The Best of Art Blakey

Art Blakey, Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (December 30, 2011)
• Original Release Date: November 28, 1989
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: BLUE NOTE
• ASIN: B000005HFO
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #135,043 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #96 in Music > Indie Music > Jazz > Bebop

Editorial Reviews

The Best of Art Blakey by Art Blakey And The Jazz Messengers

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Preferable to "Moanin'" Session, May 30, 2006

By 

Samuel Chell (Kenosha,, WI United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Best of Art Blakey (Audio CD)

If you're a Blakey newbie, may as well pick this up in place of his popular "Moanin'" session, since the first two tracks are from that date. But Blakey is as hard to represent on a single album as Ellington, Coltrane, Miles, or Sinatra. Moreover, you have to go beyond the Blue Note catalog to get the big picture. Take just some of the trumpet players in Blakey's units--Clifford Brown, Bill Hardman, Donald Byrd, Joe Gordon, Kenny Dorham, Lee Morgan, Freddy Hubbard, Valery Ponomarev, Wynton Marsalis, Terrence Blanchard. Each can be heard on individual Blakey recordings that outshine this collection. And the list of saxophonists is no less impressive (make sure you have plenty of Hank Mobley in your Blakey collection). Personally, I'd recommend "The Jazz Messengers" on Columbia ahead of this Blue Note sampler as a more aesthetically satisfying introduction to the group.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A nice, quick intro to Blakey, September 2, 2001

By 

Andrzej Grutza (San Francisco, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Best of Art Blakey (Audio CD)

This CD was one of my first introductions to Art Blakey when I bought it in 1989 and I've probably listened to it hundreds of times over the years. From the gospel strains of "Moanin'" to the busy "Free For All", this is a dip into vintage Blakey territory, including a killer version of "A Night in Tunisia" punctuated by twisting Lee Morgan and Wayne Shorter solos and the patented thundering Art Blakey drumming style. It gives some idea of why he was nicknamed "The Volcano." An offering of only seven tracks covering some of the Messengers' best years (1958-64), is not truly an all-inclusive "Best of...on Blue Note." Blakey (and most of his sidemen, some highly notable ones not represented here at all) released many classics on Blue Note from the mid 50s until well over a decade later. Still, this release is a reasonable introduction to Blakey's Messengers in lieu of exploring his work further. Sit back and enjoy an hour of some definitive hard bop.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great jazz from a great drummer!!, December 17, 2000

By 

John Yax (Ann Arbor, MI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Best of Art Blakey (Audio CD)

This is the first and only Art Blakey CD I own. However, based on how good it is, I most definitely plan on getting more. Of course, there is the well loved song "Moanin'" with it's sumptous melody. Another favorite off this album is "Lester Left Town," which also has a very cool and catchy melody. The solos off this track are also amazing. The only track not written by a member on this CD is "A Night in Tunisia", but the 9+ minute version they play is quite worth it. Art goes nuts near the end and the percussion along with the drums compliment each other well. Another favorite "Dat Dere" is well played with impressive trumpet and piano solos. The two extra tracks, "Mosaic" and "Free for All" are also well welcomed and a nice addition to the already great collection of songs. If you already have most of these songs on other CD's, than this CD is probably not necessary for you, but if you are new to Art Blakey, this is a good place to start!!