Charles Mingus was a passionate and desperate icon for the mid - 20th century. His career was as disjointed and incoherent as his music was consistent in its ability to show us the chaos of the world, in all its cruelty and beauty. This 4 CD set focuses on his recordings made between 1956 and 1960 a key period in his career that spawned the legendary albums Pithecanthropus Erectus, The Clown, Tijuana Moods ("the best record I ever made"), Blues And Roots, Mingus Ah Um, Mingus Dynasty and Charles Mingus Presents Charles Mingus, selections from each are included here. The set comes with a 32 page booklet with notes by acknowledged expert Joop Visser, discographical information and rare photos.