The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady
- Zone: Twilight (level 3 of 5)
- Genre: Jazz, Avant-garde jazz
- Mood: dramatic, turbulent, anguished
- Sound: single suite, orchestral ensemble, flamenco influence, overdubbed layers, shifting tempos, ballet score
The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady is one of the first jazz albums built as a single continuous composition rather than a set of separate songs. Mingus wrote it partly as a ballet and recorded it in one day in January 1963 with an eleven-piece band, using dense layered arrangements that draw on classical music, Spanish flamenco and African rhythms. Its four tracks are split into six movements, with sudden changes of mood, tempo and texture, and the soloists work inside the composition instead of taking turns over a rhythm section. It is widely considered one of the greatest jazz records, and its long-form, orchestral approach influenced later avant-garde and large-ensemble jazz.
Track list
- Track A – Solo Dancer (Stop! Look! And Listen, Sinner Jim Whitney!)
- Track B – Duet Solo Dancers (Hearts’ Beat and Shades in Physical Embraces)
- Track C – Group Dancers (Soul Fusion) (Freewoman and Oh, This Freedom’s Slave Cries)
- Mode D, E, F – Trio and Group Dancers; Single Solos and Group Dance; Group and Solo Dance