David Dalle
Thursday February 2nd, 2023 with David Dalle
Black History Month. Celebrating 60 years of Charles Mingus' "The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady". Also a look at Ostinato Records' East African collection.

"The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady" is widely considered to be Mingus' masterpiece. I am not sure about this, not because this is not a magnificent album, but because Mingus' discography is an embarrassment of riches. It was recorded on January 20th, 1963 and still sounds so fresh 60 years later. "Black Saint and the Sinner Lady" was composed as a ballet in an uninterrupted piece with six movements. The music moves from languid, quiet beauty into a brass-fueled frenzy of a black revivalist meeting. Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful music! Mingus leads 10 musicians, Rolf Ericson and Richard Williams on trumpets, Quentin Jackson on trombone, Don Butterfield on tuba, Jerome Richardson, Dick Hafer, Charlie Mariano on saxophones, Jay Berliner on classical guitar, Jaki Byard on piano, Dannie Richmond on drums, and Mingus on bass and piano on one track. Mingus was very deliberate in positioning the musicians in the studio, to best increase the overlapping overtones of the saxophones, giving the illusion of an even fuller brass section. According to the liner notes written by Mingus, he played piano on one track (no. 3) to show Jaki Byard what he was aiming for, and they decided to keep that take in the album. Mingus' liner notes on this album are unusual, most are a broadside against professional music critics, or individual thanks to each of the ten other musicians on this album. He held a lot of anger toward critics, so he took the unusual step of asking his psychotherapist to write a review of the album which is included in the liner notes. The review is worth quoting at length: "To me this particular composition contains Mr. Mingus' personal and also a social message. He feels intensively. He tries to tell people he is in great pain and anguish because he loves. He cannot accept that he is alone, all by himself; he wants to love and be loved. His music is a call for acceptance, respect, love, understanding, fellowship, freedom--a plea to change the evil in man and to end hatred. The titles of this composition suggest the plight of the black man and a plea to the white man to be aware. He seems to state that the black man is not alone but all mankind must unite in revolution against any society that restricts freedom and human rights... there are recurrent themes of loneliness, separateness and tearful depression. One feels deeply for the tears of Mr. Mingus and the fall for himself and man. There can be no question that he is the Black Saint who suffers for his sins and those of mankind as he reflects his deeply religious philosophy. His music tells of his deep yearning for love, peace, and freedom. A new note has crept into his music. Where once there was great anger now one can hear hope. As with much of his past music, Mr. Mingus cries of misunderstanding of self and people. Throughout he presents a brooding, moaning intensity about prejudice, hate and persecution."