Lee Shook on the Sun Ra Day Festival :: 2026

Everyone knows he came from Saturn. But his earthly form, that of a young jazz prodigy Sonny Blount, was born on May 22, 1914, in Birmingham, Alabama. And Birmingham is where the the Sun Ra Day Festival, a multi-day, multi-city event—with outposts in London and Nashville—is rooted. Commemorating the 112th anniversary of his earthy arrival, the festival's aim is to explore and expand the cosmic legacy of Ra with film screenings, talks, and a performance by his Arkestra, under the leadership of the 102-year-old saxophonist Marshall Allen, who studied directly with Ra for decades. Organizer Lee Shook joins us to discuss.

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