Album review: Jazz at Berlin Philharmonic Xlll - Celebrating Mingus 100

Magnus Lindgren (bari sax, bass clarinet, arr.); Georg Breinschmid (bass); Gregory Hutchinson (drums); Danny Grissett (piano); Matthias Schriefl (trumpet); Camille Bertault (vocal); Shannon Barnett (trombone); Tony Lakatos, Jakob Manz (sax).

Recorded live in Berlin's Philharmonic Concert Hall on April 13 - 9 days short of it being 100 years to the day of his birth - this rumbustious celebration of one of jazz's most important and influential innovators, Charles Mingus, does the great man proud.

Whilst it may, at times, be more in your face than the original versions on the legendary album Mingus Ah-Um it is, nevertheless, an album capable of being judged on its own merits.

Jelly Rolls is brought in by bassist and co-leader Breinschmid who came to jazz from the Vienna Philharmonic he also solos in the latter stages of the piece; his symphonic apprenticeship did him no harm whatsoever. Manz paintstrips on alto, Aussie Barnett takes the Jimmy Knepper role and Schriefl brought to mind Teddy Buckner's shift with Kid Ory's Creole Jazz Band at one of the Dixieland Jubilee concerts - 1953 I think. Buckner, on parole from Lionel Hampton, was as far removed from Mutt Carey as was conceivable. Schriefl would have had the same effect.

The German trumpet player displays more technique on the quirky Fables of Faubus beginning with some growling that would have had Ellington writing a concerto for him before charging onwards and upwards.

Goodbye Pork Pie Hat introduces Camille Bertault who remembers Lester Young in French. My linguistic skills aren't that good but the word chapeaux cropped up so it must have been authentic. 

Boogie Stop Shuffle had some nice tenor from Lakatos. Piano by Grissett, one of two Americans on the gig, the other being drummer Hutchinson who, like Danny Richmond on the original was heard at length. In between, there was some blistering baritone by co-leader and arranger Lindgren. Bertault did some scatting and the crowd loved it - me too!

La Bertauld also provided some words to Mingus'  Self-Portrait in Three Colors. The additional colors being supplied by, I think, Lakatos on tenor, Lindgren on bass clarinet and more piano from Grissett.

The final number - Better Git it in Your Soul - was, as expected, an absolute belter!

Everybody got in on the act (or should that be ACT?) Baritone blowing like his influence Pepper Adams, Bertauld scatting, trumpet screaming, bass, drums, alto, trombone all in there pitching culminating with what could have been an avant-garde group playing Dixieland or vice versa!

This must have been quite a concert!

Released on CD and digi - June 24 . ACT 9955-2. Details.

PS: I realise the release date is still some way off but I was so excited about it I couldn't wait to tell the world (I'll probably flag it up again nearer the time). Lance