The Ultimate is an album by American jazz drummer Elvin Jones recorded in 1968 and released on the Blue Note label.
Elvin Jones the Quintessence. 2017 New York City Stockholm 1956-1962. 30 Years North Sea Jazz Festival.
Exclusive discount for Prime members. Sample this album Artist - Artist (Sample). 1. 30. Nuttin' Out Jones. by Elvin Jones and Jimmy Garrison Sextet. Nuttin' Out Jones by Elvin Jones and Jimmy Garrison Sextet. The second album included here features Charlie Mariano on alto sax. This is Mariano four years after the fine recording he made in 1961 with (short-term) wife and bop pianist Toshiko Akiyoshi; two years after the third of the albums he recorded with Mingus; and a good decade before his short-lived but productive stay in Eberhard Weber’s Colours.
The second album by Elvin Jones as leader has the drummer sounding more like a backup musician, as he claims no compositional duties or noticeable solo space. In fact, this is one of the very best albums in the career of alto saxophonist Charlie Mariano, who occupies the bulk of lead lines and improvising responsibilities. He’s so up-front, and on an instrument that is not John Coltrane’s main instrument, the tenor sax, that the title is also a bit of a misnomer. Don’t get me started).
While Jones had made a few of his own recordings as a leader during his tenure with the John Coltrane Quartet (most notably Elvin! for Riverside and Illumination! for Impulse), it wasn’t until he broke rank with the saxophonist and signed a deal with Blue Note that the fine points of his own musical sensibilities would come to light. That Jones was able to prosper during what would prove to be a period of decline for Blue Note not only testifies to his resilience as an artist but also as a committed and passionate human being. Puttin’ It Together and The Ultimate Elvin Jones.
