QUINCY JONES — This Is How I Feel About Jazz (review)

QUINCY JONES — This Is How I Feel About Jazz album cover Album · 1957 · Big Band Buy this album from MMA partners
4.5/5 ·
js
“This is How I Feel About Jazz” was Quicy Jones’ debut LP way back in 1957. It may be hard for some to believe that this eventual king of pop was once totally immersed in the world of jazz, but listening to any of his modern pop albums will reveal the techniques he learned while he was one of the top jazz arrangers. This is an excellent album, especially for being someone’s initial effort. Choosing to open with Miles’ “Walkin” sets the tone for the LP, east coast sophisticated urban blues meets west coast laid back cool. Jones’ big band sound is rooted in the soul of Ellington and Basie, but modernized with a smart economical approach that favors light and slightly odd instrumental mixtures. It was, and in many ways still is, the essence of sophisticated hip. This sound that Jones will develop alongside fellow arrangers, such as Henry Mancicni and Lalo Schifrin, will become the sound of better TV and movie soundtracks for several decades to come. Its interesting to note that at this time in history, the role of the jazz big band had changed from dancing and entertainment to being a sort of colorful orchestra for the arranger‘s creativity, which led to the big band’s new career as a supplier for many a Hollywood soundtrack, especially in the brand new world of TV.

One of the big pluses on “How I Feel About Jazz” is the all-star cast of musicians, Mingus or Paul Chambers on bass, Art Farmer on trumpet, Zoot Sims and Phil Woods on sax and Herbie Mann on flute, plus many more. There are plenty of great solos on here, plus its interesting to listen to Herbie Mann and Mingus duet on the opening of “A Sleeping Bee”. Overall this is a fairly laid back album with no particular stand out tracks, later Jones albums will sometimes work up more of a sweat. If there is one drawback, it is the brevity of this LP. Still, this is recommended for fans of late 50s-60s jazz big bands, as well as fans of soundtrack work from that same era.
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