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Avg: 3.5 (68 ratings)
- Date Released: January 1, 1982
- Genre: Jazz
- Style: Contemporary, Avant-garde
- Label: Unheard Music Series / Atavistic / The Orchard
"When they push the button…"
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We Say...
Nuclear War is actually a live-in-studio recording, but tighter, and the material is strong and representative of the time. The title cut is a rare Ra social-protest funk-chant, and it's a doozy: "They're talkin' about, nuclear war... it's a motherfucker, don't you know? When they push the button, your ass gotta go!" Also included: simmering soul-organ grooves where John Gilmore swings as hard and brilliantly as any tenor player on this or any other planet; muscular hard-bop riffs and tautly controlled slow-tempo dissonance; a note-perfect "Drop Me Off in Harlem," one of several forgotten Duke Ellington gems Ra loved to play; and ingenious, off-beat but oh-so-right arrangements of the standards "Sometimes I'm Happy" and "Smile," with a heart-stopping June Tyson vocal on the latter.
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They Say...
Along with Lanquidity, Nuclear War is one of the rarest discs in Sun Ra's enormous catalog. Recorded in 1982, Nuclear War disappeared until 2001 when the Chicago-based Atavistic label made it part of their exceptional "Unheard Music Series." Originally Ra was so sure the funky dance track was a hit, he immediately took it to Columbia Records, where they immediately rejected it. Why he thought a song with the repeating chant "Nuclear War, they're talking about Nuclear War/It's a motherf***er, don't you know/if they push that button, your ass gotta go/and whatcha gonna do without your ass" would be a hit is another puzzle in the Sun Ra myth. Even with the danceability factor, without heavy censoring, the song would never be played on the radio. Severely depressed by the rejection, but still determined, Ra licensed the track to Y Records, a post-punk label out of Britain. Initially a vinyl 12" was released with "Sometimes I'm Happy" on the flip side. Two years later, Nuclear War was released as an album, but only in Italy. The remaining tracks include four originals and three standards, Ellington's "Drop Me Off in Harlem," "Sometimes I'm Happy," and "Smile." The latter two are highlights in their own right thanks to the gorgeous vocals of June Tyson.
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| 01. |  |
Nuclear War |
7:47 |
|
| 02. | |
Retrospect |
5:43 |
|
| 03. | |
Drop Me off in Harlem |
5:04 |
|
| 04. | |
Sometimes I'm Happy |
4:29 |
|
| 05. | |
Celestial Love |
5:35 |
|
| 06. | |
Blue Intensity |
5:17 |
|
| 07. | |
Nameless One No. 2 |
4:01 |
|
| 08. | |
Smile |
4:24 |
|
08 Total Tracks, 42:20 Total Length
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Credits
- John Gilmore - Sax (Tenor) // Marshall Allen - Flute // Marshall Allen - Sax (Alto) // Hayes Burnett - Bass // Samarai Celestial - Drums // Vincent Chancey - French Horn // Tyrone Hill - Trombone // Tyrone Hill - Vocals // Walter Miller - Trumpet // Dick O'Dell - Producer // Sun Ra - Organ // Sun Ra - Organ // Sun Ra - Organ // Sun Ra - Organ // Sun Ra - Organ // Sun Ra - Organ // Sun Ra - Organ // Sun Ra - Organ // Sun Ra - Synthesizer // Sun Ra - Synthesizer // Sun Ra - Synthesizer // Sun Ra - Synthesizer // Sun Ra - Synthesizer // Sun Ra - Synthesizer // Sun Ra - Synthesizer // Sun Ra - Synthesizer // Sun Ra - Piano // Sun Ra - Piano // Sun Ra - Piano // Sun Ra - Piano // Sun Ra - Piano // Sun Ra - Piano // Sun Ra - Piano // Sun Ra - Piano // Sun Ra - Vocals // Sun Ra - Vocals // Sun Ra - Vocals // Sun Ra - Vocals // Sun Ra - Vocals // Sun Ra - Vocals // Sun Ra - Vocals // Sun Ra - Vocals // Sun Ra - Main Performer // Sun Ra - Main Performer // Sun Ra - Main Performer // Sun Ra - Main Performer // Sun Ra - Main Performer // Sun Ra - Main Performer // Sun Ra - Main Performer // Sun Ra - Main Performer // June Tyson - Vocals // Sun Ra Arkestra - Performer // James Jacson - Bassoon // John Corbett - Producer // John Corbett - Liner Notes // Martyn Lambert - Design // Atakatune - Percussion // Atakatune - Conga
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