You think Willie Nelson is a marvel in the music world, still recording and performing at age 91? Say hello to Marshall Allen, longtime leader of the legendary Sun Ra Arkestra.

Allen, 100, has been at the helm of the Arkestra since 1995, directing the avant-garde jazz ensemble after the death of Afrofuturist visionary (and Birmingham native) Sun Ra. Allen, a composer and saxophone player, joined the Arkestra in 1958 after meeting Sun Ra, and has been a force in jazz music ever since.

Now, as he approaches his 101st birthday, Allen is set to release his debut solo album, “New Dawn.” It’s available on Feb. 14 via Mexican Summer/Week-End Records. The title track was released on Wednesday, Jan. 15, featuring singer Neneh Cherry. (See the official video for the song below.)

The single is “deep in Ra’s era-melting ethos,” says Jon Pareles of The New York Times. “It’s a leisurely, jazz-chorded ballad, composed by Allen, with lyrics by Knoel Scott that urge, ‘Arise and seek / Hear spirit speak.’ Neneh Cherry sings with fond composure over sustained strings and a rustling rhythm section, and Allen’s alto saxophone solo scurries down polytonal paths, still frisky.”

The “New Dawn” album is a milestone for Allen, who has never released a record under his own name, despite decades of creativity and music exploration. A press release calls “New Dawn” a new chapter for the innovative musician and “a love letter to spacetime that channels a century of musical transience and transcendence.”

Seven tracks are featured on the record: “Prologue,” “African Sunset,” “New Dawn,” “Are You Ready,” “Sonny’s Dance,” “Boma” and “Angels and Demons at Play.”

Allen continues to perform with the Sun Ra Arkestra, although his travel schedule is less rigorous than it was over the previous decades, according to The Philadelphia Tribune. The centenarian, who lives in Philadelphia, now sticks to shows within driving distance of his home.

Although primarily known for his mastery of the alto saxophone, Allen also plays flute, oboe, piccolo and EVI, an electronic instrument that’s been described as “a synthesizer for a trumpet player.” His influence extends beyond the free jazz world; Allen has performed with Sonic Youth, NRBQ, Phish, Digable Planets and Medeski, Martin & Wood, according to the National Endowment for the Arts.

“Allen’s longevity onstage would be noteworthy on its own,” The New York Times said in July 2024, after the Arkestra performed in Brooklyn. “But when you take in an Arkestra gig — watching Allen repeatedly leap to his feet to solo, resplendent in a gold-sequined cap and vest — his endurance is mind-boggling.”

When asked to share his philosophy for a long and successful life, here’s what Allen told The Philadelphia Tribune: “It’s to keep on working and, for me, to keep on making music. I have some minor aches and pains, but doctors say I’m in pretty good shape and that’s because of my music.”