Charles Mingus' debut for Columbia, Mingus Ah Um is a stunning summation of the bassist's talents and probably the best reference point for beginners. While there's also a strong case for The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady as his best work overall, it lacks Ah Um's immediate acccessibility and brilliantly sculpted individual tunes. Mingus' compositions and arrangements were always extremely focused, assimilating individual spontaneity into a firm consistency of mood, and that approach reaches an ultra-tight zenith on Mingus Ah Um. The band includes longtime Mingus stalwarts already well versed in his music, like saxophonists John Handy, Shafi Hadi, and Booker Ervin, trombonists Jimmy Knepper and Willie Dennis, pianist Horace Parlan, and drummer Dannie Richmond. Their razor-sharp performances tie together what may well be Mingus' greatest, most emotionally varied set of compositions. At least three became instant classics, starting with the irrepressible spiritual exuberance of signature tune "Better Get Hit in Yo' Soul," taken in a hard-charging 6/8 and punctuated by joyous gospel shouts. "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat" is a slow, graceful elegy for Lester Young, who died not long before the sessions. The sharply contrasting "Fables of Faubus" is a savage mockery of segregationist Arkansas governor Orval Faubus, portrayed musically as a bumbling vaudeville clown (the scathing lyrics, censored by skittish executives, can be heard on Charles Mingus Presents Charles Mingus). The underrated "Boogie Stop Shuffle" is bursting with aggressive swing, and elsewhere there are tributes to Mingus' three most revered influences: "Open Letter to Duke" is a suite of three tunes; "Bird Calls" is inspired by Charlie Parker; and "Jelly Roll" is an idiosyncratic yet affectionate nod to jazz's first great composer, Jelly Roll Morton. It simply isn't possible to single out one Mingus album as definitive, but Mingus Ah Um comes the closest.

《Take Five》是一支为爵士乐做出划时代贡献的乐曲，也是爵士历史上最有名的乐曲之一。是否觉得Take Five这两个单词看上去似乎眼熟了？因为现在全世界以Take Five命名的咖啡厅、酒吧、店铺或是乐团太多了，所以才会使人有这种感觉。
上世纪五十年代末，Dave Brubeck Quartet组合中的灵魂人物中音萨克斯手Paul Desmond写了这一首名叫Take Five的四重奏乐曲，最开始时这首爵士乐以单曲的形式发行，由于采用了极为罕见的5/4拍，这在当时的爵士音乐界引起了强烈震动，并受到广泛批评，但在符合大众口味的金曲排行榜上却可以和彼时如日中天的猫王的歌曲抗衡。
以后的时间证明了，这种复杂节奏改变了当时人们陈旧、萎靡和一成不变的听力习惯，同时在探索爵士节奏的可能性上作出了深远影响。21世纪福克斯公司也曾经将此曲用做电影题头。
由于Paul Desmond在爵士历史上的地位与名气都远远不如Dave Brubeck，《Take Five》的曲作者经常被误以为是Dave Brubeck。而实际上由Dave Brubeck、Paul Desmond、Joe Morello、Eugene Wright组成的四重奏组合在1959年发行的专辑《Time Out》里，Dave Brubeck的确是除《Take Five》之外的所有乐曲的作者，这张专辑中八分之九拍、四分之五拍、四分之六拍等诸多非常规爵士乐节拍也有出现，但《Take Five》在爵士乐史上石破天惊的意义显然非专辑中其他乐曲可以比拟，在后来发行的绝大多数关于Dave Brubeck Quartet的精选专辑中，几乎100%都会收录。