Tonight's Jazz Feature is one of Charles Mingus' most intense and incendiary recordings. It was done with his core band that worked a long gig with him at a New York club called "The Showplace". The gig was coming to an end and his two horn players were about to leave. As Mingus had just signed a contract with a new independent label called Candid Records, it gave him the opportunity to record the band and so it came to be: "Mingus Presents Mingus". Mingus introduces the tunes as he would in a club and the band is ready to deliver. The core band is just a quartet but what a quartet! Mingus drives the band on bass and drummer Dannie Richmond kicks everyone along with some hard swing. The two horns are Ted Curson on trumpet and Eric Dolphy on alto saxophone and bass clarinet. Many consider this album one of Mingus' most important recordings....listen and you might agree. Tonight's Jazz Feature continues to honor Black History Month with the music of Charles Mingus.

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