Mingus is one of my favorite jazz musicians and composers. He was a master of blending old and new and always had the roots of the blues very much in focus in his music. Some of the very best jazz albums of all time for me is credited to him. My favorites are The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady, Mingus Ah Um, Mingus Dynasty and this one on display, Blues & Roots.
His double bass mastery is evident as always on this session, and I hold him in very high regard in terms of thinking of my favorite double bassists. If I was to choose my top 5 bassists in jazz now, without thinking too much, they will probably be, in no particular order, Scott La Faro, Richard Davis, Charlie Haden, Henry Grimes and Mingus.
This album is another highlight of 2023 which I’ve been looking for for a long time. It’s definitely not easy to find an original issue in mono with the beautiful bulls eye labels. I really dig those labels and I have always loved the cover art as well. The session is top notch and features a stellar cast, with Jackie McLean, Booker Ervin, Pepper Adams, Mal Waldron, Dannie Richmond among others.
Happy to have checked this one off of the want list this year and I’m anticipating it will get plenty of time on the turntable.