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Debut · 1953

Jazz at Massey Hall

The Quintet (Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Bud Powell, Charles Mingus, Max Roach)

Recorded: May 15, 1953   Original cat#: DLP-2 / DLP-4 (10 inch); later 12 inch consolidation
The Quintet (Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Bud Powell, Charles Mingus, Max Roach) — Jazz at Massey Hall album cover

Toronto's New Jazz Society staged this concert at Massey Hall on May 15, 1953. The quintet is Dizzy Gillespie on trumpet, Charlie Parker on alto saxophone, Bud Powell on piano, Charles Mingus on bass and Max Roach on drums. Parker was billed as "Charlie Chan" because of a contract with another label. It is their only known recording as a quintet.

Mingus recorded the concert himself and issued it on his own Debut label. The bass was picked up too quietly by the hall's system, so he overdubbed his own part afterwards on most tracks. The choice is between the overdubbed version, as it has been heard for seventy years, and the 2023 box set. That set also carries the undubbed tapes.

Best early pressing for audiophiles: An original Debut 10" (DLP-2, DLP-4) or the 1956 12" consolidation, DEB-124.

Best modern pressing for audiophiles: Hot House: The Complete Jazz at Massey Hall Recordings (Craft Recordings, 2023), a 180g 3LP set.

Best-value modern: Original Jazz Classics OJC-044, the 1983 Fantasy-era reissue mastered by George Horn.

Recording history and tape provenance

The evening was chaotic. Powell was reportedly drunk before the first note. Gillespie kept leaving the stage to check the radio for the Marciano and Walcott heavyweight fight. The hall seats over 2,700 and the concert did not sell out.

Mingus brought the tapes back to New York and found his bass was too quiet to use on most tracks. He confirmed the overdub in a 1975 radio interview with Toronto broadcaster Ted O'Reilly. He used a different instrument from the one he played that night. The Discogs master page records the same account.

Not every track was treated this way. "Salt Peanuts" carries its original bass line on every subsequent release. The bass solo on "All the Things You Are" was also altered, per the Discogs master page.

Original Debut pressings

Debut issued the concert as three 10" LPs. The Jazz Discography Project dates DLP-2 and DLP-3 to 1953 and DLP-4 to 1954. DLP-2 is Vol. 1, DLP-3 the Powell trio set and DLP-4 Vol. 3.

The 12" consolidation is Debut DEB-124, which compiles DLP-2 and DLP-4. Both Wikipedia and the Jazz Discography Project date it to 1956, after Parker's death. A December 1953 date appears in some chronologies, with no supporting source found here.

The 10" volumes are scarce. One owner of a DEB-124 copy describes blue and purple labels with silver writing, and a cover with "The Quintet" in red.

Later reissues

Fantasy reissued the 12" album as LP 6003 and LP 86003 in 1962. Prestige issued it in 1973 as PRST-24024 under the title The Greatest Jazz Concert Ever. France saw it on America as 30 AM 6053 in 1969. All are listed in the Debut discography.

Original Jazz Classics reissued it as OJC-044 in 1983, mastered by George Horn. Owner reviews describe it as a good-sounding pressing.

One owner review on the master page reports a later pressing carrying both 1983 and 1956 copyrights and Craft Recordings markings. Its mastering is not identified. An owner review of a Jazz Wax Records edition, written in French, calls it flat and lifeless next to other pressings.

Hot House: The Complete Jazz at Massey Hall Recordings (2023)

Craft Recordings released this 180g 3LP set for the concert's 70th anniversary, with restoration by Paul Blakemore. AnalogPlanet reports it pairs Mingus's overdubbed first-generation tape with the complete original master performance before the overdubs.

It also carries the Powell trio set and Roach's solo "Drum Conversation." It is the first release to gather all of the evening's material in one package, at a list price of $99.99.

The undubbed quintet tracks are a different listening experience, not only a cleaner one.

Buyer's guide by budget

$$: The Original Jazz Classics OJC-044 reissue, mastered by George Horn.

$$$$: A clean original Debut 10" (DLP-2 or DLP-4) or the 1956 DEB-124 12", priced on condition.

$$$$$: Hot House: The Complete Jazz at Massey Hall Recordings, the only release with both the overdubbed and undubbed quintet performances.

Pressing tier summary

Tier ⇅ Pressing Cat# Year ⇅ Format Source / Mastering Notes Market ⇅
S Hot House: The Complete Jazz at Massey Hall Recordings – 2023 Mono, 33⅓, 3LP box Paul Blakemore restoration First release with the undubbed quintet tracks alongside the overdubbed program –
A Debut 12" consolidation DEB-124 1956 Mono, 33⅓ Debut lacquer. Produced by Charles Mingus Compiles DLP-2 and DLP-4. Overdubbed bass except on "Salt Peanuts"
4 for sale · from $35
$422VG+
$552NM
$617M
B Original Jazz Classics OJC-044 1983 Mono, 33⅓ George Horn, Fantasy Owner reviews positive –
– Debut 10" originals DLP-2, DLP-4 1953, 1954 Mono, 33⅓, 10" Debut lacquer Not rated. Scarce. DLP-3 holds the Powell trio set –
– Prestige, The Greatest Jazz Concert Ever PRST-24024 1973 Mono, 33⅓, 2LP Not credited Not rated. Retitled reissue –
– Fantasy reissue LP 6003 / LP 86003 1962 Mono, 33⅓ Not credited Not rated –

References

Related guides: Bird and Diz · Clifford Brown & Max Roach · Genius of Modern Music Volume 1

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