Tonight at Noon
The Mingus Big Band, who have lost a little of their edge on their past  couple of albums, introduce a few wrinkles on this effort--which, as all its  predecessors do, consists of compositions by the late and greatCharles Mingus. On four  consecutive tunes, the band expands to the 11-piece Charles Mingus Orchestra, a  bottom-enhancing unit that includes French horn, bassoon, and bass clarinet. The  finale is a partial reading of the neglected extended masterpiece "The Black  Saint and the Sinner Lady" (1963). On the '60s-derived song "Invisible Lady,"  genre-hopping rockerElvis Costellosings his  own lyrics. Costello is less than a natural in this setting, both as a vocalist  and as an overly poetic wordsmith. The orchestra, however, which makes its  recorded debut, breathes burnished truth into songs such as "Eclipse." The  17-minute "Black Saint" excerpt, arranged as are many of the songs by trusty  Mingus veteran Sy Johnson, is no substitute for the gripping original, but  handles the ebbs, flows, and episodic shifts with élan. As a whole,Tonight  at Noonsucceeds in casting appreciative light on Mingus's  melodic-reflective side while managing to incorporate the earthiness that so strongly  defined him.--Lloyd Sachs