The music was recorded in early 1972 in San Francisco, California for the film Space Is the Place.

In 1971, Sun Ra taught a course, "The Black Man in the Cosmos," at University of California, Berkeley.

The Penguin Guide to Jazz describes the album as "a brisk montage of Arkestra music....[I]t works remarkably well and the playing is tight and enigmatic.

"[3] The Penguin editors also note that "Mysterious Crystal" is of particular interest, with the track "combining a huge array of elements into something that simply cannot be characterized by reference to any other music.

"[3] Ron Wynn of Allmusic describes the tracks as being "among Sun Ra's most ambitious, unorthodox, and compelling compositions.