
Originally Posted by
ideologyhunter
Bill Evans just doesn't do it for me, outside of his work with Miles. I know he's a huge, respected figure in jazz, but I find his music dull -- even the famous Village Vanguard set. He just doesn't convey to me the blues and swing components of jazz. (Lenny Tristano does the same to me.) Art Tatum exhausts me -- the excess decoration is beyond my capacity to listen, unless he's dueting with a horn player.
I tend toward earthier, bluesier players: Red Garland, Junior Mance (still around at age 90 -- check out his live trio set from the Vanguard of '60 or '61), McCoy Tyner (Uptown/Downtown is a rousing hellacious album, also Live at Sweet Basil), Elmo Hope, Sonny Clark (especially Leapin and Lopin), Horace Parlan, Kenny Barron (one of the best accompanists ever, listen to him accompany Stan Getz at his very last gigs in People Time, a gut-wrenching set), Jaki Byard (a real freak before freak was an 'in' word, look for The Jaki Byard Experience with Roland Kirk), Mal Waldron (especially The Git Go), and the unsung Phineas Newborn (I hope everyone gets to hear The Great Jazz Piano of Phineas Newborn set). I love Oscar Peterson too, especially his live stuff -- at Montreaux he led some thunderous jams. And one more out of left field, Mingus, who on Oh Yeah plays only piano -- the album is a wild jazz orgy that sounds like it could've been recorded in a whorehouse or a backwoods juke -- everyone is flying and Mingus is hooting, singing, chanting, and playing some fine downhome piano. Now that's jazz. And how could I leave out Sun Ra???