As such, the list of musicians who have passed through the Messengers academy is a veritable who’s who of jazz up until his death in 1990. The first onstage school of jazz ultimately opened for long-term session with drummer Art Blakey who enlisted young players to his revolving-door group, the Jazz Messengers, not only to teach but also to continually refresh himself and his band with new energy, excitement and especially repertoire. (During a 1954 live session, At Night at Birdland, Blakey remarked during the set: “I’m gonna stay with the youngsters. When these get too old I’ll get some younger ones. Keeps the mind active.”) The Messengers was co-founded in the early ‘50s by Blakey and pianist/talented songwriter Horace Silver, who bowed out in 1956 to pursue his solo career. One of the greats that Blakey mentored was tenor saxophonist Wayne Shorter, who in the late ‘50s to early ‘60s became the music director of the band and primary composer. He delivered several new songs to the Messengers set list, including “Chess Players,” “Lester Left Town,” “Children of the Night,” “Ping-Pong” “On the Ginza” and “Mr. Jin” among many others. After five years (a long term) with Blakey, Shorter jumped ship and joined Miles Davis’s soon-to-be-classic quintet. Early Jazz Messengers featured trumpeter Kenny Dorham and alto saxophonist Lou Donaldson; and was immediately followed a short while later with a stellar band featuring Clifford Brown and Hank Mobley in the front line. Moanin’ | Art Blakey’s Finest 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.

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 performed with artists such as Tadd Dameron, Lionel Hampton, and Johnny Hodges before joining the Dizzy Gillespie band on a tour of South America from 1956-58, the same years Morgan played for Gillespie. Golson's tunes "Are You Real?," "Along Came Betty," "The Drum Thunder Suite," and "Blues March" lend a notable variety and versatility to Moanin', utilizing varied song forms and musical styles. As an improviser, Golson's smooth tone and fluid lines contrast with and complement the aggressive playing of Lee Morgan.

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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. 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. 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. Another important associate of the hard bop movement, Horace Silver would also play an important part in Blakey’s development, and in fact the Jazz Messengers band was under Silver’s leadership. The Rising Stars of Tomorrow Art Blakey’s place in thepantheon of the all-time jazz greats has long been established and never disputed.

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. 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.

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. Trumpeter Lee Morgan was on fire with his big tone, inventive and melodic improvisation and still retaining the exuberance and brashness of youth. Blues March ‘ is exactly that, and reminiscent of the old New Orleans marching bands, albeit updated for 1958. 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.

As such his contribution to the evolution of the music from the forties and throughout the fifties and sixties cannot be underestimated. 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. A passionate advocate of the jazz that he loved and believed in, he was always willing to share this passion and message to all who would care to listen. 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 ' " 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. 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. As a bonus, here’s a very cool interview with pianist Benny Green about playing with Art.He describes his first time on the bandstand with Art at the drums and how incredibly powerful he was. 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.