Strings and Keys

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Strings and Keys
Studio album by Charles Mingus

Publication
(s)

1952

Label (s) Debut Records , Original Jazz Classics

Format (s)

LP / CD

Genre (s)

jazz

Title (number)

6/15

running time

20:02 (EP) / 45:23 (CD)

occupation

production

Charles Mingus / Max Roach

chronology
- Strings and Keys Charles Mingus Octet [EP]
(1953)

Strings and Keys is a jazz - record (25 cm format) of bassist Charles Mingus and pianist Spaulding Givens , which was recorded in Los Angeles in April 1951st It was the first release on the Debut Records label operated by Mingus and Max Roach , making it the first record independently produced by a jazz musician; the first pressing comprised only 500 copies.

The re-publication of the recordings in 1992 under the new title Debut Rarities, Vol. 2 by Original Jazz Classics contained, in addition to unpublished material from the duo session, trio recordings by Mingus and Givens with drummer Max Roach, which were made on April 14, 1953 in New York City were.

background

Charles Mingus had already played with the pianist Spaulding Givens in Los Angeles around 1946 in the formation Stars of Swing , which was mostly directed by Buddy Collette . Shortly after his marriage to Celia Nielson and before moving to New York, when the bassist was still a member of the vibraphone player Red Norvo's trio , he was able to convince Richard Bock , at the time an employee of the Discovery Records label , to record a duo session with him . He then played with Givens (who later worked under the Islamic pseudonym Nadi Qamar ) several jazz standards such as Cole Porter's “ What Is This Thing Called Love? "And Jimmy Van Heusen's " Darn That Dream "as well as the pianist's own composition (" Blue Tide "). While Jerome Kern's “ Yesterdays ” is a solo interpretation by the pianist, Charles Mingus played the “melodic role” in the classic “ Body and Soul ”.

Track list

25 cm vinyl (1951)

  • Charles Mingus / Spaulding Givens: Strings and Keys (Debut DLP 1)
  1. What Is This Thing Called Love? ( Cole Porter ) - 3:02
  2. Darn That Dream ( Eddie DeLange , Jimmy Van Heusen ) - 3:38
  3. Yesterdays [Piano Solo] ( Jerome Kern , Otto Harbach ) - 3:05
  4. Body and Soul (Heyman, Eyton, Green, Sour) - 3:34
  5. Blue Moon ( Rodgers and Hart ) - 3:33
  6. Blue Tide (Spaulding Givens) - 3:10

CD (1992)

  • The Charles Mingus Duo & Trio with Spaulding Givens & Max Roach: Debut Rarities, Volume 2 (Original Jazz Classics 00025218180825, Debut Records 00025218180825)
  1. What Is This Thing Called Love? (Cole Porter) - 3:02
  2. Darn That Dream (Eddie DeLange, Jimmy Van Heusen) - 3:38
  3. Yesterdays [Piano Solo] (Jerome Kern, Otto Harbach) - 3:05
  4. Body and Soul (Heyman, Eyton, Green, Sour) - 3:34
  5. Blue Moon (Rodgers & Hart) - 3:33
  6. Blue Tide (Spaulding Givens) - 3:10
  7. Darn That Dream (Alternate Take) - 3:37
  8. Jeepers Creepers (Take 1) ( Harry Warren , Johnny Mercer ) - 3:37
  9. Jeepers Creepers (Take 2) - 3:03
  10. Day Dream (Take 1) ( Billy Strayhorn , Duke Ellington , John Latouche ) - 3:42
  11. Day Dream (Take 2) - 2:38
  12. Theme from Rhapsody in Blue (Take 1) ( George Gershwin ) - 3:24
  13. Theme from Rhapsody in Blue (Take 2) - 2:39
  14. Jet (Take 1) ( Bennie Benjamin , George David Weiss , Harry Revel ) - 2:44
  15. Jet (Take 2) - 2:35

reception

Mingus biographer Todd Jenkins praised the early Mingus session; the interaction between the two musicians works exceptionally well. Mingus' tone on the bass was "great, delicate, but confident." Givens had worked with Mingus long enough to know when and where to sublimate his playing in order to serve his teammate. The bassist's playing is more percussive to make up for the lack of a drummer; Givens almost shows an attitude of the cool jazz school, light and blocky. His composition Blue Tide has a majestic dignity in its slowness, which is supported by Mingus with the Coll'arco game. In the (1952 unpublished) interpretation of Jeepers Creepers , Givens leans on the playing style of Bud Powell and "on the rather clear moments" of Thelonious Monk .

Allmusic only rated the original album with three (out of five) stars. Also in Allmusic, Arwurf arwulf wrote about the new edition of the recordings ( Debut Rarities, Vol. 2 ), which he rated with four stars, the duets with the pianist Spaulding Givens provided "remarkable insights into the active participation" of the bassist in the recording sessions for the label co-founded by him. The additional titles with the participation of Max Roach show the increasing degree of creativity of this development. This is chamber jazz of the highest order. It shed light on the difficult paths these musicians took at a time when the future of jazz was still vague and full of undeveloped possibilities.

Richard Cook & Brian Morton gave the album's new edition 3½ (out of four) stars in The Penguin Guide to Jazz .

Individual evidence

  1. ^ The Charles Mingus Duo & Trio with Spaulding Givens and Max Roach [sound recording]: Debut rarities, vol. 2. from York University Library Catalog, accessed August 14, 2017.
  2. ↑ Rare Strings on Gems of Jazz, accessed August 14, 2017.
  3. ↑ In 1986 the LP was re-released by Fantasy Records / Metronome Musik 0902110.
  4. ↑ a b Album information at Discogs
  5. ^ Todd S. Jenkins: I Know what I Know: The Music of Charles Mingus , Westport, CT / London: Praeger, 2006, p. 10.
  6. ^ Brian Priestley : Mingus. A Critical Biography . Quartet Books, London, Melbourne, New York City ISBN 0704322757 pp. 43 f.
  7. ^ A b Todd S. Jenkins: I Know what I Know: The Music of Charles Mingus , Westport, CT / London: Praeger, 2006, p. 19 f.
  8. ↑ Review of the album Strings and Keys at Allmusic (English). Retrieved February 16, 2015.
  9. ↑ Review of the album Debut Rarities, Vol. 2 at Allmusic (English). Retrieved February 16, 2015.
  10. ^ Richard Cook , Brian Morton : The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD, LP and Cassette . 2nd Edition. Penguin, London 1994, ISBN 0-14-017949-6 .