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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
pjw81563
1,904 posts
 
I know many "new jazz" musicians who are good - very good - excellent. There are just not that many of them today as there was pre 1970.

I know this because my Jazz CD collection is comprised of approximately 75% pre 1970 and 25% 1970 to the present.

I support new jazz artists by buying their albums and attending live shows frequently in the jazz clubs of NYC. If there were absolutely no good jazz musicians around, as some have suggested, these clubs would not exist. But exist they do and more often then not, are packed to full capacity with jazz aficionado's.
pjw81563
1,904 posts
 
As for Buddy Rich there are hundreds of recordings he appears on where you are not "aware he’s even there". The bulk of Buddy’s short - medium - long drum solo’s are live to please an audience who are screaming for a solo. Buddy is one of the greatest drummers to ever pick up the sticks and I cannot believe a "jazz aficionado" would think otherwise.


The OP of this thread was "Moanin" by Art Blakey and Blakey played more extended drum solo’s on his studio albums then any other jazz drummer. So the statement that "the best jazz drummers are the ones you are not aware of" is a contradiction to this thread.

Frankly speaking, how any so called jazz aficionado, could put up a post that subtly or indirectly suggests that Buddy Rich was a sub par jazz musician/drummer is absurd. 
pjw81563
1,904 posts
 
If you asked some of the jazz legends who are still active like Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, Jack De Johnette, Dave Holland, and Chick Corea if there exists absolutely 0 good jazz artists today because their "ears" tell them so, what do you think their reply would be ???


BTW, The above artists all had one thing in common and a true jazz aficionado would know what it is.
learsfool
1,215 posts
 
I was catching up on posts on this thread over the last week or so tonight and saw a couple of mentions of Gunther Schuller.  In addition to being a great writer/jazz historian, he was also a great composer, both of jazz and "classical" music. He organized brass groups in New York that crossed over both styles of playing and made some very interesting records.  He played my instrument, the French horn. He was actually principal horn of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, and wrote a famous book on horn playing.  He was a great man and great musician.  Had the pleasure of meeting him my freshman year in college when he came to speak at my school.  He died in 2015.  He can be heard on some classic jazz albums, including Birth of the Cool. He was also good friends with the best jazz horn player of the era, Julius Watkins.  He and one of the other top orchestral horn players of the era, John Barrows, can both be heard (in a backup horn quartet) on Watkins' record entitled French Horns For My Lady, recorded for Phillips. Watkins himself was mostly a side man, as you can imagine, playing the horn, but he was leader on a few albums, notably a couple he recorded for Blue Note with a sextet he put together.  
frogman
7,596 posts
 
pjw, all I have to say is, thank God for Jazz fans like you.

Answer to your question: Miles
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