Maps of Music

Mingus (1979)

Where the lyrics of Mingus take you, and where it was really made.

The man this album honours could no longer play when it was made: Charles Mingus was in the final stages of ALS during the sessions.

Key places

Main recording at A&M Studios (1979)

Recording site A&M Recording Studios — The album was recorded at A&M Studios in Hollywood by Henry Lewy and Steve Katz, the main recording location named in the credits. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Additional recordings in New York (1979)

Recording site Electric Lady Studios — Additional recordings for the album were made at Electric Lady Studios in New York by Henry Lewy and Jerry Solomon. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Mingus: tenth studio album by Canadian musician Joni Mitchell
• Released 13 June 1979; Mitchell's last studio album for Asylum Records
• A collaboration between Mitchell and jazz musician Charles Mingus
• Wholly dedicated to Mingus
• One of Mitchell's most experimental and jazz-centric works
• Spoken 'raps' placed throughout the album

Background

• Recorded in the months before and after Mingus's death in January 1979
• Mingus had been known as a virtuoso bassist earlier in his career
• By the sessions he was in the final stages of ALS and unable to perform
• Mingus wrote six new compositions ('Joni I-VI') for Mitchell to write lyrics for; three appear on the album
• Two other tracks were written exclusively by Mitchell
• A new version of Mingus's standard 'Goodbye Pork Pie Hat' carries lyrics by Mitchell
• Mitchell sings and plays guitar, backed by Jaco Pastorius, Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Peter Erskine, Emil Richards and Don Alias
• Mitchell toured to promote the album through 1979–80
• Concerts from that tour were documented on the live album Shadows and Light (1980)

Recording

• Recorded at A&M Studios in Hollywood by Henry Lewy and Steve Katz
• Additional recordings made at Electric Lady Studios, New York, by Henry Lewy and Jerry Solomon
• Mixed by Mitchell, Henry Lewy and Steve Katz; mastered by Bernie Grundman
• Before the album, Mitchell held experimental sessions with New York musicians who had worked with Mingus

Cover

• Paintings by Joni Mitchell
• Art direction by Glen Christensen

Sources: fr.wikipedia.org · es.wikipedia.org · en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

• Canadian and American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and painter, born Roberta Joan Anderson in 1943 in Fort Macleod, Alberta.

Formation

• Began singing in Saskatoon nightclubs, then performed in Calgary and Toronto before moving to the United States in 1965.
• Her songs were first recorded by other singers, which helped her sign with Reprise Records.
• Debut album Song to a Seagull was released in 1968.

Career

• Blue (1971) is often cited as one of the greatest albums of all time.
• Court and Spark (1974) moved toward jazz influences and became her best-selling album.
• Collaborated with jazz musicians including Jaco Pastorius, Herbie Hancock, Pat Metheny, and Charles Mingus.
• Won eleven Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997.
• Returned to live performance in 2022 at the Newport Folk Festival after a 2015 brain aneurysm.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• DownBeat gave the album 5 stars
• Neil Tesser called the album 'a wonderful piece of work'
• Tesser wrote that the late bassist supplied the music on four songs while Mitchell wrote the lyrics
• Tesser called 'Porkpie Hat' a masterpiece
• Tesser remarked that Mitchell can perform as a credible jazz singer

Records

• Peaked at number 17 on the US Billboard 200
• Reached 3rd place on Top Jazz Albums
• The single 'The Dry Cleaner from Des Moines', released to promote the album, did not chart

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · fr.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• God Must Be a Boogie Man was composed two days after Mingus died, and he never heard it.
• The spoken raps were supplied by Sue Graham Mingus, including a sung scat between Mitchell and Mingus.
• Funeral features Mingus and others discussing how much time he had left and how his funeral should go.
• Mitchell suggested in the liner notes that Mingus would have found God Must Be a Boogie Man hilarious.
• The experimental sessions with New York musicians were rumored to be lost, and the recordings later circulated as bootleg tapes.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · fr.wikipedia.org

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