Cornell 1964

CHARLES MINGUS SEXTET: Cornell 1964
Blue Note, 1964/2007

This “lost” recording of a campus concert turns out to be the earliest recording of a brief-lived but highly-regarded Mingus ensemble with Eric Dolphy, Clifford Jordan and Johnny Coles (it only lasted a few months). The band is in high spirits, the music is freewheeling, and the sound quality is generally quite decent, if uneven. Good stuff.

Fo’s Picks: Disc 1 – 2, 4, maybe 5 Disc 2 – 2, 4

DISC ONE:

2. 04:26 – great Jaki Byard piano solo, channeling Art Tatum & Fats Waller
3. 04:23 – solo bass, classic ballad: exceptional, highly lyrical playing
4. 29:42 – classic angular swing, brisk start: the tune shifts organically through many tempos, moods & quotes. Slightly sour trumpet, playful piano, boisterous sax, honking clarinet, moody bass. Excellent solos.
5. 15:05 – relaxed, somewhat lumpy ballad with uptempo interjections; the mix sounds a little weird but it’s still nice. Dolphy’s clarinet solo is killer.
Note: earliest recording of this famous tune with a full band!
6. 17:26 – starts as straightforward, dull swing, but after 5 or 6 minutes it’s cooking like crazy. Long solos for bass, drums, clarinet.

DISC TWO:

1. 31:23 – wide-ranging piece with muddy sound: starts as melancholy ballad with a nostalgic touch, becomes a popping avant-garde stomp. Byard & Dolphy get most action in first half, then the others.
2. 15:33 – stage chatter, bass intro, then a cool glide stays low, loose, bluesy
3. 06:07 – light take on a corny Irish tune becomes breezy trumpet feature
4. 09:59 – lighthearted uptempo waltz, great lilting flute, propulsive rhythm

[ Fo ] 9-Sep-07