Customer Reviews

Album of the Year

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As the other reviewer pointed out, it is strange that a record this stellar can only be purchased as an import at substantial cost. I own a 90's version that was released by MCA but would not hesitate to pay the asking price. Out of hundreds of jazz CD's I own or have heard, this will always rank in my top ten.

Recorded in 1981 with the awesome lineup of - Art Blakey (drums), Charles Fambrough (bass), Wynton Marsalis (trumpet), Bill Pierce (tenor sax), Bobby Watson (alto sax), and James Williams (piano). A little over 42 minutes long, this disc is as perfect as it gets and there is absolutely no filler! It's incredible to hear Blakey play... he is so good that he keeps a perfect rhythm going but then inserts offbeat syncopated and ghost beats on top of it. His style of playing always amazes me. Of course the rest of the band kick serious tail also and never miss a beat. Great tunes, outstanding arrangements, awesome solos, what else is there?

Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers was, to many, something of a "school" where up-and-comers and experienced cats alike would hone their abilities both as a soloists and as a members of a tight ensemble. This particular record, which if I remember correctly won "Album of the Year" awards from some major jazz publications, is truly a pinnacle of ensemble playing. The compositions are extremely tasty, with generally mid to up tempos. The solos are wonderfully lyrical and played with tangible joy. And the recording is quite good, with a proper sound for a swing/bop record. But, as with many top jazz albums, it is the magical feeling of ensemble maintained by this group under Blakey's guidance that makes it so particularly worthwhile. There are no sub-par tracks, although I suppose a personal fave of mine is their rendition of Wayne Shorter's "Witch Hunt". While it is a shame (and rather puzzling) that this disc is no longer available domestically, it is so very, very fine that any jazz fan could justify paying the import price. I'd rank it as one of my 5 all-time favorite jazz discs.

What a great album! Released in 1981, when Art Blakey had almost 50 years in the music business, he brings in the fresh young talent of the then 20 year old Wynton Marsalis on trumpet along with Kansas City's own Robert Watson and the classically trained Bill Pierce on sax. A very tight band and a really fabulous set.

One of my favorite jazz albums in my library. Not the most experimental or mind-bending, but solid, straight-ahead, virtuosic, fantastic!

Blakey and everyone in the band playing at their best. Recorded after they'd been touring together, I have to agree with the other 2 reviews that the range of compositions, the up-tempo of most of the tracks, the cohesiveness by which the band plays and the lack of filler makes for a great album.

A young, loose (less studied) Wynton Marsalis lays down nice progressive bop phrases -- never dull, never predictable. James Williams provides a percussive, intelligent backdrop. Saxophones and soloists attack every track on the album as though they're comfortable, searing, searching.

It is an 80s interpretation of the 50s/60s modern jazz era sound, but the interpretation is better than the original (sort of like a fine wine that takes 20 years to peak). More aggressive, more astute, less self-conscious than a 50s messengers album, but with the same urgency and well oiled cacophony you've come to expect of a Messengers lineup.

So difficult to find an album where everything seems to mesh just right. An ode to musicians playing together night after night.

This is a masterful CD. I reccommend adding this one to your list of CDs for folks you are trying to introduce to jazz. Its is smokin' from start to finish. I would say more but you need to hear it to believe it!

The 6 cuts on "Album of the Year" are pretty uniformly high-energy: medium to fast tempos, high volume, busy arrangements. Even where the volume comes down (e.g., bass solos), the intensity remains high. Because of the large group, solos are short, and don't have a lot of dynamic range themselves: 1-2 choruses of blowing.

"Album of the Year" is notably -- though not significantly -- marred by the nasal bass tone: it sounds like it could be an electric upright. Whether it's a function of recording/sound engineering, or the bassist's (Charles Fambrough) gear, it sounds strange in the context of the album overall (not that there's anything wrong with electric uprights per se). Frmbrough's playing makes this a minor cause for complaint.

Since the playing is uniformly high-caliber, the high intensity is uniformly exhilerating. This makes an excellent "driving album."

One of the top works of Art Blakey and the Jazz Messeengers with Marsalis.Very good sound quality.Keystone 3 have also the excelent performance of W. Marsalis.Please take this 2 cds.It's total jazz.