Jazz Classics

When I bought a "Best of" compilation of Charles Mingus a few weeks back I was intrigued that, although I enjoyed the album immensely, it contained no tracks from his most highly rated album, Mingus Ah Um. Now assuming that at least some of the great Jazz aficionados know something about their subject I plumped for the album in my latest selections. It was, I am pleased to say, a very wise choice. Opening tracks Better Git It in Your Soul and Goodbye Pork Pie Hat are fantastic - as is the rest of the album; but it was the Fables of Faubus, his "tribute" to the racist governor of Arkansas, which really pricked up my ears. The whole album is wonderful and really worth the £4.99 I spent on it.

My second album choice was one that I was vaguely familiar with, the Dave Brubeck Quartet's Time Out. My father had an old and scratchy LP of this. The album was one of the biggest selling Jazz albums of all time and it features various tunes played in odd time signatures - hence the word play of the title. It is a nice introduction to Jazz for classical fans and it also contains Take Five - possibly one of the most familiar Jazz tunes for the non-Jazz fan. Hearing the remastered version is quite a revelation. I had become so used to the clicks and crackles of the record that it sounds rather clinical at first. However, the quality of the 50 year old recording is immaculate - save for a little distortion on Paul Desmond's sax at one point. It's really nice to rediscover this again.





My last purchase was another that appeared on several "greatest" lists, Cannonball Adderley's Something Else. I can't say I knew much about this but it does feature Miles Davies and I can spot some similarities between this album and Davies' Kind of Blue - which is no bad thing. It features a mix of standards (e.g. Autumn Leaves) and compositions from Davis and Adderley's brother. It's very relaxed listening and certainly leaves me wanting to hear more. Remarkably, the three albums I bought were all recorded within a year of each other.

One thing I have been trying to locate is a copy of The Penguin Guide to Jazz. This seems to be the bible for Jazz recordings on CD but my local library's reference section didn't have it. It's also expensive at £30 - maybe I should make some hints about Christmas presents?