Mingus at the Bohemia

The songs from "Cafe Bohemia" contain the typical Mingus "Jazz Workshop" characteristics. A concert as workshop meant first of all a live experiment; this is mainly true for his “guest” musician Max Roach in “Percussion Discussion”. Mingus at the Bohemia fixed a moment in time where Mingus found his musical identity.

The first song, "Jump, Monk" is a tribute to Thelonious Monk. Mingus tried to simulate with his bass play the dance like movements of the great musician. This composition is described by Mingus as "a profile of Monk", not a complete picture of the man but a side view or one aspect of a complex personality. Actually, it is a double profile because one can see an important aspect of the composer, Mingus. The eight-bar, many-voiced section that keeps alternating with the melody most certainly mirrors the emotional, earthy quality found in both subject and composer. Mingus can be heard shouting during the last chorus, thus bearing out the identity. Of importance, also, are the compositional techniques used in this piece. Along with given melodic figures, the composer created the form and mood by giving the musicians scales on which they could build their own figures. These figures then had to appear in certain places and also had to maintain the mood of the composition. During the first and last choruses, even though George and Eddie play different notes in comparable places, the mood and feeling are still the same.

The above-mentioned "Percussion Discussion" is a duet between Mingus and Roach, which was later also used in the Epitaph suite.[4] The two men play two instruments that are very rarely found on the stand-alone. The two produce an assortment of rich and exciting sounds showcasing the artistry of both musicians. Mingus' pizzicato becomes so strong at times that it sounds very close to Max's percussive effort.

The "Work Song" (not to be confused with the Nat Adderley composition) should reflect the history of the black workers in the US, with elements of soul jazz. This is the only truly representative composition in the album. It is actually a jazz tone poem depicting the old slave gangs as they did their back-breaking work of "swinging that hammer". Driving stakes or laying railroad ties with all the oppression and problems the Black race had at that time. Notice the cannon-like sound of the piano which really simulates the blow of a sledge-hammer. This is called a "cluster" on the piano. Because of the low register clusters and other rhythm section accents, we get a strong feeling of depression throughout the piece. However, there is a note of hope in the composition which is found in the words of the original melody: "Swing that hammer over your shoulder: get bolder and – BOLDER!"

"Septemberly" is a combination of two songs: "September in the Rain" goes over into a romantic "Tenderly". Sub-titled "The Song Of The Thief", this is, of course, a conscious accusal of musical plagiarism. As Mingus said, "Two composers collect royalties for the same tune". Eddie has the first melody ("September in the Rain") and George has the other ("Tenderly"). After treating both melodies simultaneously, the arrangement then moves from one section of the first tune to another section of the second tune. The solos are built on the exact chord changes of "September", but they could just as well have been built on "Tenderly". On the end of the arrangement Mingus's new developments on old ideas can be heard. In the early days of jazz, the musicians had no planned endings. They would all solo together into some kind of consonant, harmonious ending "a la New Orleans". For this arrangement there's no ending. The musicians just move together, each in his own way, toward a resolution of the composition.

The last song is the standard "All the Things You Are" blended with "Prelude in C sharp minor". Mingus was very aware of similarities in tunes, and, as in one other case in this album, Septemberly, he combines two or three in a composition. Whether intentional or not, this often implies to the listener that one tune was derived or stolen from the other(s). In this case, the combined tunes are "All Things + Prelude". The piano line is similar to "Clair de Lune", with the three-note motif that is found (1) in the beginning of "Prelude", (2) in the introduction on "Things", and (3) although the melody is different, in the rhythmic idea of "Clair". The motif is found throughout the composition and gives the piece a well-knit feeling.

Chazz! was the title of various reissued versions of the album.

1. "Jump Monk" (Charles Mingus) - 6:44
2. "Serenade In Blue" (Mack Gordon, Harry Warren) - 5:57
3. "Percussion Discussion" (Mingus, Max Roach) - 8:25
4. "Work Song" (Mingus) - 6:16
5. "Septemberly" - (September in the Rain / Tenderly) (Harry Warren, Al Dubin / Jack Lawrence, Walter Gross) - 6:55
6. "All The Things You C#" (Jerome Kern, Oscar Hammerstein II / Sergei Rachmaninoff) - 6:47

• George Barrow - tenor saxophone
• Eddie Bert - trombone
• Mal Waldron - piano
• Charles Mingus - double bass (bass and cello on Percussion Discussion)
• Willie Jones - drums except (Percussion Discussion)
• Max Roach - drums (on "Percussion Discussion")

• Horst Weber, Gerd Filtg hi: Charles Mingus. Sein Leben, seine Musik, seine Schallplatten. Oreos, Gauting-Buchendorf, o.J., ISBN 3-923657-05-6
• Marcus A. Woelfle: Liner Notes zu Charles Mingus - 80th Birthday Celebration (Fantasy)
• Richard Cook & Brian Morton: The Penguin Guide To Jazz On CD; Penguin, London, 2002.
• Mal Waldron: Vinyl LP Liner Notes