Sun Ra lived with a burden upon him. Tirelessly working, waking from short sleeps sitting at the piano to immediately write down music that had come to him in dreams. Seemingly not a moment for himself, living under constant pressure to create new forms. It was a task he had put upon himself, to spread the truth of the universe through compositions which he thought projected that upon the world. For Sun Ra, sound was eternal, not limited to the time it is performed, but resounding on forever. His motives were the disruption and stimulation of your consciousness and existence.
Getting up from the organ in his Philadelphia loft, Sun Ra answered the door buzzer. Two black suited men awaited him: My friend, we know. We know that you understand the code. But, be warned, you would be worthless in trying to tell people about it. They won't listen, nor will they believe you. What's more, you'll be locked up as soon as anyone decides to call you a lunatic. We'll make a deal with you, and you have absolutely no choice in the matter. Your music will be heard all across the globe, it will be loved and adored for generations, and live forever. Your writings will be read by a strong contingent of followers and students. Your performances will leave audiences in awe of beauty. All this, but you can't talk about the code. Sun Ra didn't react.
The Secret Freemason Code, which uses the initials of titles, is present throughout Jazz, as it is throughout all mass media of the past century. Jazz and Freemasonry have a deep, interconnected history. If it wasn't for Masons in the music industry supporting its commercial expansion, Jazz would never have reached the popularity which it did. Although part of a treacherous conspiracy, this letter-number code has been rightfully treated as a spiritual concept by Mason Jazz musicians: beautiful, celestial, unknowable and untenable, yet somehow within reach. Many of the last century’s most prominent jazz standards were titled by their luminary authors (Duke Ellington, Thelonious Monk, Dizzy Gillespie, Horace Silver) to follow the Media Alphabet Code's “Rule of 3”. Basically, the majority of initials contain a multiple of 3 according to their place in the alphabet. This group of letters is used with the catalyst group consisting of A (1), B (2), J (10) and T (20).
“Ain’t Misbehavin’”: A.M. = 1-13
"April In Paris": A.I.P. = 1-9-16
"Blue Monk": B.M. = 2-13
"Blue Moon": B.M. = 2-13
“Blue Skies”: B.S. = 2-19
“Body And Soul”: B.A.S. = 2-1-19
"Cantaloupe Island": C.I. - 3-9
“Fly My To The Moon”: F.M.T.T.M. = 6-13-20-20-13
"I Cover The Waterfront": I.C.T.W. = 9-3-20-23
“In A Mellow Tone”: I.A.M.T.= 9-1-13-20
“In A Sentimental Mood”: I.A.S.M.= 9-1-19-13
“In A Silent Way”: I.A.S.W. = 9-1-19-23
"In The Mood": I.T.M. - 9-20-13
“In Walked Bud”: I.W.B. = 9-23-2
"It Might As Well Be Spring": I.M.A.W.B.S. = 9-13-1-23-2-19
"Just Friends": J.F. = 10-6
“Mack The Knife”: M.T.K. = 13-20-11
“Makin’ Whoopee”: M.W. - 13-23
“Mood Indigo”: M.I. = 13-9
“Moonlight Serenade”: M.S. = 13-19
“Mr. PC”: M.P.C. = 13-16-3
"My Favorite Things": M.F.T. = 13-6-20
“My Ship”: M.S. = 13-19
“My Way”: M.W. = 13-23
“Salt Peanuts”: S.P. = 19-16
“’S Wonderful”: S.W. = 19-23
"Satin Doll": S.D. = 19-4
"September Song": S.S. = 19-19
"Softly, As In A Morning Sunrise": S.A.I.A.M.S. = 19-1-9-1-13-19
“Someday My Prince Will Come”: S.M.P.W.C. = 19-13-16-23-3
“Song For My Father”: S.F.M.F = 19-6-13-6
"Squeeze Me": S.M. - 19-13
“Stella By Starlight”: S.B.S = 19-2-19
“Stolen Moments”: S.M. = 19-13
"Stairway To The Stars": S.T.T.S. = 19-20-20-19
“Strange Fruit”: S.F. = 19-6
“Summer Wind”: S.W. = 19-23
“They Can't Take That Away From Me”: T.C.T.T.A.F.M. = 20-3-20-20-1-6-13
"Till We Meet Again": T.W.M.A. = 20-23-13-1
“Watermelon Man”: W.M. = 23-13
"We'll Meet Again": W.M.A. = 23-13-1
“What A Wonderful World”: W.A.W.W. = 23-1-23-23
“Willow Weep For Me”: W.W.F.M. = 23-23-6-13
"Woodchopper's Ball": W.B. = 23-2
“Work Song”: W.S. = 23-19
Billy Holiday’s “Strange Fruit” is a haunting song about lynching, America’s terrible history of hanging African-Americans without trial. Beyond belief, as a popular song it must fit into the code also. S.F. equals 19-6, a roundabout way of stating 6/9 or .666. repeating, the “devil’s number”, the “number of the beast”. This example is the precisely the reason for my steadfast opposition to the existence of the code. Its authors believe that America’s hardships are justified by their end goal, utopian peace. But while Blacks were being beaten in the streets, hated and hosed, hung and humiliated in their quest for true equality, this nefarious secret endured, inhibiting the masses, the righteous, the protesters and objectors, in their truly eternal struggle against the power entity that corrupts our world. Now, just as then, the watchmen look on unconcerned from their vaulted ivory tower. As long as this secret is so, we the people will never be truly free. So, that must change.
There were thousands of jazz compositions published widely during the last century whose content was subject to exacting censor scrutiny before release. One of the ways which their authors maintained the omnipresence of the letter code, while also keeping it enigmatic and complicated, is the prevalent use of pronouns. In these cases, the importance of a title’s initials may be superseded by subversive rhetoric. A majority of jazz pieces contain “I…”, “You…”, or “We…”. The word “I” is used as a placeholder for the ideas which it as a letter and corresponding number 9 represent esoterically: the Universe, and the Self. The Illuminati believe themselves to be ambassadors of the Universe's will, so “I” also refers to their affect upon the world. “We”, disguised as a reference to a romantic couple, or “we the people”, actually refers to the members of this secret ruling class. “You”, Y.O.U., is treated as one of the names of God, and used in the media as a placeholder for God itself, so songs written out of veneration can be veiled as those about normal social relationships. Additionally, the pronouns “He” and “His” are used to refer to Jesus Christ, hence their prevalent use through Christian music. Similarly, “Me” and “My” refer to the Messiah. Hence, for example, “Someday My Prince Will Come”, or Frank Sinatra’s “My Way”. The espousal of religiosity is not intended. This is the apparent nature of the system, if the grandest relationships of the universe are considered to be represented by this small group of important characters, abbreviated into pronouns.
Of all the modern music genres, Jazz is the most spiritual. Its roots are in gospel, folk and blues, styles in which the player extends his or her consciousness towards a grander entity. But Jazz encompasses that and more. It is quintessentially modern in its diversity, simultaneously occupying realms of both the cosmopolitan and pastoral, hedonistic and reverent, distraught and jubilant, improvisational and rehearsed. Jazz musicians view the Freemason code as the embodiment of these paradoxes, a representation of the human condition itself. The Code asserts the dominance of the corporeal "3" letters over the ethereal opposite group because physicality is assuring to the masses. However, the other, unseen nature of the universe will continue to exist regardless, equal in power and importance even if it is not presented in such a way.