Record of the day: Charles Mingus, “The Great Concert of…”
Charles Mingus, “The Great Concert of Charles Mingus” (Universal CD 980691-3)
The title of the album is rather misleading, not because this concert is not great (indeed), but because it gives it a character of uniqueness that contrasts with the large number of memorable evenings of the double bass player available on record (just think of the albums recorded at the Cafè Bohemia , at the Antibes Festival and at Carnegie Hall).
In any case, it is an album that should absolutely be bought, given the state of grace in which the great composer and his partners found themselves in 1964, when the album was recorded during a Parisian stop on their European tour. The formation of Mingus’ band in those years included a sextet but the trumpeter Johnny Coles was the victim of severe stomach problems (which put his life in danger) just two days before this French performance; Mingus therefore played in a quintet, but placed Coles’ trumpet in plain sight on a lectern and presented it to the amazed audience as if it were an actual member of the group.
Extravagances aside, the concert was incredible, thanks to the power with which Mingus managed to lead the group from behind his double bass, often shouting furious orders referring to the setlist and the formal structure of the pieces, also paying frequent homage to many of his illustrious predecessors, from Art Tatum and Fats Waller to Charlie Parker and Duke Ellington (perhaps the musician Mingus felt closest to). Soloists like Eric Dolphy and Clifford Jordan on saxophones formed a formidable pairing that could range from the most aggressive bop to stripped-down free moments with exciting instrumental tension (listening to Dolphy’s splendid improvisations seems even more moving knowing that after two months the great saxophonist would tragically passed away at the height of his strength); equally formidable were the performances of pianist Jaki Byard, with a truly incandescent pianism, and of drummer Dannie Richmond, able to indulge Mingus’s complex rhythmic imagination as few have been able to do.
The group’s repertoire included long-established songs such as “Orange Was the Color of Her Dress” and “Fables of Faubus” but also more recent compositions such as “So Long Eric”, while the version of “Sophisticated Lady” is truly an anthology. of which Ellington would certainly have been proud.
Carlo Boccadoro, composer and conductor, was born in Macerata in 1963. He lives and works in Milan. He collaborates with soloists and orchestras in different parts of the world. He is the author of numerous books on musical topics.
This text is taken from “Lunario della musica: A record for every day of the year” published by Einaudi, courtesy of the author and the publisher.
