Mingus Ah Um is one of the five essential Mingus albums, which belongs in any extensive CD collection, even if you are not a jazz fan. The opener Better Git It In Your Soul rushes by with a whirlwind speed to a beautiful change of tempo and a break with acappella vocals and clapping hands. The nature of the piece reflects the character of Mingus, whose experiments never failed (although something
… did go wrong sometimes). The line-up consists of saxophonists John Handy III, Shafi Hadi and Booker Ervin, pianist Horace Parlan Jr., trombonists Willie Dennis and James Knepper and drummer Charles Richmond. Mingus shouts, screams and keeps everything together, then changes the tempo majestically in pieces like Goodbye Pork Pie Hat.more
