Charles Mingus

Advantages Fantastic display of Jazz composition
Disadvantages Jazz isn't for everyone

...Charles Mingus - In a Soulful Mood. Charles Mingus, also known as "The angry man of Jazz", is a fantastic jazz bassist and composer. He was born in 1922 in Arizona and picked up the Double Bass in high school. He had previously learnt to play the cello and trombone so many of his cello skills were converted to double bass. In his early years he was composing incredibly advanced jazz pieces, some of which to be recorded later on. Over his career Mingus recorded in excess of 70 records with various musicians passing through his often unconventional bands. He tended to focus on the personality, as well as the ability, of a musician to see how he would fit into the band. He ran a jazz workshop that included around 8 members and shaped musicians into unconventional ways that explored their improvisational talents. Pieces... Read review

Advantages I get to do more ranting...
Disadvantages ... but I know no one will listen.

..., Natasha Atlas (French and Arabic), Trans Global Underground (more Arabic), Bebel Gilberto (Portuguese), a whole load of traditional Japanese stuff, various opera type things… ANY VINYL RECORDS - Yes, from my DJing (ahem) days, mostly. So plenty of d’n’b singles on 12” (I hate d’n’b these days). Album-wise, I think just Orblivion. I’m not sure why I have that on vinyl. I’ve got some cool vinyl stuff from when I was a kiddie. The Runaway Train and that kind of thing. AN ALBUM MADE BEFORE YOU WERE BORN – A lot. See my whole 60’s and 70’s phase (now past). That I listen to now, plenty of jazz – Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Charles Mingus, Jaco Pastorious, Thelonius Monk, all these people. I also have quite a lot of blues. LIVE MUSIC! HAVE YOU EVER SUNG SOLO IN PUBLIC? No! I really can’t sing. Really. I could probably... Read review

Advantages Some instant classics that everyone can enjoy.
Disadvantages The second half of the album leaves much to be desired

...Bears is an elementary guitar instrumental exercise that does nothing to keep the flow of the album moving. You almost wonder if it's included solely to appease all the fans that have been begging for more guitars. On the other end of the spectrum, we get Like Spinning Plates, another tune that just doesn't feel right among these other good tunes. There's nothing revolutionary about playing your music backwards and creating loops from it. The song is promising until Yorke's voice is - you guessed it - backwards. The album closer is called Life in a Glass House. It's jazzy - it's got that free form Charles Mingus feel that The National Anthem degenerated into on Kid A. Yorke's voice is clear for the first time, but it seems like he's intentionally trying not to sound that good. The lyrics delve into relationships and politics, two things... Read review