Biography of Charles Mingus
Charles Mingus was arguably the greatest bass player in the history of jazz, both as a virtuoso and an innovator. He brought the bass from primarily a rhythm instrument to the forefront as a melodic instrument, not only for himself but for all bass players to follow. He looms equally large as a composer, combining composition and improvisation seamlessly to achieve a seminal new sound. He also strongly supports the European perception of jazz as modern classical music. Mingus had a reputation as a stern and even unreasonable leader, demanding that his musicians pay total attention to the music they were playing and that they sound "like themselves." Yet he consistently elicits performances from his musicians that surpass any of their efforts elsewhere.
Almost any Mingus album is instantly recognizable as his, even if he is not himself playing at the time. This is not background music, and his music is not relaxing, but energizing and exciting. If you would like to glimpse the essentially kind, humorous, and big presence of Mingus, both the film Mingus 1968 and his autobiography, Beneath the Underdog, are highly recommended.
There are many ways to categorize Mingus's music. A simple but useful way is to separate it into four categories: His formative years -- anything up to Pithecanthropicus Erectus; his standards -- original studio versions of his live-performance repertoire; his live performance recordings; and his compositions -- usually one-time performances of a Mingus composition and arrangement.
Any Mingus album is worth owning. If you have never listened to Mingus, I would recommend, as a great starting point, Mingus at Antibes (live performance). This is Mingus with perhaps his strongest group, at the height of his powers, and is certainly some of the hottest live jazz ever recorded. ~ Michael Katz
Ringtones
![Mingus Ah Um [Remastered]](http://mcsfile-us.s3.amazonaws.com/00000000000004629637/018)
![Something Like a Bird [Single]](http://mcsfile-us.s3.amazonaws.com/00000000000002804882/018)
![Cumbia & Jazz Fusion [Bonus Tracks]](http://mcsfile-us.s3.amazonaws.com/00000000000007108352/018)
