Charles MINGUS - Three Or Four Shades Of Blues 1977

Charles MINGUS - Three Or Four Shades Of Blues 1977

Jazz

Even in the latter stages of his career the notoriously restless Mingus never stopped searching for new ways to interpret and present his compositions. As befits one with such a mercurial muse, his artistic destinations were often surprising, but seldom as surprising as on THREE OR FOUR SHADES OF BLUES. Here he reconfigures (and redefines in the process) some of the best-known tunes from his daunting canon, tackling them in a more contemporary style. In 1977, this meant the enlistment of guitarists Larry Coryell and Philip Catherine to add some burning, fusion-friendly licks to "Better Git Hit in Your Soul" and frenetic amphetamine-flamenco riffs to "Goodbye Porkpie Hat." It's to Mingus' credit as arranger and bandleader that these updates never seem contrived and still don't sound dated. It's just one more way of viewing the revolutionary work of this compositional giant. THREE OR FOUR SHADES is exhilarating in its fresh outlook and unfettered passion.
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Creative disarray is so central to the Mingus image and the Mingus ensemble approach that the idea for this album isn't as risky as it may first appear. A few Atlantic artists plus a couple of other veterans join with the current Mingus quintet for five typically exhortatory performances. The presence of guitarists Larry Coryell, Philip Catherine and John Scofield is the real surprise, yet each is absorbed into the Mingus orbit with little difficulty.

This is a fairly routine album in light of past Mingus achievements. For instance, "Better Git Hit in Your Soul," which finds Coryell and tenor saxophonist Ricky Ford getting hot over the racing gospel atmosphere, simply doesn't make it next to earlier performances of the piece. "Goodbye, Porkpie Hat" suffers similarly but has more interest thanks to the Django Rienhardt-like feel of Coryell and Catherine on acoustic guitars and George Coleman's eloquent alto. Of the three new pieces, two are straight-blowing tracks with mixed results. "Noddin Ya Head Blues," slow and Monkish, is long on atmosphere and too long on Coryell; "Nobody Knows" is more notable for its reworking of an old spiritual into uptempo be-bop than for the solos by Sonny Fortune, trumpeter Jack Walrath and the others.

The multitextured title piece saves the album. A compendium of blues approaches, "Three or Four Shades" pays homage to Ellington, Basie and Parker via vintage Mingus writing and then slips in some "Caucasian folk blues" (actually the "Wedding March") for off-the-wall humorous effect. This track also has the most consistent solos, with Ford, Walrath, Coleman, Scofield and pianists Bob Neloms and Jimmy Rowles all taking concise, meaty turns. Mingus, who employs a second bassist on all tracks, sounds strong throughout, but he obviously didn't have an album's worth of inspiration on the level of "Three or Four Shades of Blue."
By BOB BLUMENTHAL.
**
Band;
Charles Mingus- (Acoustic Bass);
Ricky Ford- (Tenor Saxophone);
Jack Walrath- (Trumpet);
Bob Neloms- (Piano);
Dannie Richmond- (Drums).
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George Coleman- (Alto & Tenor Saxophones);
Sonny Fortune- (Alto Saxophone);
Jimmy Rowles- (Piano);
Larry Coryell, Philip Catherine, John Scofield- (Guitar);
George Mraz, Ron Carter- (Acoustic Bass);
Dannie Richmond- (Drums).
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01.Better Get Hit In Your Soul    4:39
02.Goodbye Pork Pie Hat    7:13
03.Noddin' Ya Head Blues    10:09
04.Three Or Four Shades Of Blues    12:12
05.Nobody Knows   10:35
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