Charles Mingus's finest recordings of his later period, Changes One and Changes Two, were recorded on 27, 28, and 30 December 1974 at Atlantic Studios in New York City. Along with its companion volume, the present album is one of the great sessions from one of the best working bands of the 1970s and was regarded as such by Mingus himself who has stated "They're among the best records I've made."  Starting with the spirited "Free Cell Block F, 'Tis Nazi U.S.A," this volume also includes the vocal version of "Duke Ellington's Sound of Love" with guest singer (and acquired taste) Jackie Paris, a remake of the classic Mingus composition "Orange Was the Color of Her Dress, Then Silk Blue," Jack Walrath's "Black Bats and Poles," and Sy Johnson's "For Harry Carney." The challenging repertoire from these December 1974 dates sustained the Jazz Workshop for several years; these are the definitive performances. In an interview with Nat Hentoff, Mingus attributed the success of the recording to the fact that "this band has been together longer than most of the bands I've had." Except for trumpeter Jack Walrath. who had been with Mingus about six months at the time of this recording, the rest of the musicians had been together for some two years. Considering the way Mingus shapes his compositions and his players, that lengthy a period of collective communion adds a further, deeper dimension to the music.