Things Are Getting Better

This article is about the album by Cannonball Adderley and Milt Jackson. For the album by Eddie Jefferson, see Things Are Getting Better (Eddie Jefferson album).

Things Are Getting Better is the 11th album by jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley, and his second release on the Riverside label, featuring performances with Milt Jackson, Wynton Kelly, Percy Heath and Art Blakey.^[2] Recorded in October 1958, the album was released in early 1959.

Things Are Getting Better
Studio album by Cannonball Adderley With Milt Jackson
Released	February 1959[1]
Recorded	October 28, 1958
Studio	Reeves Sound (New York City)
Genre	Jazz
Length	42:51 original LP
Label	Riverside RLP 12-286
Producer	Orrin Keepnews
Cannonball Adderley chronology
Jump for Joy (1958) Things Are Getting Better (1959) Blue Spring (1959)

Reception

The AllMusic review by Lindsay Planer awarded the album 4 stars and states: "This disc can be recommended without hesitation to all manner of jazz enthusiast, as it quite literally offers something for every taste."^[3] The Penguin Guide to Jazz awarded the album 3½ stars, stating: "There is marvellous sparring with Milt Jackson on Things are Getting Better and with Kelly, Heath and Blakey also in great form."^[4] PopMatters journalist Neil Kelly wrote: "In essence, Things Are Getting Better aims to please everyone while providing those personal flourishes that makes good jazz great."^[5]

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[3]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz	[4]
PopMatters	[5]

Track listing

All compositions by Julian "Cannonball" Adderley except as indicated

1. "Blues Oriental" (Milt Jackson) - 5:05
2. "Things Are Getting Better" - 7:16
3. "Serves Me Right" [Take 5] (Buddy Johnson) - 4:51
4. "Serves Me Right" [Alternate Take 4] - 4:38 Bonus track on CD reissue
5. "Groovin' High" (Dizzy Gillespie) - 5:24
6. "The Sidewalks of New York" [Take 5] (James W. Blake, Charles B. Lawlor) - 7:01
7. "The Sidewalks of New York" [Alternate Take 4] - 5:16 Bonus track on CD reissue
8. "Sounds for Sid" - 6:29
9. "Just One of Those Things" (Cole Porter) - 6:45

Personnel

• Cannonball Adderley - alto saxophone
• Milt Jackson - vibes
• Wynton Kelly - piano
• Percy Heath - bass
• Art Blakey - drums

References

1. Billboard Feb 23, 1959
2. Cannonball Adderley discography accessed 19 October 2009.
3. Planer, L. AllMusic Review, accessed 19 October 2009.
4. Cook, Richard; Brian Morton (2006) [1992]. The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings. The Penguin Guide to Jazz (8th ed.). London: Penguin. pp. 9. ISBN 978-0-141-02327-4.
5. Kelly, Neil (14 November 2013). "Cannonball Adderley with Milt Jackson: Things Are Getting Better". PopMatters.