Egypt6. Washington Park7. Arkestra8. Immeasurable Equation9. El Saturn10. Isotope Teleportation11. Cry of Jazz12. Sputnik13. Rocketry14. Tomorrowland15. Interplanetary Exotica16. Space Music17. Myth Science18. Black Man in the Cosmos19. Space Is the Place20. Tokens of Infinity21. ContinuationOutro: Extensions OutNotesBibliographyDiscographyCredits and PermissionsIndex
Surveying the range of Sun Ra's extraordinary creativity, this book explores how the father of Afrofuturism brought "space music" to a planet in need of transformation, supporting the aspirations of black people in an inhospitable white world. Sun Ra said he came from Saturn. Known on earth for his inventive music and extravagant stage shows, he pioneered free-form improvisation in an ensemble setting with the devoted band he called the "Arkestra." Sun Ra took jazz from the inner city to outer space, infusing traditional swing with far-out harmonies, rhythms, and sounds. Described as the father of Afrofuturism, Sun Ra created "space music" as a means of building a better future for American blacks here on earth.A Pure Solar World: Sun Ra and the Birth of Afrofuturism offers a spirited introduction to the life and work of this legendary but underappreciated musician, composer, and poet. Paul Youngquist explores and assesses Sun Ra's wide-ranging creative output-music, public preaching, graphic design, film and stage performance, and poetry-and connects his diverse undertakings to the culture and politics of his times, including the space race, the rise of technocracy, the civil rights movement, and even space-age bachelor-pad music. By thoroughly examining the astro-black mythology that Sun Ra espoused, Youngquist masterfully demonstrates that he offered both a holistic response to a planet desperately in need of new visions and vibrations and a new kind of political activism that used popular culture to advance social change. In a nation obsessed with space and confused about race, Sun Ra aimed not just at assimilation for the socially disfranchised but even more at a wholesale transformation of American society and a more creative, egalitarian world.
9780292726369 (hbk.) : No price No price No price
2016005943
Sun Ra.
Jazz musicians--Biography.
Jazz--History and criticism.
Biography.
Biography & non-fiction prose
Musicians, singers, bands & groups
United States of America, USA
20th century, c 1900 to c 1999
Popular music
Composers & songwriters
Biography: general
Jazz
ML410.S978 / Y68 2016
781.65092