Customer Reviews

Live in Berlin 1972

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The 1972 performance is with a group that I haven't seen/heard before, and the sidemen are very capable. Mingus doesn't have much of a presence, because of a director who is way too busy, doing a lot of cross-cutting, focusing on the pianist's hands, on the trumpeter and drummer, and on the group from the rear of the stage. Three long tunes and an appearance by Cat Anderson make the viewing OK, but compared to the early 1960s camera work from other European sources on the Mingus Jazz Icons DVD, or even the 1975 Montreux show, the production here is not too great.

The description on Amazon is from the DVD case, and doesn't go far enough. The 1972 show is about 30-40 minutes. The next hour has the "Mingus 1968" aka "Mingus in Greenwich Village" film. I have this on VHS, but it's nice to have on DVD, especially since it was being sold separately a couple of years back for the same price as this combo 1972/1968 DVD.

Aside from the first paragraph and a pesky "Impro-Jazz" logo always on the screen during the 1972 performance, this is a good product provided you don't pay too much.

The 1968 film is great one, by the way. Mingus was a personality as well as an artist, and while some of his monologue may seem unfathomable to some, it fills in the picture for anyone interested in the man as well as the music.