Customer Reviews

Blue's Moods

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

 

 

I have come to really love this album and find myself playing it as much as any in my collection. This is blue playing in a quartet without any other wind instruments. Blue had recorded similar material on occasion in his 3 previous riverside albums(All great) so it was inevitable he would do a whole album of this material after recording in sextets and quintets. Here he stretches out and over all the work is a success.

The first cut is a solid energetic number with some great soloing from blue whose lyrical trumpet seems to always find a song within the song. Avars is a classic; very well done. I think that was used for a mustang commercial in 1965 but don't hold me to that. "Scrapple from the apple is a classic parker tune that blue plays to perfection. The album ends with 2 very strong lyrical numbers with vitality "sweet pumkin" and "i wish i knew". All good stuff and worthy of a full 4 stars but what puts this over the top for me is the 4th cut "kinda vague". This is all pure unadulterated blues and no trumpet player could play the blues better than it is done here. I can't stop listening to it! Of course the piano is essential to the success of an album like this and wynton kelly does not disappoint and his solo on "kind vague" will tear you up! Sam jones gives a clinic on bass and while i miss philly joe jones roy brooks(From the horace silver quintet) does a fine job.

Lyrical, bluesy, sweet and energetic blue mitchell's 4th album for riverside in 1960 is a great addition to any jazz collection.

..................socks

One of the biggest challenges for a musician is to front a quartet. There's no one to hide behind. For Richard "Blue" Mitchell, Blue's Moods was his debut as the lone horn player. In the earlier part of his career, Blue was strongly self-critical, always concerned that he wasn't living up to his (self-perceived) potential. His last effort, Blue Soul was a turning point for him. Three of the cuts on Blue Soul were quartet numbers, giving him the chance to show his newly found musical maturity and confidence. Blue's Moods builds on the same sound heard on Blue Soul, and takes it to the next level.

The songs on this album cover a wide range of feelings and tempos, hence the name Blue's Moods instead of Blue's Mood. Mitchell slips right into the groove on "I'll Close My Eyes." and never looks back. The rhythm section on these sessions--Wynton Kelly (piano), Sam Jones (bass) and Roy Brooks (drums)--is outstanding. As you listen to these tracks, it's readily apparent that this wasn't just a one-off thing. Kelly and Jones both get to stretch out a bit on the lightly swinging "Avars." One of the best cuts here is the superb rendition of Charlie Parker's "Scrapple From the Apple." This may be Blue's date, but the trio really stands out on this one.

Blue played a vintage cornet owned by the album's engineer Ray Fowler on the introspective "Kinda Vague." The sparse arrangement really accentuates the horn's somewhat dry sound. Mitchell displays his penchant for the blues on tracks like "Sir John," and "Sweet Pumpkin." Jones' walking bass line on the latter makes this tune another highlight. Maybe you're looking for something in more of a romantic vein. "When I Fall in Love" is the perfect track to share with your significant other. Light some candles, get a nice bottle of wine and you're set.

But let's face it--your significant other probably doesn't care about sound quality, and since this CD technically falls under the audiophile heading, that's what you really want to know about, right? I'll just say this. As with just about all of the XRCD discs, the extended resolution and definition provided by the 20-bit, K2 mastering process is nothing short of amazing. The OJC version of this CD never sounded bad, but when you compare it to this pressing, it sounds like an AM radio. There's really that much of a difference. To sum things up, Blue's Mood is an instantly enjoyable album by some of jazz' finest musicians; and thanks to the folks at JVC, it never sounded better.

blue mitchell was a great, lost trumpeter of the 60s hardbop movement, falling in the shadow of miles and even his blue note stablemates, lee morgan, donald byrd, and freddie hubbard. this is too bad because mr. mitchell had a style and sound all his own. he drenched his approach in the blues and came up swinging, avoiding the angularisms of a more bop oriented style. he didn't play faster than anybody else and he didn't play with form a whole lot. instead, he worked to find the blues within the tune and created a tone of bouncing blue. this particular album starts with some great bop, highlighted by a superb take of "scrapple from the apple." then the comes the blues-- "kinda vague," "sir john," and the wonderful "sweet pumpkin" reveal mr. mitchell's penchant. the sound is swinging and smoky. the support on the album is superb. wynton kelly on piano, sam jones on bass, and fellow horace silver alumni, roy brooks, on drums work well together and keep the sound rolling. this is a great album.

Any more than casual jazz fan will have listened to the trumpeter Blue Mitchell--he was a regular of Horace Silver's group during its best years at Blue Note--but perhaps hasn't sampled his work as a leader. If so this is a good place to start, with Mitchell, unusually, the sole horn supported by a trio of Wynton Kelly, Sam Jones & Roy Brooks (another Silver-associated player, though he later went on to become associated with the 1960s avantgarde). Mitchell had only a modest technique, about which he was unduly selfconscious--he had a great personal sound on his instrument, & is one of the most unmistakeable players of the period. Like Miles Davis, he turned a deficiency into an advantage: though he lacks Davis's piercing melancholy & mournfulness, Mitchell has a nicely introvert, melodic style that I find quite charming. (If one's inclined to make a case study one could do worse than comparing Mitchell's very pretty version of "When I Fall in Love" with Davis's more lacerated & fragile version for Prestige of a few years earlier.)

This is solid, enjoyable jazz that, if it is no masterpiece, is certainly eminently playable. Mitchell's limitations are exposed a bit over the course of the album--he is not a widely expressive player, & he often resorts to repeated licks (astonishingly, the banal "Country Gardens" bop quote crops up 3 times in the space of the album's 41 minutes). I also feel that Wynton Kelly is taking it rather easy--compare his work here with that on contemporary albums by Mobley, Coltrane & Davis, & you'll see what I mean. But in any case it's a very likeable album. One interesting feature of note is a cover of a Rocky Boyd tune, "Avars"--Boyd recorded one album as a leader with Kenny Dorham & had an eyeblink tenure in the Miles Davis band (see the passing reference in Davis's autobiography). I otherwise know nothing about him, & I don't think anyone else does either as he's faded from the annals of the music.

If it would be a Wynton Kelly album without Blue Mitchell I would consider this a very strong release because the rhythm section works effortlessy. Wynton Kelly plays magnificiently as he always did by the way. His combo here is an impeccable swing machine. But this is a Blue Mitchell album so considerations about Blue Mitchell should have the priority. Blue was a "sound trumpeter" a "melodical trumpeter" not a technical trumpeter or the deepest one. He was quite conservative and not very innovative. He was the typical fifties trumpeter of Clifford Brown school, good sound, lyrical, his lines were nice, very melodical with singing qualities, lines that were always really near the center of the tonality almost without outside notes. But he didn't have the Brownie's genius neither his superb technique. He was not deep as Miles, or "forward" like Lee Morgan, or bluesy and earthshaking like Nat Adderley. He was in the middle of everything, he wasn't the best in anything. Anyway listen to him is still a pleasure because he played well and he is quite melodical. Listen to Blue is easy, he would be a great choice for a person who approaches Jazz for the first time probably. He shines in the ballads, "When I fall in love" is a splendid for example, but he plays well the medium tempo too like he did in the last track here "I wish I knew" or on the very beautiful opener "I'll close my eyes". He had a beautiful sound and played the melodies (slow or medium) with tenderness and proper time (it is not an easy thing to do because the ballad time is really slow here). I don't find particularly spectacular his playing on Scrapple just considering that he was not technical enough or complex enough to be shoking on that kind of tunes. I prefer him when he plays in his territories, the medium or the slow tempos. The opener, I have to repeat myself is really an uplifting tune and Blue's playing is quite good on that track. Uh, Just another consideration, I prefer his "Blue soul" album to this one. It is more various (you have two horns) and definitly better. In the end sure this is a good album, it has its pluses, Blue plays well, the Wynton's combo is exceptional, tune selection is nice and balanced. And infact I gave this album four full stars. But not five stars because otherwise I wouldn't have stars enough for Clifford Brown and Lee Morgan albums which are a lot better.

A couple of the other reviewers bemoan the fact that Blue Mitchell is not Clifford Brown, Lee Morgan, or Freddie Hubbard. While I don't really disagree, that statement misses the essence of Blue Mitchell; seemingly effortless, relaxed swing. Blue was a great technician, with a superior tone quality, who was an amazingly consistent performer throughout his career. He could play chorus after chorus of hard bop lines and ballads, and not repeat an idea. Trumpet players study his solos today; his improvisation on "I'll Close My Eyes", that opens this album, is a favorite example for many jazz students. While I have never heard an uninspired Blue Mitchell performance, the level of consistency in this session is at a high level; every tune is golden, and each one swings. Wynton Kelly was one of the best quartet/quintet sideman of the '50's-'60's, and adds substantially to the relaxed air of this session. I've found myself letting this CD just play and play because it really defines jazz for me. The real test of this set is that it sounds as fresh 40+ years later, as it did at release. Do yourself a favor and listen up to "Blues Moods".

Being his third solo album, `Blue's Moods' further confirms Blue Mitchell as one of the major trumpeters of his era. While this album isn't particularly cutting edge and there isn't an absolute knock out track (my only reason for deducting a star), it does deliver with a series of strong overall compositions. Mitchell is often under rated, but on this album he has reason to be placed up there with the best. From the soulful standard of `When I fall in Love' through to the bluesy `Sir John' he demonstrates has versatile style and distinctive tone. Along the way he is ably supported by Wynton Kelly (piano), Sam Jones (bass) and Roy brooks (drums), who together produce a very satisfying and relaxed sound that is bound to become a favourite in your collection as it is in mine.

I have to agree with Jazzcat 'Stef' who notes that Blue's Moods is really a wonderful Wynton Kelly album. On the whole, all of Blue Mitchell's albums on the Riverside label worked because they were so well-assembled: great sidemen and choices of tunes. Blue himself, however, while a lyrical player, was incredibly safe, never venturing far away from the melody, the chord structure, the chordal center. I find him almost a guilty pleasure because he's so unchallenging, so undemanding of his listeners. The likes of Art Farmer or Idrees Sulieman could blow Mitchell away within a few notes, and even Donald Byrd, who was blessed with none of Mitchell's lovely tone or technique, was still more admireable because he was always pushing himself, striving to try something different. Blue Mitchell just doesn't venture out of his comfort zone. Albums like Blue's Moods are great to read or relax to because as soon as you pay them too much direct attention, they seem diminished. I always say that I hate people who just listen to jazz to relax, so Blue makes me eat my words.

blue's approach to music is to play songs as they were written and his clear tone (not muted) is impeccable. he was never given the acclaim he deserved. a extra treat was the beautiful bass of sam jones who i consider the best of his time.(in contrast to the innovated style started by bill evans's scott lafarro followed by eddie gomez .) great music

Length:: 2:50 Mins