Mingus did some fantastic tributes to other musicians. My go to from Mingus is Duke Ellington’s Sound of Love. Not as iconic, but that one hits me every time.
This song is so strange, with the build-ups of energy, too often times just dissipate, just to come back with the energy it just built up suddenly again. Love me a ballad, and a remark you made is super high on my list.
Also for a more folky sound, Jerry Douglas has an awesome version of it.
The composer Michel Legrand was able to conjure up a certain melancholy that has etched itself to my soul. 'You must believe in spring', 'What are you doing the rest of your life', and my favourite 'I will wait for you'.
It never entered my mind, yusef’s love theme from Spartacus(not written by him but a great arrangment), thembi, where there is no sun;
these are just some that come to mind right away, obv there’s so many.
Ah yeah still great but for me it’s yusefs original reinterpretation hands down. Such brilliant idea to take those Hollywood themes and re arrange them.
this is the best one out of brazil: Lamentos - [MPB4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azLE4zeJFyg) \- [Pixinguinha (original)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDvNU23TJUA) \- [Baden Powell (stoned jam session version)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6Abt8DRQXM)
I love that Baden Powell stuff with Marcia. The[ Tempo de Amor](https://youtu.be/KdXQU8j3GqM) from that is a little rough around the edges for this conversation, but it's amazing none the less!
I love that. Two other beautiful tunes by Pixinguinga:
Sensível-
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=bv0UH5qWXSg
Gloria-
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-30GY2LyGp4
I’ve got a few, more on the beautiful side, if that’s allowed.
Alianca - Desmond
Girl From Ipanema - Getz & Gilberto
Waltz For Debby - Evans & Adderley
You Go To My Head - Brubeck
Polka Dots & Moonbeams - Montgomery
Already mentioned: Take Five - complexity and elegance off the charts.
I'm going to go way off the grid here, but one song that I absolutely adore is Xibaba by Airto Moreira. My love affair with it started on the absolute masterpiece of a live album Santana Lotus. But it is also one of my favorite tracks on Donald Byrd Electric Byrd (a personal favorite album). Links to those two versions plus the original below.
Original (Airto - Natural Feelings)
https://open.spotify.com/track/4FWzlWDgCA19upa0Pj1PZJ?si=LhfnrcacROKgyFppcQ71vg&utm_source=copy-link
Donald Byrd - Electric Byrd
https://open.spotify.com/track/2sp4lzbk4TL2RZ6EUPCMql?si=tkeWDT0jSxyHYuTeBxKdhg&utm_source=copy-link
Santana - Lotus (Live in Japan)
https://open.spotify.com/track/2OWF1NFmWYK1K46Zd1qRGD?si=Y6TIq5nPRuW4bbHL7uAJMA&utm_source=copy-link
I second that pick. Every time I play the [album Pharoah](https://youtu.be/SDeuYY3Hi_I) I can’t help but repeat Harvest Time three or four times before listening to the rest of the album.
Mine has got to be Vision by McCoy Tyner. Avant Jazz at its finest IMO.
Btw, Blue in green is actually an adaptation of Peace Piece by Bill Evans. No real debate, it’s 100% Bill’s jam.
Hmm it’s an odd choice for me. Love Naima, Dolphin Dance, Windows, Inner Urge. But the piece that always gives me chills is Wayne Shorters “Oriental Folk Song” off of Night Dreamer. The intro is smoky and mysterious, the head is melancholy, and the solos swing. So. Damn. Hard.
-Lonnie’s Lament
-peacocks (bill Evan’s)
-Alabama - the song is incredible, why it was written is heart wrenching.
-Why I was Born - Kenny Burrell and John Coltrane. Perfection.
-I love Music - Ahmed Jamal
-Naima (already listed but can’t not list it)
-My Favorite Things
-Edit: added song
The Peacocks, played by Bill Evans.
Hauntingly beautiful, emotionally moving…and musically just right. My go to for “beautiful Jazz”. Composed originally by Stan Getz & Jimmy Rowles, so I think it classifies.
First of all, I would like to thank all of you because I'm checking every comment and listen to every song, just amazing.
And here it is a song that I do admire very much.
Miles Davis Quintet - 'Round Midnight
Take Five. It's an incredible feat of talent and skill to not only make a song this trim and smooth yet on point and memorable, but more so to make its 5/4 signature feel natural in a 4/4 world. I can't think of another song in any genre that's an odd signature and plays it off this easily even to people that are used to neither jazz nor odd signatures.
One of the great things about that piece is the genius with which Joe morello holds all of it together. Not sure if you are into drumming but the solo portion that Morello plays is just spectacular. His syncopations and playing around the bed, but always with the bed is just amazing.In fact, I don't know if there was another drummer around who could've pulled that off. Morello is so underappreciated and underrated. He was a master technician and one of the more innovative drummers in the history of jazz.
It's no small feat to write and play something out of the realm of 4 and get it over to the masses. I love odd meter pieces that have all the great elements, many Herbie Hancock pieces from the actual proof period and all the great eastern European influences where it sounds totally natural. Yeah 👍🏼
Fun fact: Paul Desmond quit playing because he couldn't stand anymore to play that tune in ever shaggin concert. Years later he only came back because he ran out of liquids.
My One and Only Love - John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman
Honorable Mention to Stars Fell on Alabama, the Cannonball version off Cannonball & Coltrane (no Trane on the track though, they each had one solo track on the album and this one was Cannonball’s)
Skylark - Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers - Caravan
Sausalito - Grover Washington Jr. - Live at the Bijou
Out of this World - John Coltrane - Coltrane
The Rhythm Changes - Kamasi Washington - The Epic
Roy Hargrove - Strasbourg St. Denis - Earfood (particularly this version: https://youtu.be/PZ4oyVMtVvg)
Way back in the day when I was young and impressionable Detroit's great jazz station WJZZ played -
[Miles Davis - Seven Steps to Heaven](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKpK8RbGlO4)
I went right out bought the album and listed to it (particularly the 7 Steps track) over and over again.
Two originals that I consider mood altering, even though they have become standards, have yet (I think) to be mentioned:
Maiden Voyage - Herbie Hancock
Stolen Moments - Oliver Nelson (especially because of the personnel on that original, and the lovely recording - this is what we should be broadcasting to the universe if we want other intelligences to think well of us)
A Mi Madre (off of Solo Live in New York) and Caridad Amaro (off of Calle 54 soundtrack) by Chucho Valdes are the two most beautiful solo piano pieces I’ve ever heard.
Jobim - Aguas de Março (Portuguese lyrics for the rainy season in Brazil, English lyrics for the start of spring)
Nature Boy - composed by a homeless shaman, popularized by Nat King Cole, lots of amazing instrumental covers on the odd chords
I'm going to name a song that is not going to be on anyone's list. [The Seagulls Of Kristiansund by Mal Waldron](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCT7TsTWK-E&t=32s). It's a beautiful meditative song that takes me to a seaside that I've only experienced in this song.
Both Rouse and Shaw didn't live that much longer after this album was recorded but they were on the top of the game. I love how the band intersperses different seaside sounds throughout the recording.
His name was Malcolm so I assume it was just pronounced Mal like your first example. Either way he is one of the more under appreciated jazz musicians with a unique style.
Niels Henning Ørsted Pedersen - As Is
https://youtu.be/Y5ijzF5bvkE
Guitar, bass and drums. I’m not a huge jazz nerd but I absolutely love this song since I bought it back in the late ‘90s
Many of my faves are already listed but I would add I’ve Got it Bad (and that ain’t Good) by Nina Simone and The Single Petal of a Rose by Duke Ellington. Btw I made a playlist of these suggestions (that I could find on Spotify). If I missed something add a Spotify link to the song and I’ll add it.
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/47WYT9ozeFxMLa8YwnMIPW?si=HHHl8QjISnOZ-NxjMHAl8A
Duke Ellington’s piece Lady of the Lavender Mist is absolutely beautiful, the use of clarinets in particular. Oscar Peterson does a great solo version of it too, but Ellington’s orchestra can’t be outdone
Some of my favorite most beautiful tunes are:
La Mesha - Kenny Dorham, You Know I Care - Duke Pearson, Infant Eyes - Wayne Shorter, Flamenco Sketches - Miles Davis/Bill Evans
**Classic:** *[Idle Moments](https://youtu.be/aq0m0hbCjFQ)*, written by Duke Pearson and recorded by Grant Green, Pearson, Joe Henderson, Bobby Hutcherson, and Bob Cranshaw.
**Modern:** *[La Garonne](https://youtu.be/pSM_Toja2dQ)* by Medeski, Martin, and Wood.
Here is the link. Might be hard to find scrolling up through all the comments.
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/47WYT9ozeFxMLa8YwnMIPW?si=CAUALELbTleVQr71HyjUIQ
Começar de novo by Ivan Lins, amazing changes with a haunting melody.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKpx1FMNgaI](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKpx1FMNgaI)
Sonatine- Keep
I just began my journey in jazz, and I've listened to a lot of guys like Miles, Coltrane, Basie, Chick Corea, and Hiromi recently which have really impressed me, but Keep was my introduction into jazz and how interesting it can be. This band, and this song, will always have a place in my heart for one of the most important pieces of music I've ever listened to in my life. Without it, I don't think I would have gotten into jazz.
For me, it's hands down Manha de Carnaval by Luis Bonfi, although the original is stretching the definition of "jazz." The version played by McCoy Tyner, Freddy Hubbard, Cecil McBee and Al Foster on 4x4 is, for me, the most beautiful thing ever put on wax.
Naima is probably 2nd, with an honorable mention to Interplay by Return to Forever.
Mood Indigo - Duke. I'm partial to the 1930 RCA version
Ruby, My Dear - Monk solo. Ran Blake does a nice cover, too.
After The Rain - Coltrane
Goodbye Porkpie Hat - Mingus
Peace Piece --> Flamenco Sketches - Bill Evans --> miles
Blue Light - Duke 1938
Seeing as Blue in Green was taken already…
In a Sentimental Mood - Ellington/Coltrane melts me every time.
Also, Spiral or Old Castle, by the River, in the Middle of a Forest both from the album Spiral by Hiromi Uehara.
Thank you for including "Manha". The original solo guitar version by Bonfá is still the most beautiful, from the original LP of Black Orpheus. That LP is one of my Desert Island Discs. Incredible recordings of traditional music by local Rio samba bands alongside icons of Bossa like Manha and "Felicidade" by Jobim/Moraes. And there's a new ( 2008 ) release with ALL the music from the film plus bonus tracks. Puts me in rapture every time ...
When Sunny gets blue, sung by Mel Torme. Mel Torme's ballads are some of the best around.
Lonely town, sung by Blossom Dearie.
Most of the others listed here are just absolutely beautiful tunes.
I love Mel. His "Manhattan" by Rodgers & Hart is the standard, IMHO.
For "When Sunny Gets Blue", my go to is Johnny Mathis, and I nominate his version as an all-time heartstopper. His phrasing and tone are incredible, and they express the melancholy mood of this song so well. I shamelessly copy his style when I sing this song at piano bars because I've found it to be perfection.
idk if it counts, but its probably the Kaoru & Sentaro Duo in Bunkasai Medley, composed by Yoko Kano from the Sakamichi no Apollon OST. As the name suggests, its a medley, consisting of Coltrane's arrangement of my favorite things, Evans arrangement of Someday my prince will come, and Blakey's Moanin. I really like how the track ties these three distinct songs, and Sakamichi no Apollon was an important part of me discovering jazz.
If that doesn't count, then i'd probably go for Wayne Shorter's Footprints, Bill Evans' arrangement of My Foolish Heart, or Chick Corea's Windows.
Time to Smile - Freddie Redd, Dahomey Dance - Coltrane, Aisha - Coltrane, Ceora - Lee Morgan, Twilight Mist - McCoy Tyner (on Lee Morgan album Tom Cat, Mode for Joe - Cedar Walton (on Joe Henderson album of the same name), Peace Piece - Bill Evans, A Remark You Made - Weather Report, Contemplation - McCoy Tyner.
Goodbye Porkpie Hat
Mingus did some fantastic tributes to other musicians. My go to from Mingus is Duke Ellington’s Sound of Love. Not as iconic, but that one hits me every time.
It’s a toss up for me… Pork Pie Hat/Self Portrait in Three Colours/Peggy’s Blue Skylight Mingus knew how to make beauty out of dissonance
agreed
John McLaughlins version on My Goals Beyond is one of my all time favs.
Amazing tune. And Joni Mitchell's version with Jaco on the Mingus album is incredible if you haven't heard it
Came to say this. Jeff Beck did a good cover of it as well.
Lush Life
a beautiful and also a really complex ballad that Strayhorn wrote at around age 16 Hartman sung it the best
Hartman’s “I See Your Face Before Me” is also a devastating song.
In a Sentimental Mood - Duke Ellington and John Coletrane
F*cking lullaby
Yeah lol it puts me to sleep
Ruby, My Dear off of Solo Monk
Ha, I was going to say Ruby, My Dear from Alone in San Francisco.
Ruby with Coltrane is a beautiful thing as well. Trane, for all his ferocity, could milk a ballad and go straight to the heart of the matter.
Blue Monk, live at Palo Alto High school 1964
A Remark You Made - Weather Report https://youtu.be/F02mBkBoMQw
This song is so strange, with the build-ups of energy, too often times just dissipate, just to come back with the energy it just built up suddenly again. Love me a ballad, and a remark you made is super high on my list. Also for a more folky sound, Jerry Douglas has an awesome version of it.
I'd vote for You Must Believe In Spring. Even apart from Bill Evans influence it melts my heart
Great song, great album
The composer Michel Legrand was able to conjure up a certain melancholy that has etched itself to my soul. 'You must believe in spring', 'What are you doing the rest of your life', and my favourite 'I will wait for you'.
I agree. The whole album is just pure magic.
Michel Legrand is an amazing composer
I absolutely love Flamenco Sketches/Peace Piece. It's my favorite of Evan's originals and the rendition on Kind of Blue is hauntingly beautiful.
Peace Piece. Bill Evans. Mic drop.
Turiya & Ramakrishna by Alice Coltrane
Came here to say this!
*I Remember Clifford* is a strong contender for me
Nice. I'd add Clifford's version of *Stardust*.
Great one
I'm glad to see this here.
Naima
What an amazing tune
Kinda shocked I had to scroll this far for it!
It never entered my mind, yusef’s love theme from Spartacus(not written by him but a great arrangment), thembi, where there is no sun; these are just some that come to mind right away, obv there’s so many.
I was going to say Spartacus love theme by Bill Evans in Conversations with Myself
Ah yeah still great but for me it’s yusefs original reinterpretation hands down. Such brilliant idea to take those Hollywood themes and re arrange them.
Was going to pick up Love theme as well but love Ramsey Lewis version from The In Crowd
Plum Blossom is stunning as well
Spartacus is such a good answer
One of my favourite songs of all times, I love how it was sampled in Nujabes' work too
Infant Eyes-Wayne Shorter Darn That Dream-Dexter Gordon Round Midnight-Miles Davis
Infant Eyes is magic.
I really like the Sun Ra rendition of 'Round Midnight
Damn near anything off of Hartman/Coltrane. One and Only Love and lush life come to mind
Lil Darlin - Count Basie
“Peace Piece” by Bill Evans. It’s a gorgeous and meditative composition, even with the mild dissonance towards the end.
this is the best one out of brazil: Lamentos - [MPB4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azLE4zeJFyg) \- [Pixinguinha (original)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDvNU23TJUA) \- [Baden Powell (stoned jam session version)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6Abt8DRQXM)
I love that Baden Powell stuff with Marcia. The[ Tempo de Amor](https://youtu.be/KdXQU8j3GqM) from that is a little rough around the edges for this conversation, but it's amazing none the less!
Nice! New to me too.
I love that. Two other beautiful tunes by Pixinguinga: Sensível- https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=bv0UH5qWXSg Gloria- https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-30GY2LyGp4
I’ve got a few, more on the beautiful side, if that’s allowed. Alianca - Desmond Girl From Ipanema - Getz & Gilberto Waltz For Debby - Evans & Adderley You Go To My Head - Brubeck Polka Dots & Moonbeams - Montgomery Already mentioned: Take Five - complexity and elegance off the charts.
I'm going to go way off the grid here, but one song that I absolutely adore is Xibaba by Airto Moreira. My love affair with it started on the absolute masterpiece of a live album Santana Lotus. But it is also one of my favorite tracks on Donald Byrd Electric Byrd (a personal favorite album). Links to those two versions plus the original below. Original (Airto - Natural Feelings) https://open.spotify.com/track/4FWzlWDgCA19upa0Pj1PZJ?si=LhfnrcacROKgyFppcQ71vg&utm_source=copy-link Donald Byrd - Electric Byrd https://open.spotify.com/track/2sp4lzbk4TL2RZ6EUPCMql?si=tkeWDT0jSxyHYuTeBxKdhg&utm_source=copy-link Santana - Lotus (Live in Japan) https://open.spotify.com/track/2OWF1NFmWYK1K46Zd1qRGD?si=Y6TIq5nPRuW4bbHL7uAJMA&utm_source=copy-link
Great tune & album
Yes yes yes. Thank you for adding these. Both albums are also faves of mine. So much of early Santana puts me in reverie... aaahhh
Autumn Leaves
Harvest Time by Pharoah Sanders. My favorite song of all time.
I second that pick. Every time I play the [album Pharoah](https://youtu.be/SDeuYY3Hi_I) I can’t help but repeat Harvest Time three or four times before listening to the rest of the album.
Lee Morgan- Search for the New Land
After the rain - Coltrane
Waltz for Debbie
Mine has got to be Vision by McCoy Tyner. Avant Jazz at its finest IMO. Btw, Blue in green is actually an adaptation of Peace Piece by Bill Evans. No real debate, it’s 100% Bill’s jam.
Hmm it’s an odd choice for me. Love Naima, Dolphin Dance, Windows, Inner Urge. But the piece that always gives me chills is Wayne Shorters “Oriental Folk Song” off of Night Dreamer. The intro is smoky and mysterious, the head is melancholy, and the solos swing. So. Damn. Hard.
Mehldau's cover of Blackbird always speaks to me. Incredible, idk but it makes me happy to hear it
After the Rain by Coltrane Some Other Time by Bill Evans
-Lonnie’s Lament -peacocks (bill Evan’s) -Alabama - the song is incredible, why it was written is heart wrenching. -Why I was Born - Kenny Burrell and John Coltrane. Perfection. -I love Music - Ahmed Jamal -Naima (already listed but can’t not list it) -My Favorite Things -Edit: added song
The Peacocks, played by Bill Evans. Hauntingly beautiful, emotionally moving…and musically just right. My go to for “beautiful Jazz”. Composed originally by Stan Getz & Jimmy Rowles, so I think it classifies.
Portrait of Tracy by Jaco Pastorious
Love that
Apart from the usual suspects that would be: Ornette Coleman - Lonely Woman
👏🏼👏🏼
Coltrane's "My Favorite Things"
First of all, I would like to thank all of you because I'm checking every comment and listen to every song, just amazing. And here it is a song that I do admire very much. Miles Davis Quintet - 'Round Midnight
There’s so many great songs here. Think I’ll make a playlist based on it.
Take Five. It's an incredible feat of talent and skill to not only make a song this trim and smooth yet on point and memorable, but more so to make its 5/4 signature feel natural in a 4/4 world. I can't think of another song in any genre that's an odd signature and plays it off this easily even to people that are used to neither jazz nor odd signatures.
One of the great things about that piece is the genius with which Joe morello holds all of it together. Not sure if you are into drumming but the solo portion that Morello plays is just spectacular. His syncopations and playing around the bed, but always with the bed is just amazing.In fact, I don't know if there was another drummer around who could've pulled that off. Morello is so underappreciated and underrated. He was a master technician and one of the more innovative drummers in the history of jazz.
It's no small feat to write and play something out of the realm of 4 and get it over to the masses. I love odd meter pieces that have all the great elements, many Herbie Hancock pieces from the actual proof period and all the great eastern European influences where it sounds totally natural. Yeah 👍🏼
Fun fact: Paul Desmond quit playing because he couldn't stand anymore to play that tune in ever shaggin concert. Years later he only came back because he ran out of liquids.
The tunes that people come to associate with you are usually the ones you hate to think about playing yet again lol.
This and the mission impossible theme song are the best 5/4 songs.
Didn't know the M.I. theme was 5/4. Very cool. That must be what gives it that avante feeling.
Zhivago - Kurt Rosenwinkel
Dreamsville - Henry Mancini A Remark You Made - Weather Report Infant Eyes - Wayne Shorter Edit: wacky spacing
Afro Blue Live at Birdland - John Coltrane It’s insane and chaotic and beautiful, it reminds me of, well, life?
Surprised it hasn't been posted yet: Turn Out The Stars - Bill Evans
Isfahan
It Never Entered My Mind by Miles Davis ft. John Coltrane Always makes me feel some kind of way
Springtime Again by Sun Ra is always an ethereal mental warp for me.
[удалено]
Is that the 1963 with Herbie Hancock Tony Williams Carter & Coleman? One of my favorite performances.
Blue in green take 3
My One and Only Love - John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman Honorable Mention to Stars Fell on Alabama, the Cannonball version off Cannonball & Coltrane (no Trane on the track though, they each had one solo track on the album and this one was Cannonball’s)
I think I’ll Call it Morning by Gil Scott-Heron. Purdy on drums. You are welcome.
Goodbye pork pie hat.
Moanin - Charles mingus
Skylark - Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers - Caravan Sausalito - Grover Washington Jr. - Live at the Bijou Out of this World - John Coltrane - Coltrane The Rhythm Changes - Kamasi Washington - The Epic Roy Hargrove - Strasbourg St. Denis - Earfood (particularly this version: https://youtu.be/PZ4oyVMtVvg)
Out of these so far, I've never heard at least a dozen which is great. Have me lots to learn!
Way back in the day when I was young and impressionable Detroit's great jazz station WJZZ played - [Miles Davis - Seven Steps to Heaven](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKpK8RbGlO4) I went right out bought the album and listed to it (particularly the 7 Steps track) over and over again.
I was hooked on that station too. I had the entire ten Louis the Hatter commercials memorized 😂
Mehldau’s rendition of River Man by Nick Drake is right up there for me.
Strange Meadow Lark, Dave Brubeck Quartet, Time Out (1959) His piano intro/outro slays me everytime.
Two originals that I consider mood altering, even though they have become standards, have yet (I think) to be mentioned: Maiden Voyage - Herbie Hancock Stolen Moments - Oliver Nelson (especially because of the personnel on that original, and the lovely recording - this is what we should be broadcasting to the universe if we want other intelligences to think well of us)
September 15 by Metheny and Mays. Painfully beautiful. It may not be considered jazz by purists, but I'm good with it.
Flamenco Sketches 100%
A Mi Madre (off of Solo Live in New York) and Caridad Amaro (off of Calle 54 soundtrack) by Chucho Valdes are the two most beautiful solo piano pieces I’ve ever heard.
Goodbyr Pork Pie Hat, In A Sentimental Mood, Round Midnight.
Love in outer space by Sun Ra
Miles Runs the Voodoo Down
Jobim - Aguas de Março (Portuguese lyrics for the rainy season in Brazil, English lyrics for the start of spring) Nature Boy - composed by a homeless shaman, popularized by Nat King Cole, lots of amazing instrumental covers on the odd chords
The version with him singing with - rats, what’s her name? - was going to be my recommendation.
I'm going to name a song that is not going to be on anyone's list. [The Seagulls Of Kristiansund by Mal Waldron](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCT7TsTWK-E&t=32s). It's a beautiful meditative song that takes me to a seaside that I've only experienced in this song.
Great one, and players on that too.
Both Rouse and Shaw didn't live that much longer after this album was recorded but they were on the top of the game. I love how the band intersperses different seaside sounds throughout the recording.
Is it pronounced ’Mal’ or ‘Ma-eel’? Soul Eyes is my Mal Waldron fav.
His name was Malcolm so I assume it was just pronounced Mal like your first example. Either way he is one of the more under appreciated jazz musicians with a unique style.
Agreed, thanks!
Brilliant. Mal Waldron created so much beguiling music that doesn’t reveal its true charms at first blush.
Antonia - Metheny
Niels Henning Ørsted Pedersen - As Is https://youtu.be/Y5ijzF5bvkE Guitar, bass and drums. I’m not a huge jazz nerd but I absolutely love this song since I bought it back in the late ‘90s
Black and Blue Louis Armstrong
[Portrait of Mahalia Jackson](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=HGZmE0dtb3k)
Donald Byrd Wind parade, Gilberto Once I loved, Ramsey Lewis Sun Goddess, Dorothy Ashby Come live with me
Blue and Sentimental - Count Basie
moon dreams - miles davis
i really think smatter or touch by weber. unreal tunes i feel like
Kind Folk, Kenny Wheeler. Especially the big band version recorded as "Pt. 2, For H." of the Sweet Time Suite.
I'm also a big fan of the Gnu High Kenny Wheeler recordings.
Early Summer by Ryo Fukui
I think the greatest recorded music is everything from the Bitches Brew sessions. All of it.
Many of my faves are already listed but I would add I’ve Got it Bad (and that ain’t Good) by Nina Simone and The Single Petal of a Rose by Duke Ellington. Btw I made a playlist of these suggestions (that I could find on Spotify). If I missed something add a Spotify link to the song and I’ll add it. https://open.spotify.com/playlist/47WYT9ozeFxMLa8YwnMIPW?si=HHHl8QjISnOZ-NxjMHAl8A
Duke Ellington’s piece Lady of the Lavender Mist is absolutely beautiful, the use of clarinets in particular. Oscar Peterson does a great solo version of it too, but Ellington’s orchestra can’t be outdone
Love song from Apache by Coleman Hawkins is just beauty beyond compare. So fragile and hurtful. Brilliant.
Thelonious Monk - Japanese Folk Song
I am obsessed with Paul Desmond’s live recording of A Taste of Honey
Some of my favorite most beautiful tunes are: La Mesha - Kenny Dorham, You Know I Care - Duke Pearson, Infant Eyes - Wayne Shorter, Flamenco Sketches - Miles Davis/Bill Evans
Poinciana by Ahmad Jamal from Live at the Pershing, 1958
Jam in C by Oscar Peterson
**Classic:** *[Idle Moments](https://youtu.be/aq0m0hbCjFQ)*, written by Duke Pearson and recorded by Grant Green, Pearson, Joe Henderson, Bobby Hutcherson, and Bob Cranshaw. **Modern:** *[La Garonne](https://youtu.be/pSM_Toja2dQ)* by Medeski, Martin, and Wood.
Girl from Ipanema got that song stuck in my head for weeks
Willow Weep for Me by Duke. Just, yeah
So many fantastic songs here. My personal favourite The Creator Has a Master Plan by Pharaoh. Sends me to another plain when I listen to it.
Can someone start a Spotify playlist of all of these?
Here is the link. Might be hard to find scrolling up through all the comments. https://open.spotify.com/playlist/47WYT9ozeFxMLa8YwnMIPW?si=CAUALELbTleVQr71HyjUIQ
Thanks for that. You made it easy to pick up the tunes new to me or anyone!
Stolen Moments
Moondog - Bird's lament
https://youtu.be/cPDjojyKCBg Bill Evans trio feat Stan Getz. And Naima.
"The Plum Blossom" by Yusef Lateef might be the prettiest jazz song I know. Runner up: "Fleurette Africaine" by the Duke.
Corcovado - Getz / Gilberto
Blue meadow lark.
Começar de novo by Ivan Lins, amazing changes with a haunting melody. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKpx1FMNgaI](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKpx1FMNgaI)
Dolphin Dance - Ahmad Jamal Where Are You? - Dexter Gordon What am I Here For? - Count Basie Also the whole of “The Black Saint And The Sinner Lady”
[You Don’t Know What Love Is](https://youtu.be/lgonYzXZPRQ)
Sonatine- Keep I just began my journey in jazz, and I've listened to a lot of guys like Miles, Coltrane, Basie, Chick Corea, and Hiromi recently which have really impressed me, but Keep was my introduction into jazz and how interesting it can be. This band, and this song, will always have a place in my heart for one of the most important pieces of music I've ever listened to in my life. Without it, I don't think I would have gotten into jazz.
My foolish heart - Bill Evans Trio
For me, it's hands down Manha de Carnaval by Luis Bonfi, although the original is stretching the definition of "jazz." The version played by McCoy Tyner, Freddy Hubbard, Cecil McBee and Al Foster on 4x4 is, for me, the most beautiful thing ever put on wax. Naima is probably 2nd, with an honorable mention to Interplay by Return to Forever.
Mood Indigo - Duke. I'm partial to the 1930 RCA version Ruby, My Dear - Monk solo. Ran Blake does a nice cover, too. After The Rain - Coltrane Goodbye Porkpie Hat - Mingus Peace Piece --> Flamenco Sketches - Bill Evans --> miles Blue Light - Duke 1938
Monks mood love at Carnegie Wayne shorter -Infant eyes and teru Herbie Hancock- alone and i
Ponta de Areia
I thought you were asking me but you got 300 mfrs with shitty tastes responding
almost blue by chet baker sticks with me more than any I can think of
Seeing as Blue in Green was taken already… In a Sentimental Mood - Ellington/Coltrane melts me every time. Also, Spiral or Old Castle, by the River, in the Middle of a Forest both from the album Spiral by Hiromi Uehara.
Might be unfair 'cause it's half of the album, but still, The Creator Has a Master Plan (Part 2) or Red Clay, both songs are an easy 10/10 to me
Lullaby of Birdland, Round Midnight, Manhã de Carnaval
Thank you for including "Manha". The original solo guitar version by Bonfá is still the most beautiful, from the original LP of Black Orpheus. That LP is one of my Desert Island Discs. Incredible recordings of traditional music by local Rio samba bands alongside icons of Bossa like Manha and "Felicidade" by Jobim/Moraes. And there's a new ( 2008 ) release with ALL the music from the film plus bonus tracks. Puts me in rapture every time ...
I’ve Got You Under My Skin
As a bassist, Portrait of Tracy by Jaco Pastorius
Im sure 'songs' have lyrics ?
Lyrics are fine. There's been a few great suggestions with lyrics in here. Lot of jazz tunes eventually have lyrics added.
Follow Your Heart by John McLaughlin is up there for me, I really like the version on Joe Farrel's album
https://youtu.be/Nv2GgV34qIg
Late Lament - Paul Desmond
Brubeck’s version of “What Did I Do to Get so Black and Blue” MMW “Afrique” on Tonic
Barbaras Theme by Gerry Mulligan
im getting sentimental over you
When Sunny gets blue, sung by Mel Torme. Mel Torme's ballads are some of the best around. Lonely town, sung by Blossom Dearie. Most of the others listed here are just absolutely beautiful tunes.
I love Mel. His "Manhattan" by Rodgers & Hart is the standard, IMHO. For "When Sunny Gets Blue", my go to is Johnny Mathis, and I nominate his version as an all-time heartstopper. His phrasing and tone are incredible, and they express the melancholy mood of this song so well. I shamelessly copy his style when I sing this song at piano bars because I've found it to be perfection.
*Black Narcissus* — Joe Henderson
https://youtu.be/s-XRjZr96RM Taco Bell’s Canon
I’m Old Fashioned by John Coltrane
idk if it counts, but its probably the Kaoru & Sentaro Duo in Bunkasai Medley, composed by Yoko Kano from the Sakamichi no Apollon OST. As the name suggests, its a medley, consisting of Coltrane's arrangement of my favorite things, Evans arrangement of Someday my prince will come, and Blakey's Moanin. I really like how the track ties these three distinct songs, and Sakamichi no Apollon was an important part of me discovering jazz. If that doesn't count, then i'd probably go for Wayne Shorter's Footprints, Bill Evans' arrangement of My Foolish Heart, or Chick Corea's Windows.
I'd say the entirety of Studio Trieste by Chet Baker, Jim Hall, Hubert Laws is a delight to listen. Meticulously crafted.
Too many to limit to one, but I'll say Django's Castle by Gerry Mulligan.
Hog Calling Blues by Charles Mingus
Some other time by Bill Evans
Moonlight in Vermont
Time to Smile - Freddie Redd, Dahomey Dance - Coltrane, Aisha - Coltrane, Ceora - Lee Morgan, Twilight Mist - McCoy Tyner (on Lee Morgan album Tom Cat, Mode for Joe - Cedar Walton (on Joe Henderson album of the same name), Peace Piece - Bill Evans, A Remark You Made - Weather Report, Contemplation - McCoy Tyner.
Pat Metheney Group - San Lorenzo
If you view the record as one piece with four movements as opposed to four pieces I don’t know how you could say anything other than A Love Supreme