Weary Blues (also referred to as The Weary Blues) is an album by the American poet Langston Hughes, who recites several of his poems over jazz accompaniment composed and arranged by Leonard Feather and Charles Mingus. The album was recorded on March 17 & 18, 1958 in New York and was released on the MGM label in 1959. It was later reissued on Verve Records.Charles Mingus discography accessed December 4, 2012 accessed May 2, 2022
On side 1 (track 1) of the album Hughes is backed by an ensemble organized and arranged by Leonard Feather, featuring Henry "Red" Allen, Sam "The Man" Taylor, Vic Dickenson, Milt Hinton, and Osie Johnson. On side 2 (tracks 2 and 3) the accompaniment is by Charles Mingus's group, featuring Horace Parlan, Shafi Hadi, Kenny Davis and Jimmy Knepper.
Reception
The AllMusic review by Michael Katz called it "interesting, but not essential".Katz, M. Allmusic Review accessed December 4, 2012
Track listing "Blues Montage: Opening Blues/Blues Montage/Commercial Theater/Morning After/Could Be/Testament" "Consider Me: The Stranger/Midnight Stroll/Backstage "Dream Montage: Weird Nightmare/Double G Train/Jump Monk
Personnel Langston Hughes - narrator (all songs) Track 1: Leonard Feather - arranger Red Allen - trumpet Vic Dickenson - trombone Sam "The Man" Taylor - tenor saxophone, clarinet Al Williams - piano Milt Hinton - bass Osie Johnson - drums
Tracks 2 and 3: Charles Mingus - bass, arranger Jimmy Knepper - trombone Shafi Hadi - tenor saxophone Horace Parlan - piano Kenny Dennis - drums
References