Tonight At Noon An Opus On Love .
Sue Mingus Writes About Her life With and Love Of Charles Mingus.
Nov 30, 2008
Tonight At Noon is just one of those unorthodox song titles that you associate with a composer like Charles Mingus. He had head scratching names for many of his other composition like: Pithecanthropus Erectus, E’s Flat Ah’s Flat Too, and Meditations For A Pair Of Wire-Cutter; just to name a few. So Tonight At Noon almost seems normal by comparison.
It is also the title of one of the latest books on the enigmatic, volatile and versatile musician and written by his last wife Sue Graham Mingus. It is a love story.
Sue Mingus over the last decade has been a ferocious defender and protector of her husband’s legacy and this book is the latest of her project, she has also created the Mingus Big Band, which is based in New York and Revenge Records. She is known for removing illegal recordings of his work from stores.
Meeting Charles at The Club
Tonight At Noon tells the story of an unusual love affair one that started with a meeting at a club that Mingus was playing the Five Spot, which was one the hottest jazz clubs in New York at the time. She notes that she liked him instantly a feeling that did not change even after they were introduced and she told him that she was an actress, to which Mingus replied, “With Those Teeth”.
In retrospect it is funny, but many other women would have been offended. With that rocky start Sue and Charles romanced, fell in love, separated and reunited. Her descriptions of his wacky street serenades outside her apartment in New York are very amusing. They finally learned to accept each other idiosyncrasies and got married.
Searching For A Cure
Her description of the battle he fought with A.L.S. (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) popularly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease is poignant at times amusing and sometimes painful, but never begs for pity.
His tears at the White House after meeting President Carter and seeing his friends play stands out as one of those Painful moments.
He eventually traveled to Mexico to find cure from an Indian witch doctor. Entering a world some would describe as full of voodoo and Black Magic, his friends must have wondered about his quest for a cure.
Charles never recovered from his illness and died in Mexico. His ashes were spread according to his wishes along the Ganges River in India.
For fans of Charles Mingus this book should be a must have addition to their library of books on this great musicians, for others this is a great read one that tellsyou muchaboutthe strength and resilience of the man and although it is written by someone who obviously loved him it is not mushy tome, it is the story from the view point of an objective and strong lover.
‘Tonight At Noon’ is published by Da Capo press and is distributed in Canada by Harper Collins
