The Newport Jazz Festival was already an established institution in 1959, its sixth year of operation. George Wein’s annual outdoor bash on Narragansett Bay in Newport, Rhode Island had been extensively covered by Down Beat magazine since its inception in 1955 and was thoroughly examined in Bert Stern’s stunning 1958 documentary, Jazz on a Summer’s Day. And jazz fans continued to flock to Acquidneck Island in record numbers to take in the sun and savor the sounds at this grand event. As Wein declared in a press conference at the time: “The name ‘Newport’ is synonymous with jazz, and signifies…entire summary
The Newport Jazz Festival was already an established institution in 1959, its sixth year of operation. George Wein’s annual outdoor bash on Narragansett Bay in Newport, Rhode Island had been extensively covered by Down Beat magazine since its inception in 1955 and was thoroughly examined in Bert Stern’s stunning 1958 documentary, Jazz on a Summer’s Day. And jazz fans continued to flock to Acquidneck Island in record numbers to take in the sun and savor the sounds at this grand event. As Wein declared in a press conference at the time: “The name ‘Newport’ is synonymous with jazz, and signifies the most single event in the history of jazz. Success at Newport did more to help jazz and increase the prestige of jazz than anything else in the world.”
The lineup at the 1959 festival reads like a Who’s Who in Jazz, featuring legends like Count Basie, Thelonious Monk, Erroll Garner, Gene Krupa and Dizzy Gillespie interspersed with new stars like Ahmad Jamal, Herbie Mann and the Mastersounds (a popular quartet at the time led by Wes Mongtomery’s brothers Monk on electric bass and Buddy on vibraphone). The hard bop contingent was well represented by Horace Silver’s quintet with tenor saxophonist Junior Cook and trumpeter Blue Mitchell and by an edition of Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers featuring tenor saxophonist Hank Mobley and trumpeter Lee Morgan. Trumpet star Maynard Ferguson brought in a powerhouse big band featuring Joe Zawinul on piano and Wayne Shorter on tenor sax (eleven years before they would form Weather Report) and Maynard’s former employer, Stan Kenton, explored Afro-Cuban rhythms with his adventurous orchestra. Dixieland was represented by Phil Napolean and His Original Memphis Five (a group that had recorded in the early 1920s) and by trombonist-singer Jack Teagarden, who combined with the great trumpeter Bobby Hackett for a spirited, swinging set of old school standards. The Modern Jazz Quartet wove its delicate, chamber-like spell while Hammond B-3 organ champ Jimmy Smith and pianist Oscar Peterson provided pure burn in their exhilarating sets. British pianist George Shearing premiered his expanded 16-piece brass ensemble while his countryman Johnny Dankworth made his first American appearance with his swaggering 16-piece big band. And singer Dakota Staton riveted the Newport crowd with her earthy take on jazz standards. There was something for everybody at the 1959 edition of Wein’s clambake. Captured in remarkable clarity 50 years ago, these historic concerts are now available for streaming and downloading, via the Concert Vault.
-Playlist curated by esteemed jazz writer and Jaco Pastorius biographer Bill Milkowski.
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