MILT JACKSON -The Early Years (1945 -52)
Acrobat Music- ADDCD3205 (2 CD set)
Milt Jackson (vibes) in studio and live performances with various artists including Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, Charlie Parker, Sonny Stitt and Coleman Hawkins.
I doubt whether many readers of these pages will need to be reminded of the significance of Milt Jackson as the architect of modern jazz vibraphone playing nor have failed to encounter his work as a bandleader and soloist in many contexts, most visibly as a founder member of the Modern Jazz Quartet. It is possible, however, that there are those who have neglected to delve into the back catalogue of his formative years and if you are amongst this unfortunate few Acrobat’s excellent two- disc compilation will prove a great boon.
It brings together a selection of recordings from the eight-year period that begins with his first job with Dizzy Gillespie who invited Jackson to join his 1945 sextet before graduating to the trumpeter’s big band where he would, as part of the rhythm section, form a near lifelong association with musicians who were to ultimately to become the MJQ. Two of his big band appearances are featured on the first disc but thereafter the emphasis is on his small group work including the ground breaking sessions he recorded under Thelonious Monk’s leadership which were issued originally on Blue Note records. His first session as a leader of his own group is also included here. Billed as `The Milt Jackson All-Stars` we find him in a quintet which included Gillespie band buddies, John Lewis and Kenny Clarke playing three of his original tunes, providing evidence of his nascent compositional talent. This session was issued on the obscure `Sensation` label as were a couple of rarities in which he appears in group lead by Sonny Stitt masquerading as `Lord Nelson and His Boppers`.
At the close of the first disc and the opening of the second we have further examples of his work as a leader in the form of `Milt Jackson and the New Sound Group`, an intriguing septet featuring Julius Watkins on French horn in a front line which included Bill Massey on trumpet and Billy Mitchell on tenor sax. A couple more sessions apiece from Dizzy’s sextet and Thelonious Monk’s quintet and then it is Milt in charge all the way leading a quartet of musicians who were to destined to evolve in to the first edition of the famed and feted MJQ a mere month following the final item on the disc, a live performance from Birdland in which The Milt Jackson Quartet backs Charlie Parker in `How High the Moon`. Listening to these closing tracks it is interesting to contemplate whether the quartet in its MJQ incarnation would have been the group it became under the musical direction of John Lewis had it remained under Jackson’s leadership. Something for expert opinion to contemplate no doubt but to my ears, at this stage of the game, you couldn’t put a tissue between the two.
This is certainly a valuable set though veteran collectors may want to check for duplications before purchasing. That aside it is useful having all this material brought together in a way that the development of a major jazz performer can be clearly discerned in a historical context and with sound reproduction of remarkable clarity, considering the age of the recordings, comprehensive notes and discographies included, it is a very desirable acquisition.
Reviewed by Euan Dixon
Acrobat Music- ADDCD3205 (2 CD set)
Milt Jackson (vibes) in studio and live performances with various artists including Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, Charlie Parker, Sonny Stitt and Coleman Hawkins.
I doubt whether many readers of these pages will need to be reminded of the significance of Milt Jackson as the architect of modern jazz vibraphone playing nor have failed to encounter his work as a bandleader and soloist in many contexts, most visibly as a founder member of the Modern Jazz Quartet. It is possible, however, that there are those who have neglected to delve into the back catalogue of his formative years and if you are amongst this unfortunate few Acrobat’s excellent two- disc compilation will prove a great boon.
It brings together a selection of recordings from the eight-year period that begins with his first job with Dizzy Gillespie who invited Jackson to join his 1945 sextet before graduating to the trumpeter’s big band where he would, as part of the rhythm section, form a near lifelong association with musicians who were to ultimately to become the MJQ. Two of his big band appearances are featured on the first disc but thereafter the emphasis is on his small group work including the ground breaking sessions he recorded under Thelonious Monk’s leadership which were issued originally on Blue Note records. His first session as a leader of his own group is also included here. Billed as `The Milt Jackson All-Stars` we find him in a quintet which included Gillespie band buddies, John Lewis and Kenny Clarke playing three of his original tunes, providing evidence of his nascent compositional talent. This session was issued on the obscure `Sensation` label as were a couple of rarities in which he appears in group lead by Sonny Stitt masquerading as `Lord Nelson and His Boppers`.
At the close of the first disc and the opening of the second we have further examples of his work as a leader in the form of `Milt Jackson and the New Sound Group`, an intriguing septet featuring Julius Watkins on French horn in a front line which included Bill Massey on trumpet and Billy Mitchell on tenor sax. A couple more sessions apiece from Dizzy’s sextet and Thelonious Monk’s quintet and then it is Milt in charge all the way leading a quartet of musicians who were to destined to evolve in to the first edition of the famed and feted MJQ a mere month following the final item on the disc, a live performance from Birdland in which The Milt Jackson Quartet backs Charlie Parker in `How High the Moon`. Listening to these closing tracks it is interesting to contemplate whether the quartet in its MJQ incarnation would have been the group it became under the musical direction of John Lewis had it remained under Jackson’s leadership. Something for expert opinion to contemplate no doubt but to my ears, at this stage of the game, you couldn’t put a tissue between the two.
This is certainly a valuable set though veteran collectors may want to check for duplications before purchasing. That aside it is useful having all this material brought together in a way that the development of a major jazz performer can be clearly discerned in a historical context and with sound reproduction of remarkable clarity, considering the age of the recordings, comprehensive notes and discographies included, it is a very desirable acquisition.
Reviewed by Euan Dixon
