Charles Mingus | ||
| Allmusic Biography : Bassist, composer, arranger, and bandleader Charles Mingus cut himself a uniquely iconoclastic path through jazz in the middle of the 20th century, creating a musical and cultural legacy that became universally lauded. As an instrumentalist he had few peers -- he was blessed with a powerful tone and pulsating sense of rhythm, capable of elevating the instrument into the frontline of a band. Intensely ambitious yet often earthy in expression, simultaneously politically radical and deeply traditional spiritually, Mingus music took elements from everything he had experienced -- from gospel and blues, New Orleans jazz, swing, bop, Latin music, modern classical music, and even the jazz avant-garde, and adapted it for ensembles ranging from trios and quartets to sextets and orchestras. His touchstone was the advanced harmonic and timbral swing palette pioneered by Duke Ellington. Mingus took the maestros harmonic innovations to a different sphere, grafting on gutbucket blues, abrasive dissonances, and introducing abrupt changes in meter and rhythm. While his early works were written out in classical fashion, during the 1950s, influential albums such as Pithecanthropus Erectus, The Clown, and Ah-Um offered a new method of getting his unconventional vision across: he dictated various parts of a composition to his sidemen, all the while allowing room for their individual musical personalities and ideas. This continued throughout the 60s and 70s. His transition from bebop to his pioneering place in hard bop brought to the fore an exciting array of future jazz luminaries including Jackie McLean, Eric Dolphy, Dannie Richmond, and Jimmy Knepper, to mention a few of the musicians he mentored. Mingus was also a formidable pianist, easily capable of playing that role in a group -- which he did in his 1961-1962 bands, hiring another bassist to fill in for him. Born in a Nogales Army camp, Mingus moved to the Watts district of Los Angeles, where he grew up. The first music he heard was that of the church -- the only music his stepmother allowed around the house -- but one day, despite the threat of punishment, he tuned in to Duke Ellingtons "East St. Louis Toodle-Oo" on his fathers crystal set, his first exposure to jazz. He tried to learn the trombone at six and then the cello, but became fed up with incompetent teachers and ended up on the double bass by the time he reached high school. His early teachers were Red Callender and an ex-New York Philharmonic bassist named Herman Reinshagen, and he studied composition with Lloyd Reese. A proto-third stream composition written by Mingus in 1940-1941, "Half-Mast Inhibition" (recorded in 1960), reveals an extraordinary timbral imagination for a teenager. As a bass prodigy, Mingus performed with Kid Ory in Barney Bigards group in 1942 and went on the road with Louis Armstrong the following year. He would gravitate toward the R&B; side of the road later in the 40s, working with the Lionel Hampton band in 1947-1948, backing R&B; and jazz performers, and leading ensembles in various idioms under the name Baron Von Mingus. He began to attract real national attention as a bassist for Red Norvos trio with Tal Farlow in 1950-1951, and after leaving that group, he moved to New York and began working with several stellar jazz performers, including Billy Taylor, Stan Getz, and Art Tatum. He was the bassist in the famous 1953 Massey Hall concert in Toronto with Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Bud Powell, and Max Roach, and he briefly joined his idol Ellington: he had the dubious distinction of being the only man Duke ever personally fired from his band. Around this time, Mingus tried to make himself a rallying point for the jazz community. He founded Debut Records in partnership with his then-wife Celia and Max Roach in 1952, seeing to it that the label recorded a wide variety of jazz, from bebop to experimental music, until its demise in 1957. Among Debuts most notable releases were the Massey Hall concert, an album by Miles Davis, and several of his own sessions that traced the development of his ideas. He also contributed composed works to the Jazz Composers Workshop from 1953 to 1955, and in 1955, he founded his own Jazz Workshop repertory group that found him moving away from strict notation toward a looser, dictated manner of composing. By 1956, with the release of Pithecanthropus Erectus (Atlantic), Mingus had clearly found himself as a composer and leader, creating pulsating, ever-shifting compendiums of jazzs past and present, feeling his way into the free jazz of the future. For the next decade, he would pour forth an extraordinary body of work for several labels, including key albums like The Clown, New Tijuana Moods, Mingus Ah Um, Blues and Roots and Oh Yeah; standards like "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat," "Better Git It in Your Soul," "Haitian Fight Song," and "Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting," and extended works like Meditations on Integration and Epitaph. Through ensembles ranging in size from a quartet to an 11-piece big band, a procession of noted sidemen like Eric Dolphy, Jackie McLean, J.R. Monterose, Jimmy Knepper, Roland Kirk, Booker Ervin, and John Handy would pass, with Mingus commanding bass and volatile personality pushing his musicians further than some of them might have liked to go. The groups with the great Dolphy (heard live on Mingus at Antibes) in the early 60s might have been his most dynamic, and The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady (1963), is an extended ballet for big band that captures the anguished/joyful split of Mingus personality in full, and his passionately wild cry. Mingus felt the lash of racial prejudice intensely -- which, combined with the frustrations of making it in the music business on his own terms, found its outlet in his music; some of his more unique titles were political in nature, such as "Fables of Faubus" (referring to the Arkansas governor who tried to keep Little Rock schools segregated), "Oh Lord, Dont Let Them Drop That Atomic Bomb on Me," and "Remember Rockefeller at Attica." But he could also be wildly humorous, the most notorious example being "If Charlie Parker Was a Gunslinger, Thered Be a Whole Lot of Dead Copycats" (later shortened to "Gunslinging Bird"). Mingus was almost obsessive in his efforts to free himself from the economic hazards of the music business; so much so that it nearly undermined his sanity during the 60s (some of the liner notes for The Black Saint album were written by his psychologist, Dr. Edmund Pollock). He tried to compete with the Newport festivals by organizing his own Jazz Artists Guild in 1960 that purported to give musicians more control over their work, but that collapsed due to the by-then routine rancor that accompanied so many Mingus ventures, like his calamitous, self-presented New York Town Hall concert in 1962; a shorter-lived recording venture, Charles Mingus Records, in 1964-1965; his failure to find a publisher for his autobiography Beneath the Underdog, and other setbacks that broke his bank account and ultimately his spirit. He quit music almost entirely from 1966 until 1969, resuming performances in June 1969 only because he desperately needed money. Financial angels in the forms of a Guggenheim Fellowship in composition, the publication of Beneath the Underdog in 1971, and the purchase of his Debut masters by Fantasy boosted Mingus spirits, and a stimulating new Columbia album, Let My Children Hear Music, thrust him back into public view. By 1974, he had formed a new young quintet anchored by his loyal drummer Dannie Richmond and featuring Jack Walrath, Don Pullen, and George Adams, and more compositions came forth, including the massive, kaleidoscopic, Colombian-based "Cumbia and Jazz Fusion" that began its life as a film score. Respect for him was growing, but time was running out. In the fall of 1977, Mingus was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrigs disease), and by the following year, he was unable to play the bass. Though confined to a wheelchair, he nevertheless carried on, leading recording sessions and receiving honors at a White House concert on June 18, 1978. His last project was a collaboration with folk-rock singer Joni Mitchell, who wrote lyrics to Mingus music and included samples of Mingus voice on the record. Since his death, Mingus importance and fame have increased exponentially, thanks in large part to the determined efforts of Sue Mingus, his widow. A posthumous repertory group, Mingus Dynasty, was formed almost immediately after his death, and that concept expanded in 1991 into the exciting Mingus Big Band, which resurrected many of Mingus most challenging scores. Epitaph was finally reconstructed, performed, and recorded in 1989 to general acclaim, and several box sets of portions of Mingus output have been issued by Rhino/Atlantic, Mosaic, and Fantasy. Beyond re-creations, the Mingus influence can be heard on Branford Marsalis early Scenes in the City album, and especially in the big-band writing of his brother Wynton. The Mingus blend of wildly colorful eclecticism solidly rooted in jazz history serves his legacy well in a future increasingly populated by young conservatives who want to pay their respects to tradition and try something different. In the fall of 2018, BBE released the previously unissued archival, multi-disc recording Jazz in Detroit/Strata Concert Gallery/46 Selden. Curator, DJ, and producer Amir Abdullah discovered five two-track master tapes in the care of Hermione Brooks -- widow of innovative Detroit drummer Roy Brooks, from his time as a member of the Charles Mingus Quintet -- that were recorded live during Mingus week-long residency in February of 1973. They were broadcast live by drummer/producer and broadcaster Robert "Bud" Spangler on Detroits public radio station, WDET FM. The Strata Gallery was housed in pianist Kenny and Barbara Coxs multi-purpose home for Strata Records at 46 Selden in what was then known as Cass Corridor. | ||
 | Album: 1 of 42 Title: Jazzical Moods Released: 1955 Tracks: 6 Duration: 45:43 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 What Is This Thing Called Love? (08:08) 2 Minor Intrusion (10:12) 3 Stormy Weather (03:18) 4 Four Hands (08:52) 5 Thrice Upon a Theme (06:41) 6 The Spur of the Moment/Echonitus (08:32) |
| Jazzical Moods : Allmusic album Review : Originally recorded for Period Records in 1954, this fairly obscure early Charles Mingus session is a collaboration with composer John LaPorta, who is heard on clarinet and alto saxophone. Its a fascinating effort that shows Mingus awareness of both modern European classical composition and cool jazz. The set includes a mix of Mingus and LaPorta originals, plus freshly arranged standards like "What Is This Thing Called Love" and "Stormy Weather." Also on hand are the great trumpeter Thad Jones and saxophonist/producer Teo Macero. The album features Mingus debut on piano. | ||
 | Album: 2 of 42 Title: Jazz Composers Workshop Released: 1956 Tracks: 11 Duration: 53:16 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Tea for Two (06:19) 2 Eulogy for Rudy Williams (06:21) 3 Purple Heart (05:36) 4 Gregarian Chant (02:51) 5 Getting Together (04:41) 6 Body & Soul (03:07) 7 Rose Geranium (04:12) 8 Level Seven (04:17) 9 Transeason (04:22) 10 Smog L.A. (03:14) 11 O.P. (08:13) |
| Jazz Composers Workshop : Allmusic album Review : The complex music on this LP finds bassist Charles Mingus looking toward contemporary classical music in some of the rather cool-toned arrangements. It was not until later in 1955 that he found the right combination of influences in which to express himself best but these slightly earlier performances have their moments. Four of the selections feature tenor-saxophonist Teo Macero, pianist Wally Cirillo, drummer Kenny Clarke and Mingus in a quartet while the other five tracks showcase a sextet with Macero, George Barrow on tenor and baritone and clarinetistaltoist John La Porta. | ||
 | Album: 3 of 42 Title: Pithecanthropus Erectus Released: 1956-07 Tracks: 4 Duration: 36:26 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Pithecanthropus Erectus (10:35) 2 A Foggy Day (07:48) 3 Profile of Jackie (03:09) 4 Love Chant (14:53) |
| Pithecanthropus Erectus : Allmusic album Review : Pithecanthropus Erectus was Charles Mingus breakthrough as a leader, the album where he established himself as a composer of boundless imagination and a fresh new voice that, despite his ambitiously modern concepts, was firmly grounded in jazz tradition. Mingus truly discovered himself after mastering the vocabularies of bop and swing, and with Pithecanthropus Erectus he began seeking new ways to increase the evocative power of the art form and challenge his musicians (who here include altoist Jackie McLean and pianist Mal Waldron) to work outside of convention. The title cut is one of his greatest masterpieces: a four-movement tone poem depicting mans evolution from pride and accomplishment to hubris and slavery and finally to ultimate destruction. The piece is held together by a haunting, repeated theme and broken up by frenetic, sound-effect-filled interludes that grow darker as mans spirit sinks lower. It can be a little hard to follow the story line, but the whole thing seethes with a brooding intensity that comes from the soloists extraordinary focus on the mood, rather than simply flashing their chops. Mingus playful side surfaces on "A Foggy Day (In San Francisco)," which crams numerous sound effects (all from actual instruments) into a highly visual portrait, complete with honking cars, ringing trolleys, sirens, police whistles, change clinking on the sidewalk, and more. This was the first album where Mingus tailored his arrangements to the personalities of his musicians, teaching the pieces by ear instead of writing everything out. Perhaps thats why Pithecanthropus Erectus resembles paintings in sound -- full of sumptuous tone colors learned through Duke Ellington, but also rich in sonic details that only could have come from an adventurous modernist. And Mingus plays with the sort of raw passion that comes with the first flush of mastery. Still one of his greatest. | ||
 | Album: 4 of 42 Title: A Modern Jazz Symposium of Music and Poetry With Charles Mingus Released: 1957 Tracks: 8 Duration: 56:58 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Scenes in the City (11:38) 2 Nouroog (04:51) 3 New York Sketchbook (08:43) 4 Dukes Choice (06:25) 5 Slippers (03:28) 6 Wouldnt You (08:43) 7 Bounce (09:21) 8 Slippers (alternate take) (03:49) |
| A Modern Jazz Symposium of Music and Poetry With Charles Mingus : Allmusic album Review : Despite its title, this album doesnt contain poetry, nor is it a "symposium." What it does have is a memorable narration by Lonnie Elder on "Scenes in the City" (one of the best collaborations of spoken word and jazz). There are four obscure Charles Mingus compositions for his sextet (which consists of the bassist/leader, trombonist Jimmy Knepper, Shafi Hadi on tenor and alto, either Bill Hardman or Clarence Shaw on trumpet, pianist Horace Parlan, and drummer Dannie Richmond). There are also three previously unreleased performances, including a run-through of Dizzy Gillespies "Wouldnt You." An excellent set of challenging yet often accessible music. | ||
 | Album: 5 of 42 Title: Mingus Three Released: 1957 Tracks: 7 Duration: 37:54 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Yesterdays (04:12) 2 Back Home Blues (05:26) 3 I Cant Get Started (06:26) 4 Hamps New Blues (03:51) 5 Summertime (04:36) 6 Dizzy Moods (06:50) 7 Laura (06:31) |
| Mingus Three : Allmusic album Review : Most often heard in large ensembles and rarely in a trio context, Charles Mingus joined forces with pianist Hampton Hawes for this 1957 studio date. It features four standards, two originals by the bassist, and a jam by the group credited to Hawes. While theres nothing particularly arresting or startling about the date, the relationship between the two ostensible co-leaders is a good case study in group dynamics when deference between two strong-willed individualists turns into a certain amount of compromise. Drummer Danny Richmond is not so much the peacemaker or even mediator, and he is the one with the most common sense who actually pulls this triad into a simpatico unit, cooling the embers with his steady, willful-in-its-own-right playing. As complex as the music of Mingus tends to be, its nice to hear what he does in a more simplified area. His "Back Home Blues" is so basic as his bass leads out, while the Mingus chart "Dizzy Moods" is deeper within an easier swing, allowing darker colors to fully but slowly blossom. Richmond favors the tambourine on "Dizzy Moods" and the hip "A Night in Tunisia"-styled take of "Summertime," while a faster "Hamps New Blues" bops along effortlessly, chided by the drummers accents. Hawes shines in his gilded, rearranged concept of "Yesterdays," intentionally messing up the changes for the first few bars before settling in, while slowing the Vernon Duke evergreen "I Cant Get Started" (always a personal staple of the Mingus book) to a crawl. The most intriguing selection comes at the end, as "Laura" sounds derived from "Tea for Two," with the hardy upright of Mingus sallying forth about this imaginary woman made real through this poignant song. Some six years later, Mingus, Duke Ellington, and Max Roach would record the controversial trio effort Money Jungle, so in many ways this album is a prelude to that all-star combination, both one-shots and definitely sidebars to the careers of all of these brilliant jazzmen. | ||
 | Album: 6 of 42 Title: East Coasting Released: 1957 Tracks: 8 Duration: 49:23 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Memories of You (04:27) 2 East Coasting (05:12) 3 West Coast Ghost (10:25) 4 Celia (07:50) 5 Conversation (05:28) 6 Fifty-First Street Blues (take 4) (05:47) 7 East Coasting (alternate take 3) (05:30) 8 Memories of You (alternate take 3) (04:42) |
| East Coasting : Allmusic album Review : One of Charles Mingus lesser-known band sessions, this lyrical set of five originals (plus the standard "Memories of You") features his usual sidemen of the period (trombonist Jimmy Knepper, trumpeter Clarence Shaw, Shafi Hadi on tenor and alto, and drummer Dannie Richmond), along with pianist Bill Evans. The music stretches the boundaries of bop, is never predictable and, even if this is not one of Mingus more acclaimed dates, it is well worth acquiring for the playing is quite stimulating. | ||
 | Album: 7 of 42 Title: The Clown Released: 1957-08 Tracks: 6 Duration: 56:21 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Haitian Fight Song (12:02) 2 Blue Cee (07:53) 3 Reincarnation of a Lovebird (08:34) 4 The Clown (12:11) 5 Passions of a Woman Loved (09:43) 6 Tonight at Noon (05:58) |
| The Clown : Allmusic album Review : The Clown was Charles Mingus second masterpiece in a row, upping the already intense emotional commitment of Pithecanthropus Erectus and burning with righteous anger and frustration. With Pithecanthropus, Mingus displayed a gift for airtight, focused arrangements that nonetheless allowed his players great freedom to add to the established mood of each piece. The Clown refines and heightens that gift; instead of just writing heads that provide launch points for solos, Mingus tries to evoke something specific with every piece, and even his most impressionistic forays have a strong storytelling quality. In fact, The Clowns title cut makes that explicit with a story verbally improvised by Jean Shepherd (yes, the same Jean Shepherd responsible for A Christmas Story) from a predetermined narrative. There are obvious jazz parallels in the clowns descent into bitterness with every unresponsive, mean-spirited audience, but the track is even more interesting for the free improvisations led by trombonist Jimmy Knepper, as the group responds to Shepherds story and paints an aural backdrop. Its evidence that Mingus compositional palette was growing more determinedly modern, much like his increasing use of dissonance, sudden tempo changes, and multiple sections. The Clown introduced two of Mingus finest compositions in the driving, determined "Haitian Fight Song" and the 40s-flavored "Reincarnation of a Lovebird," a peaceful but melancholy tribute to Charlie Parker; Mingus would return to both throughout his career. And, more than just composing and arranging, Mingus also begins to take more of the spotlight as a soloist; in particular, his unaccompanied sections on "Haitian Fight Song" make it one of his fieriest moments ever. Mingus may have matched the urgency of The Clown on later albums, but he never quite exceeded it. | ||
 | Album: 8 of 42 Title: Mingus Ah Um Released: 1959 Tracks: 9 Duration: 45:58 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Better Git It in Your Soul (07:23) 2 Goodbye Pork Pie Hat (04:48) 3 Boogie Stop Shuffle (03:44) 4 Self‐Portrait in Three Colors (03:08) 5 Open Letter to Duke (04:56) 6 Bird Calls (03:13) 7 Fables of Faubus (08:14) 8 Pussy Cat Dues (06:29) 9 Jelly Roll (04:01) |
| Mingus Ah Um : Allmusic album Review : Charles Mingus debut for Columbia, Mingus Ah Um is a stunning summation of the bassists talents and probably the best reference point for beginners. While theres also a strong case for The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady as his best work overall, it lacks Ah Ums immediate accessibility and brilliantly sculpted individual tunes. Mingus compositions and arrangements were always extremely focused, assimilating individual spontaneity into a firm consistency of mood, and that approach reaches an ultra-tight zenith on Mingus Ah Um. The band includes longtime Mingus stalwarts already well versed in his music, like saxophonists John Handy, Shafi Hadi, and Booker Ervin; trombonists Jimmy Knepper and Willie Dennis; pianist Horace Parlan; and drummer Dannie Richmond. Their razor-sharp performances tie together what may well be Mingus greatest, most emotionally varied set of compositions. At least three became instant classics, starting with the irrepressible spiritual exuberance of signature tune "Better Get It in Your Soul," taken in a hard-charging 6/8 and punctuated by joyous gospel shouts. "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat" is a slow, graceful elegy for Lester Young, who died not long before the sessions. The sharply contrasting "Fables of Faubus" is a savage mockery of segregationist Arkansas governor Orval Faubus, portrayed musically as a bumbling vaudeville clown (the scathing lyrics, censored by skittish executives, can be heard on Charles Mingus Presents Charles Mingus). The underrated "Boogie Stop Shuffle" is bursting with aggressive swing, and elsewhere there are tributes to Mingus most revered influences: "Open Letter to Duke" is inspired by Duke Ellington and "Jelly Roll" is an idiosyncratic yet affectionate nod to jazzs first great composer, Jelly Roll Morton. It simply isnt possible to single out one Mingus album as definitive, but Mingus Ah Um comes the closest. | ||
 | Album: 9 of 42 Title: Charles Mingus Presents Charles Mingus Released: 1960 Tracks: 4 Duration: 45:12 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Folk Forms, No. 1 (12:00) 2 Original Faubus Fables (09:15) 3 What Love? (15:23) 4 All the Things You Could Be by Now If Sigmund Freud’s Wife Was Your Mother (08:34) |
| Charles Mingus Presents Charles Mingus : Allmusic album Review : Charles Mingus has a fascinating way of offering music that is grounded in tradition while remaining startlingly original. The freshness of a disc like Charles Mingus Presents Charles Mingus, has the effect of rendering much of what passes for jazz as tedious. The band is small for Mingus, and includes Eric Dolphy on alto saxophone and bass clarinet, Ted Curson on trumpet, and Dannie Richmond on drums. It would be one of Dolphy and Cursons last recording dates with the artist, and they seem determined to go all out for it. The leaders bassline kicks off "Folk Forms No. 1," followed by Dolphy outlining the melody, and then joined by Curson. A simple riff develops into a lively New Orleans funeral march thats developed for 12 minutes. "Original Faubus Fables" is serious in intent -- a political attack on segregation governor Faubus -- but Mingus and Richmonds singing is difficult to listen to with a straight face. Still, this doesnt distract from the wonderful music. Again and again, the elasticity of the sound is fascinating, at once spacious with the bass and drums balanced against the brass and then noisy, with the horns wailing and crying. The last two pieces, "What Love?" and the outrageously titled "All the Things You Could Be by Now if Sigmund Freuds Wife Was Your Mother," are much looser, bordering on free jazz. The album accomplishes what the best of Mingus accomplishes: the perfect tension between jazz played as an ensemble and jazz played as totally free. | ||
 | Album: 10 of 42 Title: Mingus Released: 1960 Tracks: 3 Duration: 39:24 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 MDM (19:14) 2 Stormy Weather (13:25) 3 Lock ’em Up (06:45) |
 | Album: 11 of 42 Title: Mingus Dynasty Released: 1960 Tracks: 7 Duration: 49:52 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Slop (06:16) 2 Song With Orange (06:47) 3 Gunslinging Bird (05:12) 4 Things Ain’t What They Used to Be (07:36) 5 The Shoes of the Fisherman’s Wife Are Some Jive Ass Slippers (09:32) 6 Far Wells, Mill Valley (06:14) 7 Mood Indigo (08:13) |
| Mingus Dynasty : Allmusic album Review : Mingus Ah Um catapulted Charles Mingus from a much-discussed semi-underground figure to a near-universally accepted and acclaimed leader in modern jazz. Perhaps thats why his Columbia follow-up, Mingus Dynasty, is often overlooked in his canon -- its lost in the shadow of its legendary predecessor, both because of that albums achievement and the fact that its just a notch below the uppermost echelon of Mingus work. Having said that, Mingus Dynasty is still an excellent album; in fact, its a testament to just how high a level Mingus was working on that an album of this caliber could have gotten lost in the shuffle. Theres a definite soundtrack quality to a great deal of the music here, and indeed the majority of Mingus originals here were composed for film and television scores and an expanded, nine- to ten-piece group. On some pieces, Mingus refines and reworks territory hed previously hit upon. "Slop," for example, is another gospel-inflected 6/8 stormer, composed for a TV production that requested a piece similar to "Better Get It in Your Soul." The ferocious "Gunslinging Bird" follows a similar pattern, and its the same piece whose full title, "If Charlie Parker Were a Gunslinger, Thered Be a Whole Lot of Dead Copycats," is given elsewhere. There are a couple of numbers from the Ellington songbook that both feature cellos -- "Things Aint What They Used to Be" and a fantastic, eight-minute "Mood Indigo" -- and a couple of pieces that rely on the even more tightly orchestrated approach of Mingus pre-Pithecanthropus Erectus days -- "Far Wells, Mill Valley" and the atonal but surprisingly tender and melodic "Diane." | ||
 | Album: 12 of 42 Title: Blues & Roots Released: 1960-04-04 Tracks: 6 Duration: 38:49 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting (05:43) 2 Cryin Blues (05:02) 3 Moanin’ (08:02) 4 Tensions (06:30) 5 My Jelly Roll Soul (06:50) 6 Es Flat Ahs Flat Too (06:42) |
| Blues & Roots : Allmusic album Review : In response to critical carping that his ambitious, evocative music somehow didnt swing enough, Charles Mingus returned to the earthiest and earliest sources of black musical expression, namely the blues, gospel, and old-time New Orleans jazz. The resulting LP, Blues and Roots, isnt quite as wildly eclectic as usual, but it ranks as arguably Mingus most joyously swinging outing. Working with simple forms, Mingus boosts the complexity of the music by assembling a nine-piece outfit and arranging multiple lines to be played simultaneously -- somewhat akin to the Dixieland ensembles of old, but with an acutely modern flavor. Anyone who had heard "Haitian Fight Song" shouldnt have been surprised that such an album was well within Mingus range, but jazzs self-appointed guardians have long greeted innovation with reactionary distaste. After Blues and Roots, there could be no question of Mingus firm grounding in the basics, nor of his deeply felt affinity with them. Whether the music is explicitly gospel-based -- like the groundbreaking classic "Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting" -- or not, the whole album is performed with a churchy fervor that rips through both the exuberant swingers and the aching, mournful slow blues. Still, its the blues that most prominently inform the feeling of the album, aside from the aforementioned "Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting" and the Jelly Roll Morton tribute "My Jelly Roll Soul." The recording session was reportedly very disorganized, but perhaps that actually helped give the performances the proper feel, since they wound up so loose and free-swinging. With a lineup including John Handy and Jackie McLean on alto, Booker Ervin on tenor, frequent anchor Pepper Adams on baritone, and Jimmy Knepper and Willie Dennis on trombones, among others, Blues and Roots isnt hurting for fiery soloists, and they help make the album perhaps the most soulful in Mingus discography. | ||
 | Album: 13 of 42 Title: Pre-Bird Released: 1961 Tracks: 8 Duration: 34:20 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Take the "A" Train (03:34) 2 Prayer for Passive Resistance (03:51) 3 Eclipse (03:45) 4 Mingus Fingus No. 2 (03:22) 5 Weird Nightmare (03:35) 6 Do Nothin Till You Hear From Me / I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart (03:33) 7 Bemoanable Lady (04:27) 8 Half-Mast Inhibition (08:12) |
| Pre-Bird : Allmusic album Review : This pair of 1960 studio sessions represents some of Charles Mingus best arrangements. Leading the smaller of two groups, he interpolates "Exactly Like You" into a driving version of "Take the A Train" and adds a soulful blues, "Prayer for Passive Resistance," both of which feature great solos by tenor saxophonists Booker Ervin, Yusef Lateef, and Joe Farrell. A much larger ensemble is utilized on three tracks, including the advanced bop "Mingus Fingus No. 2" and "Bemoanable Lady," which features a rather strangely conservative alto sax solo by Eric Dolphy. Less successful are Lorraine Cursons vocals on the dissonant "Eclipse" and pulsating "Weird Nightmare." But this reissue, re-released previously under the title Mingus Revisited, has received a superb 24-bit remastering and also includes a number of photos from the sessions. | ||
 | Album: 14 of 42 Title: Money Jungle Released: 1962 Tracks: 13 Duration: 56:58 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Very Special (04:27) 2 A Little Max (Parfait) (02:58) 3 A Little Max (Parfait) (alternate take) (02:56) 4 Fleurette Africaine (03:36) 5 Rem Blues (04:17) 6 Wig Wise (03:19) 7 Switch Blade (05:25) 8 Caravan (04:14) 9 Money Jungle (05:30) 10 Solitude (Parfait) (alternate take) (04:44) 11 Solitude (05:34) 12 Warm Valley (03:34) 13 Backward Country Boy Blues (06:19) |
| Money Jungle : Allmusic album Review : Duke Ellington surprised the jazz world in 1962 with his historic trio session featuring Charles Mingus and Max Roach. Not in a mood to simply rework older compositions, the bulk of the LP focused on music he wrote specifically for the session. "Money Jungle" is a thunderous opener, a blues that might be classified somewhere between post-bop and avant-garde. The gem of the date is the fragile, somewhat haunting ballad "Fleurette Africaine," where Mingus floating bassline and Roachs understated drumming add to the mystique of an Ellington work that has slowly been gathering steam among jazz musicians as a piece worth exploring more often. "Very Special" is a jaunty upbeat blues, while the angular, descending line of "Wig Wise" also proves to be quite catchy. Ellington also revisits "Warm Valley" (a lovely ballad indelibly associated with Johnny Hodges) and an almost meditative "Solitude." Thunderous percussion and wild basslines complement a wilder-than-usual approach to "Caravan." Every jazz fan should own a copy of this sensational recording session. | ||
 | Album: 15 of 42 Title: Oh Yeah Released: 1962 Tracks: 10 Duration: 1:06:42 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Hog Callin Blues (07:26) 2 Devil Woman (09:41) 3 Wham Bam Thank You Maam (04:43) 4 Ecclusiastics (06:58) 5 Oh Lord Dont Let Them Drop That Atomic Bomb on Me (05:42) 6 Eat That Chicken (04:39) 7 Passions of a Man (04:52) 8 "Old" Blues for Walts Torin (07:59) 9 Peggys Blue Skylight (09:49) 10 Invisible Lady (04:48) |
| Oh Yeah : Allmusic album Review : After several sessions with Columbia and Candid, Charles Mingus briefly returned to Atlantic and cut the freewheeling Oh Yeah, which has to rank as the wildest of all his classic albums. Mingus plays no bass whatsoever, hiring Doug Watkins to fill in while he accompanies the group on piano and contributes bluesy vocals to several tracks (while shouting encouragement on nearly all of them). Mingus had always had a bizarre sense of humor, as expressed in some of his song titles and arranging devices, but Oh Yeah often gets downright warped. Thats partly because Mingus is freed up to vocalize more often, but its also due to the presence of mad genius Roland Kirk. His chemistry with Mingus is fantastically explosive, which makes sense -- both were encyclopedias of jazz tradition, but given over to oddball modernist experimentation. Its a shame Kirk only spent three months with the band, because his solo interpretations are such symbiotic reflections of Mingus intent as a composer. Look no further than "Hog Callin Blues," a stomping "Haitian Fight Song" descendant where Kirk honks and roars the blues like a man possessed. Mingus vocal selections radiate the same dementia, whether its the stream-of-consciousness blues couplets on "Devil Woman," the dark-humored modern-day spiritual "Oh Lord Dont Let Them Drop That Atomic Bomb on Me," or the dadaist stride piano bounce of "Eat That Chicken," a nod to Fats Wallers comic novelties. Elsewhere, "Passions of a Man" sounds almost like musique concrète, while "Wham Bam Thank You Maam" nicks some Monk angularity and "Ecclusiastics" adds some testifying shouts and a chorale-like theme to Mingus gospel-jazz hybrid. Oh Yeah is probably the most offbeat Mingus album ever, and thats what makes it so vital. [Some reissues add three bonus tracks from the session, first released on Tonight at Noon.] | ||
 | Album: 16 of 42 Title: Tijuana Moods Released: 1962 Tracks: 9 Duration: 1:08:20 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Dizzy Moods (05:51) 2 Ysabel’s Table Dance (10:28) 3 Tijuana Gift Shop (03:49) 4 Los Mariachis (10:22) 5 Flamingo (05:35) 6 Dizzy Moods (composite partial alternate take) (08:23) 7 Tijuana Gift Shop (alternate take) (04:42) 8 Los Mariachis (composite partial alternate take) (12:28) 9 Flamingo (partial alternate take) (06:40) |
| Tijuana Moods : Allmusic album Review : Inspired by a trip to Tijuana, Tijuana Moods was recorded in 1957 but was sat on by RCA until its release in 1962. Bassist/composer Charles Mingus at the time said that this was his greatest recording, and it certainly ranks near the top. The original version, which was usually edited together from a few different takes, consisted of just five performances. It has often been said that Mingus forced and pressured his sidemen to play above their potential, and that is certainly true of this project. Altoist Shafi Hadi (who doubles on tenor) is in blazing form on "Ysabels Table Dance," while trumpeter Clarence Shaw (who was praised by Mingus for his short lyrical solo on "Flamingo") sounds quite haunting on "Los Mariachis." Trombonist Jimmy Knepper and drummer Dannie Richmond made other great recordings, but they are in particularly superior form throughout this session, as is the obscure pianist Bill Triglia. Completing the band is Ysabel Morel on vocals and Frankie Dunlop on castanets. While "Dizzys Moods" is based on "WoodyN You," and "Flamingo" is given a fresh treatment, the other three songs are quite original, with "Tijuana Gift Shop" having a catchy, dissonant riff that sticks in ones mind. The passionate playing, exciting ensembles, and high-quality compositions make this a real gem, and it represents one of Charles Mingus finest hours. [In the 80s, Tijuana Moods doubled in size with the release of two versions of each of the songs, and beginning in the 2000s, some reissues appeared with 22 performances.] | ||
 | Album: 17 of 42 Title: The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady Released: 1963 Tracks: 4 Duration: 39:26 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Track A—Solo Dancer: Stop! Look! And Listen, Sinner Jim Whitney! (06:39) 2 Track B—Duet Solo Dancers: Hearts’ Beat and Shades in Physical Embraces (06:45) 3 Track C—Group Dancers: (Soul Fusion) Freewoman and Oh, This Freedom’s Slave Cries (07:22) 4 Mode D—Trio and Group Dancers: Stop! Look! And Sing Songs of Revolutions! / Mode E—Single Solos and Group Dance: Saint and Sinner Join in Merriment on Battle Front / Mode F—Group and Solo Dance: Of Love, Pain, and Passioned Revolt, Then Farewell, My Beloved, ’til It’s Freedom Day (18:39) |
| The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady : Allmusic album Review : The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady is one of the greatest achievements in orchestration by any composer in jazz history. Charles Mingus consciously designed the six-part ballet as his magnum opus, and -- implied in his famous inclusion of liner notes by his psychologist -- its as much an examination of his own tortured psyche as it is a conceptual piece about love and struggle. It veers between so many emotions that it defies easy encapsulation; for that matter, it can be difficult just to assimilate in the first place. Yet the work soon reveals itself as a masterpiece of rich, multi-layered texture and swirling tonal colors, manipulated with a painters attention to detail. There are a few stylistic reference points -- Ellington, the contemporary avant-garde, several flamenco guitar breaks -- but the totality is quite unlike what came before it. Mingus relies heavily on the timbral contrasts between expressively vocal-like muted brass, a rumbling mass of low voices (including tuba and baritone sax), and achingly lyrical upper woodwinds, highlighted by altoist Charlie Mariano. Within that framework, Mingus plays shifting rhythms, moaning dissonances, and multiple lines off one another in the most complex, interlaced fashion hed ever attempted. Mingus was sometimes pigeonholed as a firebrand, but the personal exorcism of Black Saint deserves the reputation -- one neednt be able to follow the story line to hear the suffering, mourning, frustration, and caged fury pouring out of the music. The 11-piece group rehearsed the original score during a Village Vanguard engagement, where Mingus allowed the players to mold the music further; in the studio, however, his exacting perfectionism made The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady the first jazz album to rely on overdubbing technology. The result is one of the high-water marks for avant-garde jazz in the 60s and arguably Mingus most brilliant moment. | ||
 | Album: 18 of 42 Title: Reincarnation of a Love Bird Released: 1963 Tracks: 5 Duration: 45:19 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Reincarnation of a Love Bird (take 1) (07:02) 2 Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams (take 4) (03:58) 3 R & R (take 1) (11:55) 4 Body and Soul (take 2) (13:56) 5 Bugs (take 3) (08:27) |
 | Album: 19 of 42 Title: Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Released: 1964 Tracks: 8 Duration: 45:43 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 II B.S. (a.k.a. Haitian Fight Song) (04:48) 2 I X Love (07:40) 3 Celia (06:13) 4 Mood Indigo (04:45) 5 Better Get Hit in Yo Soul (06:30) 6 Theme for Lester Young (05:51) 7 Hora Decubitus (04:42) 8 Freedom (05:10) |
| Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus : Allmusic album Review : Having completed what he (and many critics) regarded as his masterwork in The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady, Charles Mingus next sessions for Impulse found him looking back over a long and fruitful career. Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus is sort of a "greatest hits revisited" record, as the bassist revamps or tinkers with some of his best-known works. The titles are altered as well -- "II B.S." is basically "Haitian Fight Song" (this is the version used in the late-90s car commercial); "Theme for Lester Young" is "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat"; "Better Get Hit in Your Soul" adds a new ending, but just one letter to the title; "Hora Decubitus" is a growling overhaul of "Es Flat Ahs Flat Too"; and "I X Love" modifies "Nouroog," which was part of "Open Letter to Duke." Theres also a cover of Duke Ellingtons "Mood Indigo," leaving just one new composition, "Celia." Which naturally leads to the question: With the ostensible shortage of ideas, what exactly makes this a significant Mingus effort? The answer is that the 11-piece bands assembled here (slightly different for the two separate recording sessions) are among Mingus finest, featuring some of the key personnel (Eric Dolphy, pianist Jaki Byard) that would make up the legendary quintet/sextet with which Mingus toured Europe in 1964. And they simply burn, blasting through versions that equal and often surpass the originals -- which is, of course, no small feat. This was Mingus last major statement for quite some time, and aside from a solo piano album and a series of live recordings from the 1964 tour, also his last album until 1970. It closes out the most productive and significant chapter of his career, and one of the most fertile, inventive hot streaks of any composer in jazz history. | ||
 | Album: 20 of 42 Title: Mingus Plays Piano Released: 1964 Tracks: 11 Duration: 50:41 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Myself When I Am Real (07:38) 2 I Can’t Get Started (03:43) 3 Body and Soul (04:35) 4 Roland Kirk’s Message (02:43) 5 Memories of You (04:37) 6 She’s Just Miss Popular Hybrid (03:11) 7 Orange Was the Color of Her Dress, Then Silk Blues (04:18) 8 Meditations for Moses (03:42) 9 Old Portrait (03:49) 10 I’m Getting Sentimental Over You (03:46) 11 Compositional Theme Story: Medleys, Anthems and Folklore (08:35) |
| Mingus Plays Piano : Allmusic album Review : This album is unique in Mingus enormous catalog. As the title indicates, the famous bassist takes to the ivories solo to give life to his dazzling improvisational art. At first it seems odd to hear Mingus without one of his trademark interactive and exploratory ensembles. But the sensibility that he brings to this collection of piano pieces bears all the signs of the composers genius. In the first piece, "Myself When I Am Real," turbulence and aching beauty merge in Mingus spontaneous unfolding of phrases. Such standards as "Body and Soul" and "Memories of You" are given personal, harmonically intriguing readings that blend in seamlessly with a Mingus original like "Old Portrait." In many ways, it is a treat to hear the artist working in this pared-down, quieter atmosphere, as it allows one to concentrate more intently upon the range and compositional brilliance of this incomparable figure. | ||
 | Album: 21 of 42 Title: Tonight at Noon Released: 1965 Tracks: 5 Duration: 38:11 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Tonight at Noon (05:58) 2 Invisible Lady (04:49) 3 "Old" Blues for Walts Torin (07:59) 4 Peggys Blue Skylight (09:42) 5 Passions of a Woman Loved (09:43) |
| Tonight at Noon : Allmusic album Review : Tonight at Noon is, essentially, a compilation album -- although not in the usual sense. There are two distinct sessions that make up its contents: a 1957 date with Jimmy Knepper on trombone, drummer Dannie Richmond, saxophonist Shafi Hadi, and pianist Wade Legge, and a 1960 session with Booker Ervin, Roland Kirk on saxes, Knepper, bassist Doug Watkins, Mingus on piano, and Richmond. The feel of the two sets is different to be sure, but this is far from throwaway material; the tunes here are actually studio outtakes from the recordings for The Clown and Oh Yeah. While the former session features Mingus going for the blues via European harmonics and melodic approaches with hard bop tempos (particularly on the title track), the latter session with its nocturnal elegance and spatial irregularities comes off more as some kind of exercise in vanguard Ellington with sophisticated harmonies that give way to languid marches and gospel-tinged blues. Kirk and Ervin are particularly suited to one another, because they both swing hard and reach for the fences. Mingus pianism is deeply rooted in blues, and that sense of pace and easiness informs these tracks, particularly "Old Blue for Walts Torin." Hints of the material Mingus would record for Columbia on Ah Um are in these compositions. The most beautiful piece is from the 1957 session and closes the album: "Passions of a Woman Loved" is a nearly ten-minute workout that feels like an Ellington suite. Despite the fact that this is an assembled album, it holds plenty of magic nonetheless. | ||
 | Album: 22 of 42 Title: The Best of Charles Mingus Released: 1970 Tracks: 5 Duration: 35:31 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting (05:39) 2 Eat That Chicken (04:36) 3 Hog Callin Blues (07:26) 4 Haitian Fight Song (07:09) 5 Pithecanthropus Erectus (10:41) |
 | Album: 23 of 42 Title: Let My Children Hear Music Released: 1972 Tracks: 7 Duration: 59:37 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 The Shoes of the Fishermans Wife Are Some Jive Ass Slippers (09:34) 2 Adagio ma non troppo (08:22) 3 Dont Be Afraid, the Clowns Afraid Too (09:26) 4 Taurus in the Arena of Life (04:21) 5 Hobo Ho (10:07) 6 The Chill of Death (07:38) 7 The I of Hurricane Sue (10:09) |
| Let My Children Hear Music : Allmusic album Review : On this LP issued by Columbia, Mingus thanked producer Teo Macero for "his untiring efforts in producing the best album I have ever made." From his deathbed in Mexico in 1979 he sent a message to Sy Johnson (who was responsible for many of the arrangements on the album), saying that Let My Children Hear Music was the record he liked most from his career. Although Mingus small-group recordings are the ones most often cited as his premier works, this album does, in fact, rank at the top of his oeuvre and compares favorably with the finest large-ensemble jazz recordings by anyone, including Ellington. The pieces had been brewing over the years, one from as far back as 1939, and had been given more or less threadbare performances on occasion, but this was his first chance to record them with a sizable, well-rehearsed orchestra. Still, there were difficulties, both in the recording and afterward. The exact personnel is sketchy, largely due to contractual issues, several arrangers were imported to paste things together, making the true authorship of some passages questionable, and Macero (as he did with various Miles Davis projects) edited freely and sometimes noticeably. The listener will happily put aside all quibbles, however, when the music is heard. From the opening, irresistible swing of "The Shoes of the Fishermans Wife Are Some Jiveass Slippers" to the swirling depths of "The I of Hurricane Sue," these songs are some of the most glorious, imaginative, and full of life ever recorded. Each piece has its own strengths, but special mention should be made of two. "Adagio Ma Non Troppo" is based entirely on a piano improvisation played by Mingus in 1964 and issued on Mingus Plays Piano. Its logical structure, playful nature, and crystalline moments of beauty would be astounding in a polished composition; the fact that it was originally improvised is almost unbelievable. "Hobo Ho," a holy roller powerhouse featuring the impassioned tenor of James Moody, reaches an incredible fever pitch, the backing horns volleying riff after riff at the soloists, the entire composition teetering right on the edge of total chaos. Let My Children Hear Music is a towering achievement and a must for any serious jazz fan. | ||
 | Album: 24 of 42 Title: Reevaluation: The Impulse Years Released: 1973 Tracks: 14 Duration: 1:00:21 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Better Get Hit in Yo Soul (06:30) 2 Mood Indigo (04:45) 3 Body and Soul (04:34) 4 Hora Decubitus (04:42) 5 Track A—Solo Dancer: Stop! Look! And Listen, Sinner Jim Whitney! (06:39) 6 Track B—Duet Solo Dancers: Hearts’ Beat and Shades in Physical Embraces (06:45) 7 Track C—Group Dancers: (Soul Fusion) Freewoman and Oh, This Freedom’s Slave Cries (07:22) 1 The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady: Mode D — Trio and Group Dancers (Stop! Look! And Sing Songs of Revolutions!) (?) 2 The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady: Mode E — Single Solos and Group Dance (Saint and Sinner Join in Merriment on Battle Front) (?) 3 The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady: Mode F — Group and Solo Dance (Of Love, Pain, and Passioned Revolt, Then, Farewell, My Beloved, til Its Freedom Day) (?) 4 Freedom (05:10) 5 Theme for Lester Young (05:51) 6 She’s Just Miss Popular Hybrid (03:11) 7 II B.S. (a.k.a. Haitian Fight Song) (04:48) |
 | Album: 25 of 42 Title: Mingus Moves Released: 1974-04-08 Tracks: 7 Duration: 49:11 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Canon (05:29) 2 Opus 4 (06:39) 3 Moves (03:43) 4 Wee (08:57) 5 Flowers for a Lady (06:44) 6 Newcomer (07:13) 7 Opus 3 (10:26) |
| Mingus Moves : Allmusic album Review : On this Atlantic LP, Charles Mingus introduced his new group which at the time included trumpeter Ronald Hampton, tenor-saxophonist George Adams, pianist Don Pullen and his longtime drummer Dannie Richmond. Together this excellent quintet performed seven recent compositions including one ("Moves") that features the vocals of Honey Gordon and Doug Hammond. Only three of the pieces are by Mingus but all of the music is greatly influenced by his searching and unpredictable style. | ||
 | Album: 26 of 42 Title: Changes One Released: 1975 Tracks: 4 Duration: 44:42 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Remember Rockefeller at Attica (05:57) 2 Sues Changes (17:07) 3 Devil Blues (09:26) 4 Duke Ellingtons Sound of Love (12:10) |
| Changes One : Allmusic album Review : Charles Mingus finest recordings of his later period are two Atlantic LPs, Changes One and Changes Two. The first volume features four stimulating Mingus originals ("Remember Rockefeller at Attica," "Sues Changes," "Devil Blues," and "Duke Ellingtons Sound of Love") performed by a particularly talented quintet (tenor saxophonist George Adams who also sings "Devil Blues," trumpeter Jack Walrath, pianist Don Pullen, drummer Dannie Richmond, and the leader/bassist). The band has the adventurous spirit and chance-taking approach of Charles Mingus best groups, making this an easily recommended example of the great bandleaders music. | ||
 | Album: 27 of 42 Title: Changes Two Released: 1975 Tracks: 5 Duration: 43:03 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Free Cell Block F, Tis Nazi U.S.A. (06:55) 2 Orange Was the Color of Her Dress, Then Silk Blue (17:32) 3 Black Bats and Poles (06:21) 4 Duke Ellingtons Sound of Love (04:14) 5 For Harry Carney (07:59) |
| Changes Two : Allmusic album Review : Along with its companion volume Changes One, this is one of the great sessions from one of the best working bands of the 1970s. Starting with the spirited "Free Cell Block F, Tis Nazi U.S.A," this volume also includes the vocal version of "Duke Ellingtons Sound of Love" with guest singer (and acquired taste) Jackie Paris, a remake of the classic Mingus composition "Orange Was the Color of Her Dress, Then Silk Blue," Jack Walraths "Black Bats and Poles," and Sy Johnsons "For Harry Carney." The challenging repertoire from these December 1974 dates sustained the Jazz Workshop for several years; these are the definitive performances. Rhinos reissue duplicates the original LP down to the layout. | ||
 | Album: 28 of 42 Title: Three or Four Shades of Blues Released: 1977 Tracks: 5 Duration: 44:49 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Better Git Hit in Your Soul (04:39) 2 Goodbye, Pork Pie Hat (07:13) 3 Noddin Ya Head Blues (10:35) 4 Three or Four Shades of Blues (12:12) 5 Nobody Knows (10:09) |
| Three or Four Shades of Blues : Allmusic album Review : In spite of the electric guitars, which dont really fit that well, the title track is one of the more successful Charles Mingus efforts at extended composition. The list of section titles for the work is a valuable document in itself; it includes the "Super Bebop Blues (Check Bird Out)" with George Coleman and the dudes who are advancing group improvisation, while USA press ignores them. And still does. Not his best work, but not without merit. | ||
 | Album: 29 of 42 Title: Cumbia & Jazz Fusion Released: 1978-05 Tracks: 4 Duration: 54:46 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Cumbia & Jazz Fusion (27:58) 2 Music for "Todo Modo" (22:21) 3 Wedding March / Slow Waltz (take 9) (02:04) 4 Wedding March / Slow Waltz (take 12) (02:21) |
| Cumbia & Jazz Fusion : Allmusic album Review : As Charles Mingus career (and life) moved into its final phase, his recordings exclusively featured large (and often potentially unruly) ensembles. This CD, which contains two rather long performances originally recorded as soundtracks for films, is better than most of what followed. "c" has a large percussion section and quite a few woodwinds along with trumpeter Jack Walrath, tenor saxophonist Ricky Ford, and trombonist Jimmy Knepper while "Music for Todo Modo" adds five horns to Mingus quintet. The music is episodic but generally holds its own away from the film. | ||
 | Album: 30 of 42 Title: Nostalgia in Times Square: The Immortal 1959 Sessions Released: 1979 Tracks: 14 Duration: 1:23:08 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Pedal Point Blues (06:30) 2 GG Train (04:39) 3 Girl of My Dreams (04:08) 4 Strollin (04:33) 5 Jelly Roll (06:15) 6 Boogie Stop Shuffle (05:02) 7 Open Letter to Duke (05:50) 8 New Now Know How (04:13) 9 Birdcalls (06:19) 10 Slop (06:43) 11 Things Aint What They Used to Be (07:37) 12 Pussy Cat Dues (09:15) 13 Song With Orange (06:50) 14 Gunslinging Bird (05:12) |
 | Album: 31 of 42 Title: Me, Myself an Eye Released: 1979 Tracks: 4 Duration: 57:24 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Three Worlds of Drums (30:22) 2 Devil Woman (09:25) 3 Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting (09:51) 4 Carolyn "Keki" Mingus (07:46) |
| Me, Myself an Eye : Allmusic album Review : Charles Mingus did not perform on the final sessions he made for Atlantic toward the end of his life. Too ill with ALS to pick up his bass, he nonetheless was a powerful presence in the studio. The arrangements and orchestrations were realized by trumpeter Jack Walrath based on Minguss tapes and piano sketches. The huge band can get a bit unwieldy, and the arrangements, which feature a solo from Larry Coryell, do tend to pander a bit to the fusion audience. In spite of these drawbacks, the half-hour "Three Worlds of Drums" is great, overdone though it may be. | ||
 | Album: 32 of 42 Title: Something Like a Bird Released: 1980 Tracks: 3 Duration: 38:21 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Something Like a Bird, Part 1 (19:10) 2 Something Like a Bird, Part 2 (12:14) 3 Farewell, Farewell (06:57) |
| Something Like a Bird : Allmusic album Review : Although confined to a wheelchair and less than a year from his death, Charles Mingus supervised the recording sessions that resulted in this LP and its companion Me Myself An Eye. The music on this set utilizes a 27-piece band (including 11 saxophones and four guitars) on the 31-minute "Something Like a Bird" and a smaller 21-piece orchestra (only nine saxes and three guitars) for "Farewell Farwell." It seems that everyone wanted to play with (or at least for) Mingus during his last few years and such musicians as Lee Konitz, Charles McPherson, George Coleman, Mike Brecker, Ricky Ford, Pepper Adams, Randy Brecker, Jack Walrath, Slide Hampton, Jimmy Knepper, Larry Coryell and bassists Eddie Gomez and George Mraz help out on this spirited if overcrowded music. Its not essential but certainly colorful. | ||
 | Album: 33 of 42 Title: Charles Mingus in Paris: The Complete America Session Released: 1985 Tracks: 24 Duration: 1:59:16 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 I Left My Heart in San Francisco (04:06) 2 Reincarnation of a Lovebird (15:11) 3 Peggys Blue Skylight (12:53) 4 Love Is a Dangerous Necessity (04:37) 5 Blue Bird (18:11) 6 Pithecanthropus erectus (16:41) 1 Reincarnation of a Lovebird (warm up and first false start) (00:30) 2 Reincarnation of a Lovebird (second false start) (01:50) 3 Reincarnation of a Lovebird (third false start) (00:07) 4 Reincarnation of a Lovebird (incomplete) (04:51) 5 Peggys Blue Skylight (first false start) (00:16) 6 Peggys Blue Skylight (second false start) (00:15) 7 Peggys Blue Skylight (third false start and rehearsal) (00:38) 8 Peggys Blue Skylight (alternate fast version) (09:47) 9 Blue Bird (incomplete) (04:13) 10 Reprise (00:42) 11 Love Is a Dangerous Necessity (first false start) (01:07) 12 Love Is a Dangerous Necessity (second false start) (01:49) 13 Pithecanthropus erectus (first take, incomplete) (07:34) 14 Pithecanthropus erectus (reprise) (00:54) 15 Pithecanthropus erectus (rehearsal) (00:35) 16 Pithecanthropus erectus (false start) (00:09) 17 Pithecanthropus erectus (to the end) (10:03) 18 Pithecanthropus erectus (Mingus explanation, restart) (02:17) |
| Charles Mingus in Paris: The Complete America Session : Allmusic album Review : The music on Charles Mingus In Paris: The Complete America Session originally appeared on two separate LPs issued by America which were duly reissued by several labels as Reincarnation of a Lovebird (though not to be confused with the earlier album of the same title made for Candid). After a five-year layoff from doing any studio recording, Mingus was fully prepared for this 1970 session, with old hands Jaki Byard on piano, drummer Dannie Richmond, alto saxophonist Charles McPherson, and newer additions Bobby Jones (tenor sax), and Eddie Preston (trumpet) making up his sextet. Most of the focus is on extended treatments of earlier works, including "Reincarnation of a Lovebird," "Pithecanthropus Erectus," and "Peggys Blue Skylight," plus a loping, bluesy rendition of Charlie Parkers "Blue Bird" that lasts 18 minutes and never loses steam. The two shorter works come out differently; everything comes together on "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" but Mingus is clearly dissatisfied with the performance of his new work "Love Is a Dangerous Necessity" and is audibly heard stating "Cut it, cut it!" in the midst of McPhersons solo and the song abruptly ends. The soloists shine throughout the date, with no one musician trying to outdo the others. This two-CD set adds all of the other material recorded during this single-day session on a separate disc, including all false starts, breakdowns, incomplete takes, and rehearsals, so serious fans can figure out how the performances evolved in the studio. After battling depression and suffering financial problems for several years prior to this session, this outstanding recording signaled that Charles Mingus was on the rebound and still had much to contribute, until Lou Gerhigs disease ended his career and took his life prematurely later in the decade. | ||
 | Album: 34 of 42 Title: The Complete Candid Recordings of Charles Mingus Released: 1989 Tracks: 19 Duration: 3:08:48 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Folk Forms No. 1 (13:05) 2 Original Faubus Fables (09:08) 3 What Love (15:23) 4 All the Things You Could Be by Now If Sigmund Freud’s Wife Was Your Mother (08:34) 5 Stormy Weather (13:25) 6 Melody From the Drums (09:18) 1 Reincarnation of a Lovebird (1st version, take 4) (09:16) 2 Vassarlean (06:39) 3 MDM (19:14) 4 Bugs (take 3) (08:27) 5 Reincarnation of a Lovebird No. 2 (06:57) 6 Lock ’em Up (06:45) 1 Mysterious Blues (08:35) 2 Body and Soul (13:49) 3 Body and Soul (alternate take) (10:48) 4 R & R (11:51) 5 Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams (03:51) 6 Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams (alternate take) (03:54) 7 Me and You (09:46) |
 | Album: 35 of 42 Title: The Complete Debut Recordings Released: 1990-09-14 Tracks: 169 Duration: 13:49:00 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 What Is This Thing Called Love? (03:02) 2 Darn That Dream (03:38) 3 Yesterdays (03:05) 4 Body and Soul (03:34) 5 Blue Moon (03:33) 6 Blue Tide (03:10) 7 Darn That Dream (alternate take) (03:37) 8 Jeepers Creepers (take 1) (03:37) 9 Jeepers Creepers (take 2) (03:03) 10 Portrait (take 1) (alternate take) (03:11) 11 Portrait (take 2) (03:13) 12 Ive Lost My Love (take 1) (03:01) 13 Ive Lost My Love (take 2) (03:01) 14 Extrasensory Perception (02:48) 15 Extrasensory Perception (alternate take) (02:42) 16 Precognition (02:45) 17 Make Believe (03:04) 18 Paris in Blue (03:12) 19 Montage (02:54) 20 Day Dream (take 1) (03:42) 21 Day Dream (take 2) (02:38) 22 Theme From "Rhapsody in Blue" (take 1) (03:24) 23 Theme From "Rhapsody in Blue" (take 2) (02:39) 1 Jet (take 1) (02:44) 2 Jet (take 2) (02:35) 3 Medley: You Go to My Head (02:42) 4 Can You Blame Me (02:50) 5 You and Me (02:47) 6 Bebopper (02:40) 7 Cupid (02:46) 8 Drum Conversation (04:02) 9 Ive Got You Under My Skin (02:49) 10 Embraceable You (04:18) 11 Sure Thing (02:03) 12 Cherokee (04:48) 13 Hallelujah (a.k.a. Jubilee) (03:54) 14 Lullaby of Birdland (02:29) 15 Wee (Allens Alley) (06:40) 16 Hot House (08:58) 17 A Night in Tunisia (07:22) 1 Perdido (08:10) 2 Salt Peanuts (07:18) 3 All the Things You Are (07:12) 4 52nd Street Theme (00:38) 5 Perdido (07:42) 6 Salt Peanuts (07:20) 7 All the Things You Are (07:10) 8 52nd Street Theme (00:35) 9 Wee (Allens Alley) (06:36) 10 Hot House (09:01) 11 A Night in Tunisia (07:22) 1 Bass-ically Speaking (take 1) (04:01) 2 Bass-ically Speaking (take 2) (03:53) 3 Bass-ically Speaking (take 3) (03:52) 4 Bass-ically Speaking (04:00) 5 [untitled blues] (02:38) 6 Wee Dot (Blues for Some Bones) (14:17) 7 Stardust (04:52) 8 Move (06:48) 9 Ill Remember April (11:04) 10 Nows the Time (14:22) 1 Trombosphere (03:24) 2 Ow! (15:11) 3 Chazzanova (false start of Yesterdays) (04:54) 4 Yesterdays (10:04) 5 Kais Day (05:22) 6 Pink Topsy (03:03) 7 Miss Blues (03:03) 8 Blue Tide (03:08) 9 Pink Topsy (alternate take) (03:38) 10 Eclipse (alternate take) (02:57) 11 Eclipse (02:54) 12 Opus One (alternate take) (03:21) 13 Opus One (04:08) 14 (Teapot) Walkin (04:32) 1 Like Someone in Love (04:03) 2 I Cant Get Started (03:37) 3 Spontaneous Combustion (04:16) 4 The Theme (03:40) 5 Split Kick (03:05) 6 This Time the Dreams on Me (03:07) 7 Zootcase (02:34) 8 Santa Claus Is Coming to Town (03:22) 9 The Pendulum at Falcons Lair (04:40) 10 Jack the Fieldstalker (04:30) 11 Stockholm Sweetnin (04:11) 12 Low and Behold (03:26) 13 Bitty Ditty (05:12) 14 Chazzanova (03:41) 15 Ill Remember April (03:48) 16 Elusive (Illusive) (04:50) 17 Sombre Intrusion (02:46) 18 You Dont Know What Love Is (03:29) 1 Like Someone in Love (03:47) 2 Peace of Mind (04:02) 3 Lament (04:43) 4 The Jeep Is Jumpin (03:56) 5 Git Up From There (04:26) 6 A Foggy Day (06:04) 7 Mountain Greenery (04:44) 8 Git Up From There (alternate take) (03:56) 9 Lament (alternate take) (04:56) 10 One More (07:28) 11 I Cant Get Started (06:05) 12 More of the Same (05:12) 13 Get Out of Town (08:43) 14 One More (alternate take) (03:59) 1 Get Out of Town (alternate take) (07:28) 2 Ensenada (05:25) 3 Machajo (04:02) 4 Cherokee (04:17) 5 Seven Moons (04:03) 6 Seven Moons (alternate take) (04:19) 7 All the Things You Are (take 1) (05:27) 8 All the Things You Are (take 2) (04:12) 9 Cherokee (alternate take) (05:11) 10 Nature Boy (06:12) 11 Alone Together (07:13) 12 Theres No You (08:01) 13 Easy Living (05:02) 1 The Edge of Love (02:48) 2 Makin Whoopee (02:38) 3 Fanny (03:01) 4 Portrait (02:47) 5 Jump Monk (06:44) 6 Serenade in Blue (05:56) 7 Percussion Discussion (08:26) 8 Work Song (06:26) 9 Septemberly (06:55) 10 All the Things You C# (06:47) 11 Ill Remember April (13:03) 1 Love Chant (07:20) 2 A Foggy Day (05:27) 3 Drums (05:20) 4 Haitian Fight Song (05:16) 5 Lady Bird (05:51) 6 Jump Monk [spoken introduction and false start of "All the Things"] (11:38) 7 All the Things You Do [spoken introduction and false start of "Drums"] (09:45) 8 Drums (take 1) (06:17) 9 Drums (take 2) (05:23) 1 Ill Remember April (alternate take) (13:07) 2 A Foggy Day (alternate take) (05:23) 3 A Portrait of Bud Powell (04:09) 4 Haitian Fight Song (alternate take) (05:17) 5 Love Chant (alternate take) (08:12) 6 Lady Bird (alternate take) (05:35) 7 What Is This Thing Called Love? (fragment) (02:30) 8 Latter Day Saint (04:00) 9 Cunningbird (04:45) 10 The Jumpin Blues (Jump the Blues Away) (04:52) 11 The Masher (03:33) 12 Latter Day Saint (take 1) (05:22) 13 Latter Day Saint (take 2) (03:46) 1 The Masher (alternate take) (04:15) 2 Latter Day Saint (03:51) 3 [untitled original blues] (take 1) (03:55) 4 Stella by Starlight (take 4) (03:57) 5 Stella by Starlight (take 5) (03:53) 6 [untitled original composition] (take 3) (05:17) 7 [untitled original composition] (take 5) (04:34) 8 Autumn in New York (take 1) (05:29) 9 Autumn in New York (take 2) (05:05) 10 Long Ago (and Far Away) (take 2) (03:24) 11 Long Ago (and Far Away) (take 4) (03:11) 12 Long Ago (and Far Away) (take 5) (03:17) 13 [untitled original blues] (take 2) (04:00) 14 Joldi (take 4) (05:24) 15 Joldi (take 5) (05:08) 16 [untitled percussion composition] (07:18) |
| The Complete Debut Recordings : Allmusic album Review : This mammoth 12-CD box set may not contain Charles Mingus most significant recordings (those would take place shortly after these sessions), but there is a remarkable amount of exciting and somewhat innovative music in this reissue of all of the dates recorded for Mingus Debut label. There are duets and trios with pianist Spaulding Givens, a variety of odd third stream originals (some with vocalist Jackie Paris and altoist Lee Konitz), the famous Massey Hall concert with Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie (heard in two versions, one with Mingus overdubbed bass), a four-trombone date with J.J. Johnson, Kai Winding, Bennie Green, and Willie Dennis, trio sets with pianists Paul Bley, Hazel Scott, and the obscure John Dennis, a quintet with trumpeter Thad Jones and Frank Wess on tenor and flute, Miles Davis "Alone Together" session, a date led by trombonist Jimmy Knepper, a completely unissued 1957 sextet session, and -- most importantly -- a greatly expanded live session with trombonist Eddie Bert and tenor saxophonist George Barrow that found Mingus finally finding himself musically. Many of these performances are now also available in smaller sets, but this attractive box (which has 64 previously unissued tracks among the 169 selections) is the best way to acquire this valuable music. | ||
 | Album: 36 of 42 Title: Passions of a Man: The Complete Atlantic Recordings (1956–1961) Released: 1997-10-28 Tracks: 41 Duration: 6:43:07 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Pithecanthropus Erectus (10:35) 2 A Foggy Day (07:48) 3 Love Chant (14:59) 4 Profile of Jackie (03:14) 5 Laura (05:06) 6 When Your Lover Has Gone (02:30) 7 Just One of Those Things (06:10) 8 Blue Greens (11:40) 1 The Clown (12:11) 2 Passions of a Woman Loved (09:43) 3 Blue Cee (07:53) 4 Tonight at Noon (05:58) 5 Reincarnation of a Lovebird (08:34) 6 Haitian Fight Song (12:02) 1 Es Flat Ahs Flat Too (06:42) 2 My Jelly Roll Soul (06:50) 3 Tensions (06:30) 4 Moanin’ (08:02) 5 Cryin Blues (05:02) 6 Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting (05:43) 7 Es Flat Ahs Flat Too (alternate take) (06:54) 8 My Jelly Roll Soul (alternate take) (11:25) 9 Tensions (alternate take) (05:18) 10 Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting (alternate take) (06:55) 1 Prayer for Passive Resistance (08:24) 2 Better Git Hit in Your Soul (11:36) 3 Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting (12:06) 4 Folk Forms I (11:36) 5 What Love? (14:04) 6 Ill Remember April (14:07) 1 Devil Woman (09:46) 2 Ecclusiastics (06:58) 3 "Old" Blues for Walts Torin (07:59) 4 Peggys Blue Skylight (09:49) 5 Hog Callin Blues (07:26) 6 Oh Lord Dont Let Them Drop That Atomic Bomb on Me (05:43) 7 Passions of a Man (04:52) 8 Wham Bam Thank You Maam (04:43) 9 Invisible Lady (04:55) 10 Eat That Chicken (04:39) 1 [Charles Mingus interviewed by Nesuhi Ertegun] (1:16:24) |
| Passions of a Man: The Complete Atlantic Recordings (1956–1961) : Allmusic album Review : Passions of a Man: The Complete Atlantic Recordings (1956-1961) presents an interesting problem. Theres little arguing that the music on Passions of a Man is seminal, ranking among his very best recordings. The question is whether the six-disc set is indispensable, considering that it is low on unreleased material and boasts one full interview disc. All of Mingus Atlantic recordings between 1956 and 1961 are included in session order, with alternate takes of "Es Flat Ahs Flat Too," "My Jelly Roll Soul," "Tensions," and "Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting" being added to disc three. The interview is interesting, yet most listeners will be content to hear it only once, so it simply adds time to the set. Still, the cost is justified -- Passions of a Man is beautifully produced, sporting sparkling remastered sound, new liner notes as well as the original album liner notes, a complete Atlantic discography, and rare photos. For fans who have yet to purchase copies of The Clown, Mingus at Antibes, or Oh Yeah, its an essential purchase, but those who already own those discs might find too much repetition and not enough bonuses to make it worthwhile. | ||
 | Album: 37 of 42 Title: The Complete 1959 Columbia Recordings Released: 1998 Tracks: 28 Duration: 2:50:49 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Better Git It in Your Soul (07:23) 2 Goodbye Pork Pie Hat (05:44) 3 Boogie Stop Shuffle (05:02) 4 Self‐Portrait in Three Colors (03:08) 5 Open Letter to Duke (05:51) 6 Bird Calls (06:17) 7 Fables of Faubus (08:14) 8 Pussy Cat Dues (09:14) 9 Jelly Roll (06:17) 10 Pedal Point Blues (06:30) 11 GG Train (04:39) 12 Girl of My Dreams (04:08) 1 Slop (06:16) 2 Diane (07:32) 3 Song With Orange (06:47) 4 Gunslinging Bird (05:12) 5 Things Ain’t What They Used to Be (07:36) 6 Far Wells, Mill Valley (06:14) 7 New Now Know How (04:13) 8 Mood Indigo (08:13) 9 Put Me in That Dungeon (02:53) 10 Strollin (04:33) 1 Better Git It in Your Soul (alternate) (08:32) 2 Bird Calls (alternate) (04:54) 3 Jelly Roll (alternate) (06:42) 4 Song With Orange (alternate) (06:43) 5 Diane (alternate) (07:31) 6 New Now Know How (alternate) (04:19) |
 | Album: 38 of 42 Title: West Coast 1945-49 Released: 2000-12-22 Tracks: 24 Duration: 1:17:40 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 The Texas Hop (02:50) 2 Baby, Take a Chance With Me (03:06) 3 Lonesome Woman Blues (03:10) 4 Swingin an Echo (03:07) 5 Ain’t Jivin’ Blues (02:54) 6 Baby, Take a Chance With Me (02:50) 7 Shuffle Bass Boogie (02:56) 8 Weird Nightmare (03:03) 9 Make Believe (02:42) 10 Honey, Take a Chance With Me (03:14) 11 Bedspread (03:04) 12 This Subdues My Passion (02:53) 13 Pipe Dream (03:16) 14 Mingus Fingers (03:01) 15 These Foolish Things (03:18) 16 Story of Love (02:53) 17 He’s Gone (03:31) 18 Pennies From Heaven (02:25) 19 Lyon’s Roar (02:35) 20 Say It Isn’t So (02:40) 21 Boppin’ in Boston (02:52) 22 The Story of Love (02:43) 23 Inspiration (04:04) 24 [rehearsal fragment for "Hes Gone"] (08:23) |
 | Album: 39 of 42 Title: Charles Mingus Trilogy: The Complete Bethlehem Jazz Collection Released: 2001-05-08 Tracks: 22 Duration: 2:32:06 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 What Is This Thing Called Love? (08:08) 2 Minor Intrusion (10:12) 3 Stormy Weather (03:18) 4 Four Hands (08:52) 5 Thrice Upon a Theme (06:41) 6 The Spur of the Moment/Echonitus (08:32) 1 Scenes in the City (11:38) 2 Nouroog (04:51) 3 New York Sketchbook (08:43) 4 Dukes Choice (06:25) 5 Slippers (03:28) 6 Wouldnt You (08:43) 7 Bounce (09:21) 8 Slippers (alternate take) (03:49) 1 Memories of You (04:27) 2 East Coasting (05:12) 3 West Coast Ghost (10:25) 4 Celia (07:50) 5 Conversation (05:28) 6 Fifty-First Street Blues (take 4) (05:47) 7 East Coasting (alternate take 3) (05:30) 8 Memories of You (alternate take 3) (04:42) |
 | Album: 40 of 42 Title: The Sound Of Love Released: 2007 Tracks: 9 Duration: 1:08:31 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 What Is This Thing Called Love (08:03) 2 Spur of the Moment (03:52) 3 Yesterdays (10:07) 4 The Sound of Love (05:56) 5 It Might as Well Be Spring (05:33) 6 So Long Eric (04:29) 7 Farewell, Farewell (05:57) 8 Back Home Blues (12:55) 9 Four Hands (11:39) |
 | Album: 41 of 42 Title: The Complete Columbia & RCA Albums Collection Released: 2012-07-27 Tracks: 95 Duration: 11:00:31 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Dizzy Moods (05:51) 2 Ysabel’s Table Dance (10:28) 3 Tijuana Gift Shop (03:49) 4 Los Mariachis (The Street Musicians) (10:19) 5 Flamingo (05:35) 6 Dizzy Moods (composite partial alternate take) (08:23) 7 Ysabels Table Dance (composite partial alternate take) (13:03) 8 Los Mariachis (composite partial alternate take) (12:28) 9 Flamingo (composite (partial) alternate take) (06:43) 1 Tijuana Gift Shop (alternate take) (04:46) 2 A Colloquial Dream (Scenes in the City) (10:57) 3 Flamingo (composite (partial) alternate take) (08:19) 4 Ysabels Table Dance (breakdowns / composite incomplete take) (11:52) 5 Dizzy Moods (breakdown) (01:35) 6 Dizzy Moods (bass solos) (00:47) 7 Tijuana Gift Shop (breakdowns) (07:14) 8 Tijuana Gift Shops (solos edited out of master take) (01:26) 9 Los Mariachis (false start / breakdowns) (04:29) 10 Los Mariachis (false start / breakdowns) (09:10) 11 Los Mariachis (false start / breakdowns / rehearsal) (14:56) 12 A Colloquial Dream (breakdown) (00:49) 13 A Colloquial Dream (alternate take) (03:21) 1 Better Git It in Your Soul (07:23) 2 Goodbye Pork Pie Hat (05:44) 3 Boogie Stop Shuffle (05:02) 4 Self‐Portrait in Three Colors (03:08) 5 Open Letter to Duke (05:51) 6 Bird Calls (06:17) 7 Fables of Faubus (08:14) 8 Pussy Cat Dues (09:14) 9 Jelly Roll (06:17) 10 Pedal Point Blues (06:30) 11 GG Train (04:39) 12 Girl of My Dreams (04:08) 1 Slop (06:16) 2 Diane (07:32) 3 Song With Orange (06:47) 4 Gunslinging Bird (05:12) 5 Things Ain’t What They Used to Be (07:36) 6 Far Wells, Mill Valley (06:14) 7 New Now Know How (04:13) 8 Mood Indigo (08:13) 9 Put Me in That Dungeon (02:53) 10 Strollin (04:33) 1 Better Git It in Your Soul (alternate) (08:32) 2 Bird Calls (alternate) (04:54) 3 Jelly Roll (alternate) (06:42) 4 Song With Orange (alternate) (06:43) 5 Diane (alternate) (07:31) 6 New Now Know How (alternate) (04:19) 7 Revelations (First Movement) (12:03) 8 Non-Sectarian Blues (03:43) 1 The Shoes of the Fishermans Wife Are Some Jive Ass Slippers (09:34) 2 Adagio ma non troppo (08:22) 3 Dont Be Afraid, the Clowns Afraid Too (09:26) 4 Taurus in the Arena of Life (04:21) 5 Hobo Ho (10:07) 6 The Chill of Death (07:38) 7 The I of Hurricane Sue (10:09) 1 [Bill Cosby introduces Charles Mingus] / [applause] / [Bill Cosby introduction to Jump Monk] (01:06) 2 Jump Monk / [applause] / [Bill Cosby introduction to E.S.P.] (07:27) 3 E.S.P. / [applause] / [Bill Cosby introduction to Ecclusiastics] (09:24) 4 Ecclusiastics / [applause] / [Bill Cosby introduction to Eclipse] (09:31) 5 Eclipse / [applause] / [Bill Cosby introduction to Us Is Two] (04:02) 6 Us Is Two / [applause and Bill Cosby credit musicians] (10:12) 7 Taurus in the Arena of Life (a.k.a. Number One Grandson) / [applause and Bill Cosby credits musicians] (04:53) 8 Mingus Blues / [applause and Bill Cosby credits musicians and announces break] (05:29) 9 [Bill Cosby introduction to Little Royal Suite] (00:13) 10 Little Royal Suite / [applause and Bill Cosby credits musicians] (20:19) 1 [Bill Cosby introduction to Strollin] (00:50) 2 Strollin / [applause] / [Bill Cosby introduction to The I of Hurricane Sue] (10:13) 3 The I of Hurricane Sue / [applause] / [Bill Cosby introduction to Es Flat] (11:11) 4 Es Flat, Ahs Flat Too (a.k.a. Hora Decubitus) (17:07) 5 Ool-Ya-Koo (03:53) 6 [Bill Cosby introduction to Portrait] / Portrait (03:58) 7 Dont Be Afraid, the Clowns Afraid Too / [applause] / [Bill Cosby outro] (10:36) 1 Main Score, Part 1 (07:08) 2 Percussion Discussion (08:36) 3 Main Score, Part 2 (05:07) 4 Started Memory (11:54) 5 Better Get It in Your Soul (09:07) 6 The Soul (03:19) 7 Moods in Mambo (04:15) 8 Self Portrait - Chill of Death (11:27) 9 O.P. (Oscar Pettiford) (02:03) 10 Please Dont Come Back From the Moon (09:51) 1 Monk, Bunk & Vice Versa (Osmotin) (03:05) 2 Peggys Blue Skylight (04:35) 3 Wolverine Blues (06:12) 4 The Childrens Hour of Dream (09:08) 5 Ballad (In Other Words, I Am Three) (09:42) 6 Freedom (07:03) 7 Interlude (The Underdog Rising) (05:25) 8 Noon Night (04:26) 9 Main Score (reprise) (04:48) |
| The Complete Columbia & RCA Albums Collection : Allmusic album Review : The ten-disc 2012 Charles Mingus anthology The Complete Columbia & RCA Albums Collection brings together all of the legendary bassists albums recorded for Columbia and RCA from the 50s to the 70s. Included here are 1959s Mingus Dynasty, 1959s Mingus Ah Um, 1962s Tijuana Moods, 1972s Let My Children Hear Music, and 1972s Charles Mingus and Friends in Concert. Also featured is Gunther Schullers 1989 recording of the lengthy, 130-minute Mingus composition released in 1990 as Epitaph. There are also three discs of alternate takes from the various releases. | ||
 | Album: 42 of 42 Title: Jazz In Detroit / Strata Concert Gallery / 46 Selden Released: 2018-11-02 Tracks: 12 Duration: 4:10:28 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Pithecanthropus Erectus (long version) (25:05) 2 The Man Who Never Sleeps (15:04) 3 Peggys Blue Skylight (18:16) 1 Introduction by Bud Spangler / Celia (23:36) 2 Bud Spangler Interview With Roy Brooks and Commentary (39:01) 1 C Jam Blues (26:59) 2 Orange Was the Color of Her Dress, Then Blue Silk (20:12) 3 Dizzy Profile (12:54) 1 Noddin ya Head Blues (26:03) 2 Celia (alternate take) (24:17) 1 Dizzy Profile (alternate take) (12:04) 2 Strata Gallery Announcement by Bud Spangler / Radio Broadcast WDET FM (06:51) |