Modern Jazz Quartet: Nearly Forgotten

Time has a way of sweeping some jazz stars away while leaving others top of mind. One supergroup that seems to be disappearing from the public consciousness is the Modern Jazz Quartet. In the 1950s, when a more classically influenced style known as chamber jazz became popular at the start of the LP era, the MJQ began to attract attention. The group's esteem and status only grew in the late 1950s and early 1960s as their gentle, erudite music attracted the attention of classical fans in the U.S. and abroad.

The MJQ's origins date back to the late 1940s. The piano-vibes quartet began as an offshoot of the Dizzy Gillespie Orchestra after the trumpeter encouraged his rhythm section—John Lewis, Milt Jackson, bassist Ray Brown and drummer Kenny Clarke—to perform between the band's sets. When Gillespie's big band folded in 1949, the section's members went their separate ways but reunited in 1951 as the Milt Jackson Quartet.

The group was incorporated on January 14, 1952, and became the Modern Jazz Quartet. The group was comprised of John Lewis on piano, Milt Jackson on vibes, Percy Heath on bass and Connie Kay on drums. For Prestige Records, the group made their first recordings as the Modern Jazz Quartet in December 1952, which were issued under the name Milt Jackson and the Modern Jazz Quartet.

The MJQ struggled at first, since many people in club audiences liked to talk, and getting them to listen was a struggle for the group. So they began playing softer to get guests to listen harder. After the band's last album for Prestige, Concorde (1955), they moved to Atlantic and achieved worldwide success.

Let's enjoy seven video clips of the MJQ in action:

Here's the MJQ playing Bags' Groove in 1961...



Here's the MJQ on Ralph J. Gleason's San Francisco TV show Jazz Casual, in 1962...



Here's the MJQ in 1964 on the BBC TV's Jazz 625 in the U.K...



Here's the MJQ on French TV in 1965...



Here's the MJQ in the Netherlands on the World of Jazz in 1969...



Here's the MJQ at the Oslo Newport Jazz Festival in 1970...



And here's the MJQ in London in 1982 playing John Lewis's Django...