# Sun Ra house in Philadelphia is now a historic landmark: Video, Photos

- Link: https://jazzblues.eu/2022/06/06/sun-ra-house-in-philadelphia-is-now-a-historic-landmark-video-photos/
- Published: 2022-06-06T15:32:03+01:00
- Author: https://JazzBlues.EU

**The legendary building is listed in the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places,
ensuring its protection and upkeep. Sun Ra House, the three-story Philadelphia building
that has been a cradle for Sun Ra’s evolving Arkestra outfit since the 1960s, has
been listed as a historic landmark in the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places.**

The building at 5626 Morton Street, also known as the Arkestral Institute of Sun
Ra, reportedly still houses a number of Arkestra members, including current bandleader
Marshall Allen. Allen had lived in the house since 1968. In 2021, he reported that
the building had partially collapsed. On May 13, the Philadelphia Historical Commission
unanimously voted to grant the protected status, a representative for the register
said.

As a result of the designation, the Historical Commission will ensure any adjustments
to the building meet historic preservation standards, as well as advising on its
restoration and maintenance. The designation came about with help from the Robert
Bielecki Foundation, a philanthropist organization devoted to artists. Check out
the Historical Commission’s proposal for the nomination.

![The Quietus | Features | Tome On The Range | 30th Century Music Now: Mick Houghton
Remembers Sun Ra](https://i0.wp.com/s3.amazonaws.com/quietus_production/images/articles/
26598/sun-ra-crystal-spears-cover-1200x631_1559842025_crop_550x289.jpg?resize=640%
2C336)

Sun Ra returned to the astral plane in 1993, but his Arkestra continued to tour 
and record until the turn of the millennium, when it pared back to become a looser
touring outfit. Sun Ra Arkestra regrouped in 2020 for Swirling—its first album in
decades—which was nominated for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album award at the 2022
Grammys. After contributing to Swirling, the Arkestra’s longtime baritone sax player
and manager Danny Ray Thompson died in 2020 at age 72; bassist Juini Booth died 
the following year.

![A Guide to Sun Ra on Film | Pitchfork](https://i0.wp.com/media.pitchfork.com/photos/
5f7e0e20204e0c7ee7e6035c/16%3A9/w_4640%2Ch_2610%2Cc_limit/Sun-Ra.jpg?w=640&ssl=1)

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