[Lindy]

Quote:

Originally posted by FCJ Finally, my favorite 1970's Mingus record is Changes One, with Don Pullen and George Adams.

Great album! Seconded! Pullen / Adams were wonderful together. It's hard to believe that they're both gone now.

 

[DanG]

Thanks a lot for the recs, guys. I really appreciate it. Keep them coming, please! And if you don't want to, don't limit yourself to Mingus or Evans.

I've been playing piano since I was a wee lad of 5 so I do appreciate good piano work. My old man is no audiophile but he is very picky when it comes to performances (he only listens to classical, though) so I've learned to appreciate a particular pianist's style.

Listening to Monk's music inspired me to try my hand at jazz piano. I found the pedagogical style of jazz to be too loose and relaxed compared to classical piano (and I'd been studying for 8 years with a Russian piano professor at that point). I haven't heard a pianist whose playing style I find fresher, more fun, or more alive than Monk's. The thing is, though, I never get tired of that one two-disc set -- I listen to it constantly and never feel the need for more Monk. With the other artists, I feel that something is still missing and that I'm still missing "the good stuff."

I'll try out Blue Train to give Coltrane another chance. The problem with A Love Supreme was that I could feel right away that it was music meant to be something to "get" rather than to "feel." I heard on the radio once that Bill Evans said, "It bugs me when people try to analyze jazz as an intellectual theorem. It's not. It's feeling." I agree with him to an extent, though with Love Supreme it seemed like it was making sure people would find it heady stuff. I think Monk got a lot of the intellectual feel down -- that is, the music almost feels "witty" and smart -- but still kept the music real and for its own sake.

Quote:

Braver writes: dude (can I call you dude? )

I'm a sloppy disheveled guy with too much hair and who enjoys drinking white Russians. So yes, that would be appropriate.

Thanks again for the recommendations everyone! Just to make this an even cooler thread, if you want to recommend some great venues in the Boston area, that would be great. I'm afraid Boston just doesn't have the best music scene for jazz, but I'll be happy to be proven wrong.

 

[nately]

Dude,

I don't live in Boston, so this is secondhand, but I've heard Regattabar mentioned a lot, Scullers, and maybe Ryle's, who pull in some of the bigger names when they're in town. I'd add that with the big college scene, including Berklee (oh yeah, there's probably random performances at Berklee and other area schools) there's a lot of young, adventurous talent that nobody's heard of.

Monk is great. Every little "wrong" note and hesitation ends up sounding so... right. "Witty" is an apt description. Since you're not looking for more albums, but are interested in the man and his playing, I highly recommend the film "Straight, No Chaser," which has great footage and you can probably snag the DVD for < $10.

 

[Nutty]

I hate to add yet another artist to the list, but no jazz collection should be without Sonny Rollins' Saxophone Colossus. I've been playing it in my truck for two months straight and haven't gotten tired of it yet (I'm not obsessive/compulsive either, btw)!

 

[mojoman]

Quote:

Originally posted by Nutty I hate to add yet another artist to the list, but no jazz collection should be without Sonny Rollins' Saxophone Colossus. I've been playing it in my truck for two months straight and haven't gotten tired of it yet (I'm not obsessive/compulsive either, btw)!

I concur. Sonny Rollins is awesome and Colossus is a must have.

 

[rally617]

You like pianists, give Herbie Hancock's Empyrean Isles a listen. You may find Freddie Hubbard's trumpet work on this album to your liking as well. I sure did!!

 

[Leo]

For anyone wondering about worthwhile Jazz on CD, I recommend the book The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD

This is a comprehensive book (currently in 6th edition) of all the various Jazz artist on CD. It include rankings, members of the band, label and commentary on the music. It's an excellent book.

 

[FalconP]

Sooner or later someone's going to cast you into the maw of ECM records, with their long list of outstanding jazz musicians and consistently excellent sound. Their music tends to be more subdued and medidative than the average jazz.

Their most famous jazz pianist is certainly Keith Jarrett -- I'm not a terribly big fan of him so I'll leave recommendations to others. Another jazz pianist I can vouch for is Misha Alpern, who so far has 5 albums under ECM -- start with either North Story or First Impression

 

[zowie]

Any of the albums of his "Standards Trio" will make a good entry point, espcially coming off of Bill Evans. I recall that one or two of the later ones had some of the best-recorded accoustic bass I've heard.

 

[skagen]

Current-day piano stuff worth exploring:


One Well Known Artist
1) Geri Allen - "The Gathering"
On this record she used a phenomenal lineup of supporting musicians (good players, not necessarily famous ones) and the result is great.


One Rising Star
2) Jean-Michel Pilc
French guy who now lives in Brooklyn. A classcally-trained pianist who has turned to jazz with great results He's probably the best live pianist that you can hear on the NYC jazz scene today - warm engaing sound and very intelligent. he has several CD's out - I haven't listened yet - but if they are anything like what he does live, they are well worth it.


One Left-field Pick
3) John Funkhouser trio - ''Funk House''
Funkhouser is a little more creative and interesting than the title of his first album would suggest. Another classically trained guy who manages to float between occasional dabbling in Monk-territorry and some very memorable and melodic work. Used to play on the NYC scene (Knitting Factory, etc) and now lives and teaches in Boston - where ihe performs live from time to time. Don't know if he'll ever be famous or even on a major label, but either way, he plays some good ¤%it!!

 

[Lindy]

Speaking of pianists...

One other to recommend: Michel Petrucciani has put out some wonderful recordings. In particular, Pianism or Live at the Village Vanguard. Oftentimes people will recommend his recordings to people who like Bill Evans.

I had the chance to see him live at Seattle's Jazz Alley a few times before he died. He was only about 3' tall (glass bone disease), but man could he play!

 

[DanG]

I got something I liked in my Amazon Gold Box so I finally ordered some CDs -- Blue Train and Money Jungle. I figured I needed Blue Train since everyone seems to have it and Money Jungle because it has Duke Ellington as well. And yes, I remembered to use the Head-Fi link! I put Y Tu Mama Tambien and Chinatown in the order as well

I'll probably order some more of the recommended CDs soon but on the cheaper CD sites. Thanks again for all of the help and I'll let you all know how I like these CDs, whether you're interested or not.

 

[blessingx]

Evan/Getz on But Beautiful is a prize.

Coltrane's From The Original Master Tapes is my personal fave.

Chet Baker's Let's Get Lost is a great soundtrack.