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Mingus : Please recommend some listening for a newbie

B

Bass301

Jul 13, 2008
65
0
#1
I would like to listen to Mingus but need some direction as how to begin.

What album or five songs are essential listening for a Mingus newbie ? What drummers and other players did he have the best vibe with ?

Thanks
 
#3
Black Saint and the Sinner lady is the MOST essential Mingus Album in my opinion, and a good place to start. It is a fantastic example of his compositional style/skills, and a fantastic piece of art.

Mingus Mingus Mingus and Mingus ah um! are also great choices, though honestly, none of his albums are bad. Changes one and Changes two are also great.
 
#6
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#7
You cant go wrong with any of the suggestions already mentioned (...At Antibes and TBSATSL are particular favorites of mine), but I'd also recommend Tijuana Moods, Blues & Roots, Charles Mingus presents Charles Mingus, and the Great Concert of Charles Mingus. I'm really partial to anything that features Eric Dolphy on it.
 
#8
As above. I can also highly recommend Pithecanthropus Erectus.

Good opportunity to recommend 'Money Jungle', a one-off masterpiece trio album with Duke Ellington on piano, Max Roach on drums, and Mingus on bass. It is a tour de force, 3 mature master musicians who created something wonderful and sometimes terrifying from combining their disparate styles over a few fraught days in the studio. Ellington was Mingus' biggest hero and influence, BTW.

Danny Richmond was the one musician that played with him the longest and featured on the most recordings. it was Mingus that recommended he take up drums in the first place and he nurtured him. He might have been a bit lacking technically compared to many other Jazz drummers but he was extremely musical and was a great foil to Mingus' bass.
 
#10
One Drop said:
Good opportunity to recommend 'Money Jungle', a one-off masterpiece trio album with Duke Ellington on piano, Max Roach on drums, and Mingus on bass. It is a tour de force, 3 mature master musicians who created something wonderful and sometimes terrifying from combining their disparate styles over a few fraught days in the studio. Ellington was Mingus' biggest hero and influence, BTW.
Click to expand...
I love Money Jungle, too...great tunes & musicianship all around. Mingus plays very aggressively throughout, partially due to the fact that Duke wouldn't record any of his tunes for the album.

I also highly recommend Mingus at Cornell 1964 which includes Eric Dolphy and Jaki Byard.
 
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#12
You should also consider Jazz At Massey Hall, which was marketed as the "Greatest Jazz Concert of All Time" (or something like that).

Marketing hype aside, the concert has historical significance, since it included the all-star quintet of Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Max Roach, Bud Powell and Charles Mingus.

For its initial release (on Mingus' own label), Mingus overdubbed his bass parts to improve his performance and the overall fidelity of his bass on the recording. This release was an edited version of the concert. A complete version has since been issued, which restores Mingus' original bass parts, excluding the overdubs. Although I can not confirm this, the re-issue is reported to be the better version. It's also reported that Parker played a plastic alto sax at the concert.

Another great release is the Atlantic Box Set "Passions of a Man" and I agree with the above recommendations, especially Blues + Roots, Money Jungle, Mingus, Mingus, Mingus, Mingus Ah Um and Changes One and Two. Honestly, there are no bad Mingus recordings, at least none that I've heard.

One final note: There's a collection of very early Mingus recordings called: Baron Mingus - West Coast 1945-1949. Although hard to find, it's worth the efforts, since it compiles his pre-lp recordings that were originally issued only on single disc 78s.

Enjoy!
 
#13
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#16
Bass301 said:
I would like to listen to Mingus but need some direction as how to begin.

What album or five songs are essential listening for a Mingus newbie ? What drummers and other players did he have the best vibe with ?

Thanks
Click to expand...
I suggest you choose a tune that has been recorded by many artists & collect the tracks for comparison. Right now I am listening to 'Goodbye Pork Pie Hat' from Mingus Ah Um, Joni Mitchell (collaborating with Mingus), John McLaughlin (Extrapolation), Jeff Beck (Wired), Marcus Miller (M2) & Jaco Pastorius (Big Band).

It's a Minor Blues Ballad with complex re-harmonization & is a real puzzle for my ears. 8-)
 
#17
jsingles said:
Black Saint and the Sinner lady is the MOST essential Mingus Album in my opinion, and a good place to start. It is a fantastic example of his compositional style/skills, and a fantastic piece of art.

Mingus Mingus Mingus and Mingus ah um! are also great choices, though honestly, none of his albums are bad. Changes one and Changes two are also great.
Click to expand...

I could not agree more. Not necessarily a Mingus bass album, I've alwys enjoyed Mingus Plays Piano, too. Another I always recommend to friends is Mingus Revenge! with Eric Dolphy (alto saxophone, bass clarinet and flute), Johnny Coles (trumpet on So Long Eric), Clifford Jordan (tenor saxophone), Jaki Byard (piano), and Dannie Richmond (drums), Charles Mingus (bass).
 

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