Critic Kevin Whitehead reflects on the legacy of the musician who would have been 100 on April 22, 2022. Mingus died in 1979, leaving behind a catalog of music that reflected his outsized personality.

Mingus was a genius. The music on this CD is incredible. Anything that Mingus recorded was incredible. This being the Very Best Of, what does one expect, but fantastic performances. The only real ...

This is a rebroadcast from Toast of the Nation 2008-2009. The music from this session is now on the Grammy Award-winning album, Mingus Big Band Live at Jazz Standard. The person most responsible for ...

Charles Mingus never ceases to amaze, even 20 years after his death. As part of their ambitious Atlantic re-issue program, Rhino Records squirts out a "Very Best of..." collection of Charles Mingus ...

This is FRESH AIR. One hundred years ago today, the great jazz bassist, composer and bandleader Charles Mingus was born in Nogales, Ariz. Jazz critic Kevin Whitehead says Mingus was a larger than life ...