100-Year-Old Sun Ra Arkestra Leader Marshall Allen Announces 1st Solo Album

The album, New Dawn will be released on Feb. 14

A 100-year-old musician will release his first solo music project on Feb. 14. Marshall Allen, the leader of the legendary group Sun Ra Arkestra, has recently announced plans for his first solo album, New Dawn. The second single, which is also the title track, has already been released and features singer Neneh Cherry with an accompanying video.

Marshall Allen will release his debut solo album “New Dawn” at the age of 100 on Feb 17 2025. African Sunset is the first single to be released from the album, out now. Composed by Marshall Allen / Arranged by Knoel Scott. pic.twitter.com/9KN8pGaZpG

— Sun Ra Arkestra (@SunRaUniverse) December 22, 2024

The album on Mexican Summer/Week-End Records was produced with fellow Arkestra member Knoel Scott and producer Jan Lankisch and incorporated musicians Michael Ray and Cecil Brooks (trumpet), Jamaaladeen Tacuma (bass), Bruce Edwards (guitar), and George Gray (drums). The project was recorded in Philadelphia in May. Lankisch did the album in collaboration with Scott, a lifelong friend of Allen’s.

“Knoel’s energy became the driving force behind the project,” Lankisch said. “He knew Marshall better than anyone, and his deep understanding of Marshall’s compositions guided the selection of material for the album.”

The two producers had a collection of unrecorded material to choose from when selecting tracks for Allen, who turns 101 in May.

They started recording the album just two days after he turned a century old. This album showcases a new chapter for Allen, “a love letter to spacetime that channels a century of musical transience and transcendence into seven outer-dimensional tracks.”

Lankisch says, “We have created a record that showcases Marshall Allen’s musical versatility, including a surprisingly calmer side we may not have heard before.”

New Dawn
1. Prologue
2. African Sunset
3. New Dawn (feat. Neneh Cherry)
4. Are You Ready
5. Sonny’s Dance
6. Boma
7. Angels and Demons at Play

Sun Ra Arkestra – 2025 Tour Dates
Thu Jan 30th. Princeton, NJ Berlind Theatre
Sat March 8th. Meredith, Victoria, Australia Golden Plains Festival
Sat March 22nd. Washington, DC Howard Theatre
Fri March 28th. Knoxville, TN Big Ears Festival with Yo La Tengo
Sat March 29th. Knoxville, TN Big Ears Festival
Sat May 10th. London, U.K. HERE at Outernet
Mon May 12th. Mannheim, Germany Alte Feuerbache
Tue May 13th. St. Gallen, Switzerland Palace
Thu May 15th. Athens, Greece CT Theater