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Jazz for aficionados

Jazz for aficionados

I'm going to review records in my collection, and you'll be able to decide if they're worthy of your collection. These records are what I consider "must haves" for any jazz aficionado, and would be found in their collections. I wont review any record that's not on CD, nor will I review any record if the CD is markedly inferior. Fortunately, I only found 1 case where the CD was markedly inferior to the record.

Our first album is "Moanin" by Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers. We have Lee Morgan , trumpet; Benney Golson, tenor sax; Bobby Timmons, piano; Jymie merrit, bass; Art Blakey, drums.

The title tune "Moanin" is by Bobby Timmons, it conveys the emotion of the title like no other tune I've ever heard, even better than any words could ever convey. This music pictures a person whose down to his last nickel, and all he can do is "moan".

"Along Came Betty" is a tune by Benny Golson, it reminds me of a Betty I once knew. She was gorgeous with a jazzy personality, and she moved smooth and easy, just like this tune. Somebody find me a time machine! Maybe you knew a Betty.

While the rest of the music is just fine, those are my favorite tunes. Why don't you share your, "must have" jazz albums with us.

Enjoy the music.
orpheus10
acman3
2,267 posts
 
Monk, Potter and Wolfgang Muthspiel were all very good though!
acman3
2,267 posts
 
This is what I meant to play

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pINzrMgPUcc
frogman
4,637 posts
 
Hope it's ok to crash the party 😉.  Fantastic stuff; loved it.  Thanks for turning me on to Lage and Thile (knew Collie and Meyer); beautiful players.  Talk about easy with its own brand of swing.
jafant's avatar
jafant
10,525 posts
 
Linda Oh
ghosthouse's avatar
ghosthouse
3,718 posts
 
Hello O.  I could say, "I'm not surprised" by your recent comment about the Chris Potter "Dreamer is the Dream" album...but WON'T  :-) 

There was some discussion about him back on page 206 Aug 26, 2017.  

I still don't "get" him in the sense of...What's the justification?  What's he doing to advance the form?  What's new and fresh here? (even if there's only a subjective answer to that last)  With respect to that CP album, wouldn't someone else have done much this same stuff before him and maybe better?  If not stylistically or technically better, then better simply because they were first?  Rhetorical questions.    

Those same questions do come to mind w/respect to a lot of the classic or traditional jazz that gets posted here.  Maybe the subtle, distinguishing virtues of each is only apparent to ears that have listened to thousands of hours of this sort of music.  For me, at this stage in my "aficionado-ish-ness" instead of a few 1000 jazz albums, I'm thinking, I only "need" (a couple dozen?) that are best of the best or represent significant deflection points in the evolution of the form.  The work and learning is by way of the time invested digging through the overburden looking for a few diamonds...or at least those things that sparkle for me.

This thread has provided great opportunity for exposure to such.  Thank you yet again for starting it, O.  Can honestly say I'm listening to a lot more jazz (even if it ain't always what you would favor) than I have in many, many years.  Owe much of that to the music ideas that have been provided here largely by you, Frogman, alexatpos, and acman.  Thanks to you all.

Most recently (thanks again to Frogman again for the introduction) these diamonds would be preferred over that particular Chris Potter recording...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wZHJXPoFpI      

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-r8L-9ay7uE


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