Confessions of a Human Nerve Ending

Life is about listening.   Sometimes what life is saying comes at you in in strange ways.   On Friday, I was reading this story on Salon.com and it mentioned that few jazz musicians have the same clout as they once did.  Of the few who still draw considerable audiences, it mentioned Keith Jarrett .   I don't know Keith Jarrett, but I've been trying to school myself on jazz for the better part of a year now.   Since I'm relatively new to this jazz thing, I want to make sure I'm really listening to what people think of as "great."   With that in mind, I bought a book:   The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings .   Under Keith Jarrett they mention the album,  The Koln Concert as his best album (part of any enthusiasts' "Core Collection").   So, when I saw the album while perusing Mecca Records in ABQ, I knew I had to buy it.   Life was talking. The Koln Concert  (So, go ahead and ...

So, Mindy and I have been on a Jazz kick for the better part of 3 months now.  At first, it was just listening to what we knew and then it moved into just kinda cherry picking, but finally, it was just too overwhelming, so I broke down and bought The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings  .   So, after using the book and listening, I assigned a homework assignment.   What are your Top 10 Jazz Albums of all time (so far)?  As much as possible try and pick albums and avoid picking compilations or "best of" albums because they are more often than not just compilations of singles and not complete works of art on their own like a good album tries to be. So here's my list: 1.  In a Special Way -Miles Davis.  There really is no words to describe how awesome this album is.   Though the critics define it as "Fusion," it really was "Fusion" before people knew what that was.  And while it was recorded ensemble (unlike a lot recording whe...

Track 5 on Charles Mingus' Let My Children Hear Music Arranged by Charles Mingus and dictated to Bobby Jones. Conducted by Sy Johnson. ·          1,7: September 23, 1971, New York City ·          5: September 30, 1971, New York City ·          3: October 1, 1971, New York City ·          4: September 23-November 18, 1971, New York City ·          6,2: November 18, 1971, New York City With Lonnie Hillyer, Joe Wilder, Snooky Young, & Jimmy Nottingham - trumpet Julius Watkins - French horn Bobby Jones & James Moody - tenor sax Charles McCracken - cello Charles McPherson & Jerry Dodgion- alto sax Sir Roland Hanna & Jaki Byard- piano Jimmy Knepper - trombone Charles Mingus, Ron Carter, Richard Davis, & Milt Hinton - bass Dannie Richmond - drums ...