'Mingus was one of the most original composers and players of (the 20th) century,' says Keith Richards of the jazz great, who died in 1979. Mingus' centennial will be celebrated Saturday in Nogales, the Arizona border town where he was born
And why are so many stylistically disparate artists drawn to the music of the legendary composer, bassist and band leader, who died in 1979 and whose centennial will be celebrated on Saturday in Nogales, the Arizona border town where he was born?
These are questions we have posed to an array of performers in Union-Tribune interviews over the years. Here are some of their responses.“Charlie cq; Mingus was one of the most original composers and players of century. I got turned on to him the same time I was listening to Chuck Berry and Muddy Waters in 1958 and ’59 when I went to art school. ‘Blues and Roots’ was the album that turned me on to Mingus. After that, I picked up everything he did. And if I didn’t have it, Charlie Watts would.
“People ask me why I write about Charles Mingus and Thelonious Monk but not Lee Ritenour. I say they don’t need that. What theyto hear about are people like Mingus to remind them of how the truth got put down with beauty and clarity. I’m just a poetic plow pushing away the clutter to let them see the diamonds of truth, especially jazz, which is one of the best things to put into language.