(Charles Mingus, bass and piano; Jimmy Owens, flugelhorn and trumpet; Lonnie Hillyer, trumpet; Hobart Dotson, trumpet; Charles McPherson, alto saxophone; Julius Watkins, French horn; Howard Johnson, tuba; Dannie Richmond, drums)
Previously available only as a limited edition vinyl release, the recording of Charles Mingus’ “workshop” at UCLA after an aborted performance at the 1965 Monterey Jazz Festival (Mingus had written the music to be played at Monterey, but the band was given only a half hour slot and was unable to play the longer compositions) is now available on a double CD set from Sunnyside and Sue Mingus Music. The CDs contain all the music Mingus meant to play at Monterey, as well as a snapshot of the spontaneous and often unpredictable nature of Mingus and his ambitious songs.
Disc 1 begins with Mingus explaining the circumstances of the concert. From the first words out of Mingus’ mouth, a comment about “the mikes being down low,” it’s clear the bassist has the crowd in the palm of his hand. Simply the jovial tones of his voice make them laugh. Meditations on Inner Peace, the first song, features beautiful bowed bass from Mingus and haunting trumpet and flugelhorn lines. Minus the trumpets, the song could be a classical piece by an obscure Eastern European composer. Charles McPherson does an amazing job of maintaining the song’s mournful mood with sad, aching sax notes that play off the trumpets and the flugelhorn. Around the 7:30 mark, Mingus plays a somber bowed bass solo that soon plays off a funereal-sounding trumpet (played by whom I’m not sure).
When the band forgets the ending to the song, the music unravels, and Mingus takes the opportunity to introduce his group. After this, Mingus ends the song alone, playing another gorgeous bowed bass solo. Next, Mingus introduces his composition, Once Upon a Time, There Was a Holding Corporation Called Old America, but the group botches the beginning and Mingus lectures the band on not knowing how the song starts (According the liner notes, when practicing with the group for Monterey, Mingus refused to let any of the musicians write anything down and kept changing the parts, so perhaps it’s not surprising that the group messes up the beginning). When the band attempts the song a second time and errs again, Mingus plays the beginning of the song on the piano as an example and then dismisses Hobart Dotson, Jimmy Owens, Julius Watkins, and Howard Johnson to the back to “figure this thing out.” The fact that the audience finds this hilarious might be disturbing, as if Mingus is a father scolding his children.
With the remaining musicians, Mingus plays Ode to Bird and Dizzy, his bebop homage. With most of the horn section gone, McPherson and Lonnie Hillyer have great chemistry, though the song often threatens to careen off the tracks. Dannie Richmond’s drumming is often unstable, though I imagine this is by design. It’s almost as if Richmond is trying to be as endlessly creative as the horn players. After this, the dismissed members of the group are called back for the very avantgarde They Trespass the Land of the Sacred Sioux. Atonality abounds, as Mingus intermittently hits bad piano notes and the saxophone and trumpets seem to be playing in different keys.
Disc 2 begins with Mingus introducing Hobart Dotson, a trumpeter who played with Sun Ra, and jumps into The Arts of Tatum and Freddy Webster. Dotson’s playing on the song is beautiful, though the song struggles to find a solid foundation. Not quite a ballad and not quite a waltz, it’s somewhere in between. There is something depressive about the song’s tone, a mix of languor and despair. After the song ends, Mingus praised Dotson’s playing and wonders if the band had only begun with that song if everything would have worked out better. He then launches into a rambling explanation of the title of Once Upon a Time, There Was a Holding.., that has something to do with being unable to buy products from Africa.
The final, unbotched version of Once Upon a Time switches from a somber intro similar in tone and texture to The Arts of Tatum, but then moves into a melodic swing that quickly becomes chaotic. The song switches between these two poles throughout, with more reflective sections far more successful in my opinion. The final track on Disc 2, Don’t Let Happen Here – an obvious protest song – begins with Mingus charging the audience and himself with genocide. When the song gets into gear, it’s surprisingly swinging and, dare I say, a little too happy. Whether this was intentional, I’m not sure, but the results are odd.
While At UCLA 1965 is far from polished (the drums especially are mixed unusually, with too much high end and not enough volume on the bass drum), the end result is something quite enchanting: jazz music played with such passion, ambition, and fervor that it sets no limits on itself. While never really releasing themselves to the total abandon of free jazz, Mingus and his group certainly aren’t afraid to dance with chaos, despair or dissonance. The results are messy and beautiful at the same time, and now with this new CD release, can be shared by so many more.
TrackList: (excluding speeches) Mediations on Inner Peace, Meditations on Inner Peace (ending), Once Upon a Time, There Was a Holding Corporation Called Old America (1st false start), Once Upon a Time (2nd false start), Ode to Bird and Dizzy, They Trespass the Land of the Sacred Sioux, Arts of Tatum and Freddy Webster, Once Upon a Time (final version), Muskrat Ramble, Don’t Be Afraid, the Clown’s Afraid Too, Don’t Let It Happen Here.
– Daniel Krow
