Charles Mingus Laughing in Studio, May 1959
Credits: Photo by Don Hunstein ©Sony Collectibles. All rights reserved.
Jazz bassist/pianist/composer/bandleader Charles Mingus came to Columbia Records in 1959 and in the course of a single year, wrote and recorded two groundbreaking albums-- "Mingus Ah Um" and "Mingus Dynasty"--which combined the discipline of sophisticated composition with the freedom of avant-garde exploration. Shot in May 1959, this Don Hunstein portrait of Charles Mingus in the studio captures the formidable humor and spontaneity of the artist as he cracks up mid-session at some off-camera hi-jinks.
