All of a sudden Sony is pushing 1959 as “Jazz’s Greatest Year.” The basis of the argument might stem from the fact that Columbia, whose holdings are now controlled by Sony, put out some acknowledged classics 50 years ago and, hey, why not spin that golden anniversary into some more gold?
Now vying for your attention is a lovely stack of reissues, all remastered and with plenty of bonus material, so maybe you’ll want to spring for the Dave Brubeck Quartet’s “Time Out” or Miles Davis’ “Sketches of Spain” again.
The standout of the reissues is the “Legacy Edition” of bassist Charles Mingus’ 1959 recordings, assembled under the title of one of his albums recorded for Columbia that year, “Mingus Ah Um.” I’ve owned these recordings in a few different forms, but they’ve never jumped out of the speakers quite like this.
With churning rhythms supplied by drummer Dannie Richmond, Mingus shouts while triumphantly displaying his incomparable bass chops. His band at the time was one of his most expressive, including trombonist Jimmy Knepper and saxophonists John Handy and Booker Ervin.
“Better Git It in Your Soul,” the leadoff cut here, is the definitive example of jazz as a sheer life force. Virtually everything that follows over the course of two CDs teems with similar intensity or excitement. It’s hard to imagine an improvement on this edition, but who knows what lurks in the vaults for the next time around?
Pianist Brubeck’s “Time Out” was considered a risky venture at the time of its creation, because nearly all other jazz tunes were rhythmically based on variations of the 4/4 beat. The idea of incorporating a 5/4 rhythm, as in the case of saxophonist Paul Desmond’s “Take Five,” was once perceived as radical experimentation.
It’s all pretty charming now, especially Desmond’s sunny accomplishments here that help distinguish his sound in sax history. The new version of “Time Out” supplies a previously unreleased disc of Newport Jazz Festival performances from the era and a DVD featuring Brubeck himself, now 88 years old, happily discussing his greatest commercial triumph. I wonder how many times Brubeck has had to play “Take Five” over the past half-century. And was he completely fed up with it by 1964?
Davis was already one of Columbia’s most prestigious jazz names in 1959, and after the release of the immortal “Kind of Blue” came a lush, ambitious project, “Sketches of Spain.” Under the leadership of arranger Gil Evans, Davis’ trumpet is utilized as an instrument of beauty here probably more so than anyplace else in his career. The 16-minute “Concierto de Aranjuez” remains an emotional tour de force, and it’s easy to get lost in the sound of that swelling orchestra punctuated by Davis’ willing vulnerability. In the case of this “Legacy Edition,” the second disc consists of material that was previously available on the 1996 Davis/ Evans box set, which already had impeccable sound. But if you don’t have that collection already, there’s really nothing like “Sketches.”
Was 1959 “Jazz’s Greatest Year?” With Charlie Parker long gone and Louis Armstrong (but not necessarily Duke Ellington) past his prime, that’s something of a marketing exaggeration. But Sony makes an enjoyable case nonetheless.
Set list.
Teresa Carroll and the Big Swing Trio play for free at 6 p.m. today in City Park . . . on Thursday, it’s pianist/singer Jamie Cullum and on Friday, trumpeter Chris Botti headlines at Jazz Aspen Snowmass. Find out more at . . . vocalist Roberta Gambarini gets two nights at Dazzle, this Thursday and Friday. . . saxophonist Plas Johnson plays the Shadow Theatre in Aurora on June 21.
Bret Saunders’ column on jazz appears every other Sunday in A&E. Saunders is host of the “KBCO Morning Show,” 5:30-10 a.m. weekdays at 97.3-FM. His e-mail address is bret_saunders@hotmail.com.
