Charles Mingus Presents Charles Mingus
Candid, 2022
8/10
Listen to Charles Mingus Presents Charles Mingus
An important piece of jazz history, the songs here were being played by Eric Dolphy (sax, bass clarinet), Ted Curson (trumpet), and Dannie Richmond (drums) for weeks until Charles Mingus brought his bass and vocal skills to the equation.
“Folk Forms, No. 1” starts the listen with bouncy bass before the crisp drums and lively horns enter the very animated jazz climate, and “Original Faubus Fables” follows with gritty vocals alongside the initially more cautious climate that builds into squealing horns and bouts of talking/singing.
The back half of the listen brings us the exploratory “What Love”, where a firm mood is cultivated amid the bare moments as well as avant-garde demeanor, while “All The Things You Could Be By Now If Sigmund Freud’s Wife Was Your Mother” exits with a playful spirit of acrobatic drumming, wild clarinet and sax, and strategic bass lines.
Often mistaken for a live record, Mingus sets the mood to resemble a night club for the compositions, and he introduces the songs as if there were an audience, which gives the listen a spontaneous feel.
This version of the album is remastered by Bernie Grundman and includes new liner notes from Nat Hentoff. Already regarded as one of the best in the vast catalog of Mingus’ work, the improved quality of the recordings really highlights the fierceness of the affair.
Travels well with: Max Roach- We Insist!; Abbey Lincoln- Straight Ahead