Mmmm, Jazz. Nice.When it comes down to it I like my jazz how I like my women, fast and swinging! (Sorry).
I have a lot of respect for anyone that can play jazz well, because it's not easy, I just have a hard time listening to a lot of it. That's probably why the first half of this live recording, from the Newport Jazz Festival, past me by stirring very little interest. I don't think it was helped by the crowd which apart from a small smattering of applause here and there was mostly silent, so probably as bored as me.
It's at this point that Duke announces that they're going to play 2 older numbers bridge by a saxophone solo. The first of the 2 pieces from the off seems to have more energy than anything that has come before and I'm finding myself actually paying attention for the first time. Then comes the sax solo, and what a solo. It seems to go on forever, but it doesn't matter because you almost don't want it to end. The strangest thing is that as I'm becoming more engaged so it seems are the festival crowd, becoming audible in the background shouting and cheering. When the end of the second piece is reached the polite applause from the previous tunes is replaced by a raucous roar from a audience that knows they've just seen a great performance.
From here onwards the energy of neither band or crowd drops and while the best moment of the album has past the rest continues to be enjoyable right too the end.
Is this one of the best live albums that I've heard? No, I didn't like half of it. Should you listen to it? Yes, because this is one of the few places you will find both sides of the live music coin recorded, with the band misfiring a little as well as giving a great performance.
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