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Charles Mingus: Mingus in Argentina
by Jack Kenny
This latter-day Charles Mingus group is ripe for reassessment. The new guys, Ricky Ford, Robert Neloms and Jack Walrath carried a heavy burden as they toured South America. The two-CD collection is a great feast of Mingus played by a band that, as yet, has never had real recognition. Much of the music was written for the Atlantic albums in the 1970s. According to Sue Mingus, the tour of South America was concerning. She wrote in her book ...
Continue ReadingCharles Mingus: In Argentina: The Buenos Aires Concerts
by Thierry De Clemensat
Resonance Records specializes in the release of such sonic documents, serving both the history of jazz and the sheer pleasure that albums of this kind offer to collectors. It is, therefore, with immense delight that we rediscover in this recording Charles Mingus (bass and piano), Ricky Ford (tenor saxophone), Jack Walrath (trumpet;), Robert Neloms (piano), Dannie Richmond (drums), and immerse ourselves in the year 1977, when this album was recorded. The era's unmistakable imprint lingers in the sound, though the ...
Continue ReadingCharles Mingus: In Argentina: The Buenos Aires Concerts
by Pierre Giroux
The Charles Mingus ensemble that arrived in Argentina in 1977 for the Buenos Aires concerts remains one of the lesser-known yet musically potent groups in the bassist-composer's storied history. These concerts are now presented in this first authorized release as a 2-CD set under the title Mingus In Argentina: The Buenos Aires Concerts, offered in a deluxe package that includes detailed notes from Mingus biographer Brian Priestley, recollections from the concerts by Argentinian writer Claudio Parisi, and new interviews with ...
Continue ReadingCharles Mingus: In Argentina: The Buenos Aires Concerts
by Mike Jurkovic
Here, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, is some seriously swinging, seriously rowdy Charles Mingus. Recorded approximately six months before his fateful diagnosis of ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease) the bassist deploys a street fighting melange--trumpeter Jack Walrath, tenor saxophonist Ricky Ford, pianist Robert Neloms and his wingman, drummer Dannie Richmond--and takes on Buenos Aries with all his righteous force. A celebratory exclusive release for Record Store Day 2025, In Argentina: The Buenos Aires Concerts is really about as hot, honest ...
Continue ReadingCharles Mingus: In Argentina: The Buenos Aires Concerts
by Dan McClenaghan
So many live jazz dates have been taped over the years. Then the tapes have been shelved. With that in mind, there may be no end to the ongoing supply of uncovered jazz gems begging to be discovered. But Zev Feldman, the Jazz Detective, is doing his best to dig out as many as possible. His discoveries have included formerly unreleased sets by pianists Bill Evans and Art Tatum, saxophonist Sonny Rollins, bandleader Sun Ra, guitarist Wes Montgomery and many ...
Continue ReadingRicky Ford: From Across the Sea
by R.J. DeLuke
Ricky Ford is a badass tenor saxophonist. Many will recall his fierce and strong playing on his Muse releases in the '80s. Others may be aware that he was a stalwart member of big bands like the Duke Ellington Orchestra under the leadership of Mercer Ellington and with Charles Mingus and later the Mingus Dynasty band. Those Muse disks, and releases on Candid Records, included monster players like Jaki Byard, John Hicks, Jimmy Cobb, Larry Coryell, Louis Hayes, ...
Continue ReadingRicky Ford: The Wailing Sounds of Ricky Ford: Paul’s Scene
by Richard J Salvucci
Is there a more underrated player than Ricky Ford? On any horn? Perhaps the fact that he took over Paul Gonsalves' chair in the (Mercer) Ellington orchestra when he was still a kid led people to think he had yet to prove himself. There was a brief stint with Charles Mingus. And there was his association with Lionel Hampton as a featured soloist. Ford showed up in a number of bands, most notably with Tom Harrell in Play ...
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