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HISTORICALby Ted PankenMixed Monterey MomentsIf a unifying theme can be found in the secondbatch of archival releases by MontereyJazz Festival Records, it is the stylisticdiversity that has marked fest’s programmingsince 1958. Two items—50 Years OfDave Brubeck: Live At The Monterey JazzFestival 1958–2007 (MJFR 30680; 70:24)AAAA and The Best Of Cal Tjader: Live AtThe Monterey Jazz Festival, 1958–1980(MJFR 30701; 69:25) AA 1 /2—reach back tothe festival’s beginnings.Brubeck chose his 10 tracks, all but twoof them performances by his three primaryquartets (Paul Desmond–Gene Wright–JoeMorello; Gerry Mulligan–Jack Six–AlanDawson; and Bobby Militello–MichaelMoore–Randy Jones), and sequencedthem to give the album the feel of a wellpacedconcert. “Sermon On The Mount”and “Jumping Bean,” both with Mulliganand Dawson, are welcome additions toBrubeck’s discography, as is the 1985 performanceof “Tritonis,” on which Brubeckuncorks a fascinating solo, blending hispercussive blues feel, earthy and communicative,with highbrow counterpoint andharmony.Given the option, Tjader might wellhave declined to release his own 1958 concert,comprising long, pedestrian solos byBuddy DeFranco, Vince Guaraldi and theleader over the plodding swing beats of AlMcKibbon and Willie Bobo on “Summertime”and “Now’s The Time,” followed bya pair of livelier drum chants by MongoSantamaria and Bobo (now on timbales)more suited to an African dance class thana concert stage. More evolved is a rousing1972 workout on “Manteca” with composerDizzy Gillespie and Clark Terry on trumpets,Armando Peraza on congas andMichael Wolff on electric piano. So is a tothe-outer-partials1974 performance ofSantamaria’s “Afro-Blue” propelled by thecomposer’s spirit-raising beats, but acheesy 1980 reading of “Speak Low”recalls the doldrums.Gillespie is sorely missed on Art BlakeyAnd The Giants Of Jazz: Live At The 1972Monterey Jazz Festival (MJFR 30882;47:41) AA 1 /2, on which Terry and RoyEldridge replace the trumpet icon in thebebop “super-group” with TheloniousMonk, Sonny Stitt, Kai Winding, McKibbonand Blakey. It’s a disjointed performance—Monk sounds bored and unfocused,Eldridge squeals a lot, Terry plays technically,Stitt takes long, formulaic solos andBlakey is restrained and polite.More like it is Tito Puente & HisOrchestra: Live At The 1977 MontereyJazz Festival (MJFR 30700; 65:43) AAA 1 /2,on which Puente eschews the salsa trappingsof many of his ’70s recordings on aset of hardcore, acoustic New York Latinjazz. Of course, Puente plays his hits—including “Oye Como Va,” “Babarabatiri,”“Delirio” and “El Rey Del Timbal.” Thesoloists include flautist Mauricio Smith,trombonist Richard Pullin, tenorist AlbertShikaly, vibraphonist Tjader on “Piccadillo”and the leader, who attacks the timbalesand vibes with old-school energyand charisma.Such energies suffuse Jimmy WitherspoonFeaturing Robben Ford: Live At The1972 Monterey Jazz Festival (MJFR 30638,59:30) AAA, a set on which the blues masterfeatures 20-year-old wunderkind Fordon electric guitar. Concluding the album,Witherspoon, circa 1958, sings “When IBeen Drinkin’” with backup from Eldridge,Coleman Hawkins, Ben Webster, WoodyHerman and Earl Hines.The creme de la creme of the batch isShirley Horn: Live At The 1994 MontereyJazz Festival (MJFR 30313, 47:26) AAAA 1 /2,on which the diva offers a textbookdemonstration on how to capture an arenacrowd’s attention without, to use musicianparlance, “doing house.” Like role modelsBillie Holiday and Carmen McRae, Hornfound ways to phrase and inflect that cutstraight to the heart of the lyrics. It’s asstrong as anything in her discography. DBOrdering info: mjfrecords.org