21st Century Jazz in 1974

“Universal Beings” by Makaya McCraven was one of bandcamp's top ten jazz albums for 2018. Here's “Holy Lands” from that CD.

https://intlanthem.bandcamp.com/track/holy-lands-feat-brandee-younger.

Sun Ra had an album, “Crystal Spears”, rejected by his label in 1973.

Here's “Eternal Sphynx” recorded for that album and now available on bandcamp.

https://sunramusic.bandcamp.com/track/the-eternal-sphynx

From the liner notes.

Why was Crystal Spears rejected? A year or two after Ra’s signing, reigning ABC management was swept out and new execs rolled in. It’s quite probable that the new execs didn’t comprehend what was happening on these recordings. For the uninitiated, this was not jazz as they knew it, but unbridled cacophony. But is it? Sun Ra always had a method to his madness—and a madness to his method. ... Track two, “The Eternal Sphynx,” is probably the most commercial sounding work.

These two songs share aural, intellectual, and cosmic space. It is a tribute to Sun Ra that his music can be seen as 45 years ahead of it's time. And it's a tribute to Makaya McCraven that he can popularize today sounds that still demand an open mind and full attention.