The first, great pop album.
Grade: A+
Concert by the Sea – Erroll Garner
For piano lovers especially – the performance of a lifetime.
Grade: A
Dinner in Caracas – Aldemaro Romero
A worthwhile primer of Venezuelan folk songs, played by a classical orchestra.
Grade: A-
Thelonious Monk continued his hot streak into 1955
Reviews of two Thelonious Monk LPs from 1955.
Blue Moods – Miles Davis
One of Miles Davis’ most underrated and anomalous early releases.
Grade: A
Clifford Brown & Max Roach – 1955
Clifford Brown with Strings: A
Brown and Roach Incorporated: A-
Study in Brown: A
In a Romantic Mood – Oscar Peterson
One of the more underrated LPs in the jazz catalogue.
Grade: A
The Women of Vocal Jazz
Looking at five 1955 vocal jazz LPs from the likes of Dinah Washington, Sarah Vaughan, Helen Merrill, Julie London and June Christy.
Classical Check-Up – 1955
Aside from John Cage’s “4’33,” Pierre Boulez’s “Le Marteau sans Maître” was the most talked-about premiere of the decade. It showed that high modernism could indeed be “popular,” and that classical music in general could still drive the musical conversation. That being said, it’s far from the best composition of the year. 1954 | […]
The Many Guises of Stan Getz
Before he gained international stardom with his early ‘60s bossa-nova recordings, tenor saxophonist Stan Getz made his bones by practicing with the greats in Scandinavia. Stints with the likes of Dizzy Gillespie, Oscar Peterson, Horace Silver, Al Haig and Max Roach bolstered the young Getz’s reputation as a standout performer. He first gained recognition as […]
“Nostalgic” doesn’t mean “good”
This 1955 LP from The Four Freshmen is vocal heaven, but musically it represents everything bad about the decade.
Grade: B
The Music of 1955
Links to reviews of the music of 1955.
