"The result is that Blues & Politics, performed in the spirit of Mingus, is something in which all Americans and jazz fans everywhere can rejoice."
-- L.A. Jazz Scene by Russell Arthur Roberts
"With atom-smashing intensity, Sy Johnson and three other arrangers recraft eight of Mingus’s strongest works."
-- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel by Keith Spore
"Underscores the depth and volatility of Mingus, emotions and the purity of his moral outrage."
-- JazzTimes by Bill Shoemaker
"The album's juxtaposition of some of Mingus' most poignant, personal compositions and his most well-known, forceful social commentary underscores the depth and volatility of his emotions and the purity of his moral outrage."
-- JazzTimes by Bill Shoemaker
"This disc is highly recommended."
-- Jazz Improv by Jazz Officer Spaak
"#2 Jazz album of 1999 (CDNow editors' top 10)"
-- CDNow.com by Drew Wheeler
"Yet another brilliant release."
-- Denver Westword by Thomas Peake
"The band succeeds here, where past efforts have merely approximated, set in motion by a clever blur of reissue-type archival work and present-day repertory performance."
-- Jazziz by Karen Michel
"…one of the big albums of the year. (CD of the month)"
-- Stereo by Gerd Filtgen
"To interpret Mingus’s music so faithfully and with such great authenticity is not an easy task. Another triumph for this ensemble, easily a Top Five Jazz Album of 1999, an essential purchase."
-- All Music Guide by Michael Nastos
"Blues & Politics is a challenging listen, with as much depth, vitality, and social commentary as anything the late bassist recorded in his lifetime."
-- Billboard by Steve Graybow
"Blues & Politics is at once a tribute and a statement of faith."
-- The Times London
"The band is filled with stars, ranging from veterans to powerhouse newcomers."
-- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel by Keith Spore
"The social themes that were Mingus’s driving passion are what focus the album… If there’s one album that can live up to the phrase serious fun, this is it."
-- Time Out New York by K. Leander Williams
"[The Mingus Big Band] remains vital twenty years after Mingus’s death because it is largely based on the blues and, thus, never goes out of style."
-- Down Beat
"The grittiest album yet from the Mingus Big Band. The bluesiness of the man and the convictions of his politics are palpable through…new takes on [his] compositions."
-- Jazziz by Karen Michel
"The band gets the listener by the neck and won't let go."
-- 52ndstreet.com by Keith Henry Brown
"…blues-influenced… with an urban, worldly-wise and purposefully cynical view."
-- Public Radio International by Jim Wilke
"Mingus would have loved having a big band this tight and well-rehearsed."
-- Down Beat
"“…every soloist on [on this album] gives himself entirely to the moment."
-- Rondo by Marcus Woelfle
"Timeless…highly recommended."
-- Cadence by Jim Santella
"This disc uncovers even more layers to Mingus' multifaceted persona."
-- Philadelphia Weekly by Russell Woessner
"These performances of familiar works and lesser-known pieces underscore the high quality of Mingus compositions as well as their capacity to stimulate stunning individual performances."
-- LATimes.com by Don Heckman
"Much more than a mere tribute"
-- Down Beat
"The record sounds as if Mingus himself were whipping the members into shape."
-- Washington City Paper by John Murph
"The bottom line is, this album is more than a tribute. On every cut, the Mingus Big Band does Mingus justice -- making his music even more complex, beautiful and powerful than it was before, fueling a legacy that, at this rate, can never die."
-- 52ndstreet.com by Keith Henry Brown
"On its [fifth] and finest disc so far, the Mingus Big Band offers ambitious renderings of Mingus’s music that keep the songs alive by avoiding the rote cover-band mentality."
-- CMJ Report by James Lien |