Miles Davis Quintet - Leonard Bernstein False Start w/ Discussion 1956 ~ Sweet Sue, Just You
Recorded: Columbia 30th Street Studios, NYC, September 10, 1956
Miles Davis - Trumpet
John Coltrane - Tenor Sax
Red Garland - Piano
Paul Chambers - Bass
Philly Joe Jones - Drums
I'll post something a YouTube user said because it portrays exactly my thoughts (apart from the best jazz album bit):
Very interesting indeed! Never knew that Leonard Berstein was Miles Davis' guru or that he was even in the studio during the recording of Round Midnight. adeduction - 1 month ago
At some point (1:38) Bernstein says "one for Miles, one for ehh"
Miles says: "Coltrane"
Hehe, it wouldn't be long before everyone would know Coltrane's name without a shadow of a doubt.
Oh thanks. That's a great lineup there. Good song. Have you heard the Coltrane album "Blue Train" Foro? I have met Curtis Fuller, the trombone player for that record, 3 times. He only has one lung and is still an amazing trombone player!
Oh yes, he comes yearly as he is friends with our band director. He'll probably come this year too. Sadly, I didn't get to go to his clinic last year as he came during finals and I couldn't go, but I did see him in the hallways and said hello. The year before that I asked what the recording atmosphere was like on Blue Train and he said that he remembers the studio not having music stands so they had to look at their music on the floor.
Occasionally he also wrote songs for Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers. One of my favourite albums by them is Mosaic, and for that one Fuller wrote the song "Arabia".
Perhaps his most famous album. It's more moody and mellow. Dreamy in a way. Some really long songs with nice instrumentation. Feels like there was some magic in the studio. When you see the line-up and instrumentation you know you can expect different music:
Featuring McCoy Tyner and Elvin Jones from the Coltrane Quartet. This is also a quartet line-up, with bass player Bob Cranshaw. From Allmusic review: "it's a classic and easily one of Green's finest albums. In contrast to the soul-jazz and jazz-funk for which Green is chiefly remembered, Matador is a cool-toned, straight-ahead modal workout that features some of Green's most advanced improvisation... The group interplay is consistently strong, but really the spotlight falls chiefly on Green, whose crystal-clear articulation flourishes in this setting. And, for all of Matador's advanced musicality, it ends up being surprisingly accessible. This sound may not be Green's claim to fame, but Matador remains one of his greatest achievements"
On the heels of Matador and Solid, two of his most advanced albums, Grant Green decided to continue the more modal direction he'd begun pursuing with the help of members of Coltrane's quartet. Accordingly, he hooked up with organist Larry Young, who was just beginning to come into his own as the first Hammond B-3 player to incorporate Coltrane's modal innovations into his own style. Talkin' About is the first of three albums the Green/Young team recorded together with Coltrane drummer Elvin Jones, and it's exceptional, one of the most underrated items in Green's discography. With just a basic organ trio lineup, the album works a fascinating middle ground between the soul-jazz of Green's early days and the modal flavor of his most recent work. Though Young's style wasn't quite fully formed yet, he's no longer the in-the-pocket Jimmy Smith disciple of his earliest sessions; his playing here is far more adventurous than the typical soul-jazz date, both harmonically and rhythmically. Jones and Young often play off one another to create an intricate, percolating pulse that's miles ahead of the standard soul-jazz groove. The trio's interplay is best showcased on Young's Coltrane tribute, "Talkin' About J.C.," a monster jam that's worth every one of its nearly 12 minutes, and the cheerful "I'm an Old Cowhand," popularized as a jazz tune by Sonny Rollins. Meanwhile, Young and Green positively shimmer together on the ballad numbers, "People" and "You Don't Know What Love Is." It all makes for a terrific album that ranks in Green's uppermost echelon.
You could see Larry Young as Coltrane on organ. Naturally it sounds different but he was influenced by him.
Actually you really should get his solo albums Into Somethin' (1964) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Into_Somethin'
I don't own it yet, but it's very high on my wishlist.
First Recordings (1959)
Not his first album under his own name but indeed his first recordings. These are songs from two Jimmy Forrest albums, later collected under Green's name, but he surely was a sideman:
Also featuring Elvin Jones.
So, these are my favourites! Hope you enjoy at least one of them!
Thanks a lot! I read this and I'm currently listening to Green Street. I intend to listen to all of the albums you listed within the next few months. I'll comment more tomorrow when I have less school work to do.
Well I started with Green Street, mostly because I noticed it had the Monk standard 'Round Midnight, which is a nice song. The album was really good! I like that it is a trio, small jazz stuff can be really cool. I like Green's phrasing, and he has great tone. I'm a sucker for that hollow body jazz guitar sound, it's great. I'll try another album tomorrow night, probably Grant's First Stand, and then just go in the list order.
Also, I'm pretty sure I've heard that Herbie Hancock album before, the cover and song titles sound familiar, I look forward to going back to that one and listening for Green's guitar playing.
Nice that you enjoy it. Take your time. A few years ago, I tried to get all these albums (and others) in a bit of a rush and feel that I haven't played one enough before going to the next. ;-)
Yea I know what you mean. I try not to get hung up on artist, it's a huge genre, and I want to explore as much of it as possible, but at the same time I try not to rush through stuff. Maybe I'll get to know 3 Grant Green records for awhile before going on, and in the meantime I can check out other stuff.
He has experimented with a lot with various 'exotic' rhythm signatures. Here's the opening track 'Blue Rondo a la Turk' from his most famous record, Time Out, in 9/8 a very popular rhythm in Turkey & Greece.
Below, two pieces from the same rhythm family, one from Turkey and one from Greece. The first one, is performed by my late teacher, Talip Ozkan.
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