Kevin Whitehead

In the 70s, Ra started reviving then-obscure 1930s swing tunes by his early idol and one-time employer, bandleader Fletcher Henderson. Those vehicles for trumpet sensation Michael Ray let the orchestra traverse time as well as space. This is Yeah Man.

Sun Ra and his orchestra played three sets that evening in 1978, and the double album, Lights on a Satellite, gives a fair sampling of their range and includes a few tunes they didn't record so much. There are good features for tenor saxophone hero John Gilmore and altoist Marshall Allen. At age 100, Marshall leads a posthumous Sun Ra orchestra that also has a new CD called Lights on a Satellite.

That modern band has its moments, But there's only one Sun Ra as a leader or keyboard player. Here he is on organ for round midnight, just playing the melody his way.

The producer of this and dozens of historical jazz records, many of which we've praised here on the show, is Zev Feldman, who likes to fill out album booklets with extracts from interviews he conducts with witnesses whose memories are not always accurate or pertinent.

The Sun Ra booklet contains a few contradictory or just plain wrong statements, some made by Feldman himself, about such easy-to-verify stuff as what day or days the orchestra played that weekend or at what time. Those famous ballroom shows were all Sundays from 5 to 9 p.m.

In the booklet, someone guesses Sun Ra played three or four times for the Left Bank Jazz Society when it was 13 concerts in 11 years. Producer Feldman calls himself the jazz detective, but it's a detective's job to sift through conflicting accounts to tell us what really happened, not just throw it all out there before racing off to another case.

Valuable music like this deserves more scrupulous documentation. ¶¶

Drummer Roy Haynes, what saxophonist Stan Getz in 1961. Haynes was on one of his several hot streaks in the early 60s, enlivening a few classic records with drum intros that grabbed your attention and sparked the action. Here's Roy Haynes kicking off a tune by Oliver Nelson. ¶¶ And one by pianist Andrew Hill. And one more, Eric Dolphy's G.W.

Drummer Roy Haynes, what saxophonist Stan Getz in 1961. Haynes was on one of his several hot streaks in the early 60s, enlivening a few classic records with drum intros that grabbed your attention and sparked the action. Here's Roy Haynes kicking off a tune by Oliver Nelson. ¶¶ And one by pianist Andrew Hill. And one more, Eric Dolphy's G.W.

Drummer Roy Haynes, what saxophonist Stan Getz in 1961. Haynes was on one of his several hot streaks in the early 60s, enlivening a few classic records with drum intros that grabbed your attention and sparked the action. Here's Roy Haynes kicking off a tune by Oliver Nelson. ¶¶ And one by pianist Andrew Hill. And one more, Eric Dolphy's G.W.

Behind the drums, Roy Haynes displayed power and intelligence. He was a quick and highly interactive listener who knew when to support a soloist and when to provoke them. He grew up in Boston, picking up the sticks around age seven, and started playing professionally before he even had a full drum set.

Behind the drums, Roy Haynes displayed power and intelligence. He was a quick and highly interactive listener who knew when to support a soloist and when to provoke them. He grew up in Boston, picking up the sticks around age seven, and started playing professionally before he even had a full drum set.

Behind the drums, Roy Haynes displayed power and intelligence. He was a quick and highly interactive listener who knew when to support a soloist and when to provoke them. He grew up in Boston, picking up the sticks around age seven, and started playing professionally before he even had a full drum set.

His parents were from Barbados, and a variety of Anglo and Latino Caribbean rhythms would inform his phrasing. On a 1951 Charlie Parker record date with a Latin flavor, Haynes on drum set seamlessly blends with Afro-Cuban conga and bongo players, then swings in straight jazz time on his own, moving easily from one groove to the other.

His parents were from Barbados, and a variety of Anglo and Latino Caribbean rhythms would inform his phrasing. On a 1951 Charlie Parker record date with a Latin flavor, Haynes on drum set seamlessly blends with Afro-Cuban conga and bongo players, then swings in straight jazz time on his own, moving easily from one groove to the other.

His parents were from Barbados, and a variety of Anglo and Latino Caribbean rhythms would inform his phrasing. On a 1951 Charlie Parker record date with a Latin flavor, Haynes on drum set seamlessly blends with Afro-Cuban conga and bongo players, then swings in straight jazz time on his own, moving easily from one groove to the other.

Roy Haynes had moved to New York as World War II ended, soaking up the music uptown and down. He landed a choice two-year gig with saxophonist Lester Young in 1947, and by the early 50s, leaders were vying for his services. Haynes left Miles Davis to join Charlie Parker. He did a season backing Ella Fitzgerald, then five years with the even more acrobatic singer Sarah Vaughan.

Roy Haynes had moved to New York as World War II ended, soaking up the music uptown and down. He landed a choice two-year gig with saxophonist Lester Young in 1947, and by the early 50s, leaders were vying for his services. Haynes left Miles Davis to join Charlie Parker. He did a season backing Ella Fitzgerald, then five years with the even more acrobatic singer Sarah Vaughan.

Roy Haynes had moved to New York as World War II ended, soaking up the music uptown and down. He landed a choice two-year gig with saxophonist Lester Young in 1947, and by the early 50s, leaders were vying for his services. Haynes left Miles Davis to join Charlie Parker. He did a season backing Ella Fitzgerald, then five years with the even more acrobatic singer Sarah Vaughan.

IDing the members of her trio on stage, Vaughn took to giving them an introduction fans would echo ever after.