Mingus at Antibes

1	Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting 11:54
2	Prayer for Passive Resistance 8:06
3	What Love? 13:34
4	I'll Remember April 13:39
5	Folk Forms, No. 1 11:08
6	Better Get Hit in Yo' Soul 11:00

Barnes & Noble

In 1960, having just made some of his greatest albums, Charles Mingus -- bristling with creativity and intrigued by Ornette Coleman's innovations -- formed an incendiary band to achieve the blues-drenched holy rollerisms of his new compositions while heading into the free-jazz stratosphere. Along with saxophonist Booker Ervin and drummer Dannie Richmond, Mingus was showcasing a Coleman Quartet-ish pair of newcomers: saxophonist Eric Dolphy and trumpeter Ted Curson. In the great Dolphy, Mingus found a soul mate, a man to challenge and inspire him. Mingus sounds different when he's playing behind Dolphy -- you can hear his spirits lift; and Dolphy responds accordingly. This set, first released in 1976, captures the high-wire tension of a Mingus band on a great night -- he exhorts his players with thick bass lines, occasional piano splashes, and verbal shouts, and they rise to the occasion with wit and dynamism. A bonus is the moving appearance by pianist Bud Powell, sitting in on "I'll Remember April." Lee Jeske

All Music Guide

During 1960, bassist Charles Mingus led one of his finest bands, a pianoless quartet with Eric Dolphy (on alto, flute, and bass clarinet), trumpeter Ted Curson, and drummer Dannie Richmond. For this live concert, the band is augmented by the great tenor Booker Ervin for some stirring music. All of the music is memorable: "Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting," "Prayer for Passive Resistance," "What Love," "Folk Forms No. 1," and "Better Get Hit in Yo' Soul." The immortal pianist Bud Powell sits in on a fine version of "I'll Remember April" and Dolphy and Ervin in particular generate a great deal of heat during some of their solos. Scott Yanow