Moanin'

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Tenor saxophonist Benny Golson was reaching maturity in both his playing and composing that brought a sense of balance to the group, and completing the line up along with Blakey on drums was the funky playing of Bobby Timmons and the firm and steady bass playing of Jymie Merritt. Today’s song is one of the most famous Jazz Messengers tunes, called “Moanin’.” This is the quintessential “hard bop” song. Hard bop was an extension of be bop, which we talked about early, that was more muscular and bluesy. You’ll see what I mean when you listen to this tune, which was written by pianist Bobby Timmons and features Lee Morgan on trumpet, Benny Golson on tenor sax and Jymie Merritt on bass. Moanin,’” “Along Came Betty,” “Blues March” and “Are You Real?” are all played to perfection by the band and not only deservedly became integral to Blakey’s songbook, but have also found their place in the jazz canon. However, often overlooked is the compelling three-movement drum piece Golson wrote for Blakey who stars with gusto. “The Drum Thunder Suite” opens with mallet thunder with the horns driving the storm, continues with the Latin-tinged middle section and the closing funky melody that features Morgan on a clarion trumpet solo.

Through his policy of continually renewing his Jazz Messengersgroup he would constantly be seeking the cream of the rising young players thus giving them a solid grounding and place to hone their craft. Moanin ' " is a composition by Bobby Timmons, first recorded by Art Blakey's band the Jazz Messengers for the album of the same title [1] that was released by Blue Note Records. [2] Both the single and album are in the Grammy Hall of Fame.Moanin '" has a call and response melody. [1] One account of its creation was given by Benny Golson, the tenor saxophonist in Blakey's band: Timmons had the opening eight bars, which he often played between tunes, but formed the complete song only after Golson encouraged him to add a bridge. [3] It is played in F minor. He also played a pivotal role in Thelonious Monk’s music from Monk’s 1940’s recordings for Blue Note and again for the pianist’s marvellous trio albums for the Riverside label in the fifties.

Blues March ‘ is exactly that, and reminiscent of the old New Orleans marching bands, albeit updated for 1958. Hard bop players continued in the bebop idiom by emphasizing improvisation, swinging rhythms, and an aggressive, driving rhythm section. Hard bop artists retained bebop's standard song forms of 12-bar blues and 32-bar forms as well as the preference for small combos consisting of a rhythm section plus one or two horns.Golson's "Are You Real?" is a more straightforward hard bop tune featuring a 32-bar chorus and a faster tempo. The standard "Come Rain or Come Shine" is performed with the attention to melody and arrangement not typically associated with hard bop, but is convincingly and faithfully represented by the Jazz Messengers. Blakey had an uncanny sense of bringing fresh-to-town artists who made their marks on the Messengers as rising stars, who then left for greener pastures—which was fine with the leader because that’s how the in-and-out personnel policy of the group worked. School 24/7, grinding tours, playing to top form with no slouching, then graduation and hopefully onward and upward. Straight ahead with a good catchy melody line that lends itself to the sort of propulsive swing that Blakey excelled at. Under his leadership the Jazz Messengers became an established institution. A guarantee of hearing some great swinging hard bop with some of the best young soloists on the current scene. Golson’s tenor sax solo is also fraught and the most hurried he has sounded on the who album. In a complete contrast to the opening theme, the second part, ‘Cry A Blue Tear’ offers up a Latin feel and a relaxed dancing melody from the horns before the staccato calls from the drums, trumpet and tenor that introduce ‘Harlem’s Disciples’, and another superb solo from Timmons over the broken rhythm of the drums.

In the first theme, ‘Drum Thunder’ Blakey’s mallets create a rolling thunder cloud with punctuations from the horns, and a dramatic solo from Morgan as befits the building of the storm behind him. Benny Golson's "Drum Thunder Suite" was composed to satisfy Blakey's desire to record a song using mallets extensively. The suite consists of three contrasting themes. The first theme, "Drum Thunder," is primarily a drum solo with horns playing short melodic ideas in unison (soli writing). The second theme, "Cry a Blue Tear," utilizes a strongly Latin rhythm in the drums. It features a lyrical melody with trumpet and saxophone playing complementary lines. The final theme, "Harlem's Disciples," begins with a funky melody, and then a piano solo sets the stage for the concluding drum solo. "The Drum Thunder Suite" makes interesting use of different stylistic approaches and arranging techniques. As such his contribution to the evolution of the music from the forties and throughout the fifties and sixties cannot be underestimated.They confirm what an original and resourceful writer he is, and it is perhaps these that deserve re-evaluation and that make the album such an overall success. Legendary h ard bop drummer Art Blakey may have an extensive discography, but his Jazz Messenger album ‘Moanin’ is regarded by most aficionados as his finest. His thunderous approach, deep rooted swing and signature press roll on the snare drum made him one of the most instantly identifiable and influential drummers in jazz.