(September 2024) Episode 604 is CHARLES MINGUS. I feel sheepish in my jazz artist write-ups because I have such a weak foundation in the genre. Thus my reviews are mostly experiential and ill-informed by history or context. I really liked listening to Charles Mingus. There’s a wide range here from bebop to post-bop, avant-garde and big band. He is known as an iconoclast and that comes through, especially in the group improvisation dynamic which treads into the land of free jazz that I like. Centering most things (he played piano too) is Mingus’ phenomenal bass playing.
Favorite album: Pithecanthropus Erectus
Favorite song: Hobo Ho
Compared to expectations: ↑
Recommendation: I checked off the albums I liked as I went, and they turned out to be what critics rate highly, so I felt I was on the right track. They are Pithecanthropus Erectus, Tijuana Moods, Mingus Ah Um, and Let the Children Hear Music.
Opus Project 