JAZZ CD OF THE YEAR: Ronald Atkins
ANY shortlist of jazz groups of the year must include the Mingus Big Band. All their material was written long ago by Charles Mingus. So, does their album Gunslinging Birds (Dreyfus FDM) confirm the fears of those who grumble about jazz navel-gazing instead of thrusting ever onward? If it does, that’s their fault. One cannot equate band or album with, say, a Duke Ellington piece played by Wynton Marsalis. Mingus left few formal scores for a large orchestra. He did, though, leave enough to indicate how he would tackle the
Almost everything on Gunslinging Birds has been put together by members, drawn from the pool of top musicians who meet once a week in New York. The result sounds as you would expect a Mingus big band to sound, from the barnstorming Gunslinging Bird itself and Jump Monk to the reflective Reincarnation of a Lovebird.
Mingus, one should never forget, wrote great galumphing melodies that beg to be orchestrated, just as the call-and-response patterns imposed by interlocking riffs, the essence of ensemble jazz as gloriously embodied by Hog Callin’ Blues, abound in his recorded legacy. Every soloist stands out, notably Philip Harper on trumpet and pianist Kenny Drew Junior who earns extra marks for expertly propelling the music as part of the rhythm section.
It’s spelled Big Bang on the spine. An inspired misprint.