John Coltrane Coltrane Plays The Blues

John Coltrane - Coltrane Plays the Blues (1960) {Japan MiniLP, WPCR-25105}
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© 2006 Atlantic / Warner Japan | WPCR-25105
Japan / Post Bop / Modal Music / Saxophone

One of THE great jazz quartets of all time: Coltrane (tenor & soprano), McCoy Tyner (piano), the earth-shaking Elvin Jones (drums) and Steve Davis (bass, though 'Trane's band would most often feature Jimmy Garrison and sometimes Reggie Workman), playing a blues-inspired program of originals. This band had an empathy shared by only the best bands in jazz: the Brubeck and Miles Davis groups, the Modern Jazz Quartet–and it shows here, with warmth, confidence, economy and relaxed interplay.

Jazz is often at its best when musicians come to a live performance without preplanning a set, which is the case when David Liebman recorded this trio set at a Belgium club called De Singer in 2008. With the strong support of bassist Marius Beets and drummer Eric Ineke, Liebman tackles five blues either written or recorded by John Coltrane, starting with a breezy, playful version of Miles Davis' "All Blues" that swings like mad, with the soprano saxophonist making great use of space and taking the piece far beyond its usual horizon. Liebman's free-ranging exploration of Coltrane's infrequently recorded "Village Blues" is a welcome addition to his discography, as the leader shows a bit of the master's influence in his powerful, avant-gardish soprano solo…

Tenor great Coleman Hawkins was usually bored with the blues, at least until the period covered by this CD sampler. A master at deciphering complex chord changes, Hawkins found the blues to be overly simple but around 1957 (after 35 years of major league activity) he began to explore the blues more seriously, at least on an occasional basis. This CD has nine performances from as many sessions. The music is consistently excellent (particularly "Juicy Fruit," the lengthy "Blues For Tomorrow" which also features John Coltrane, "Stealin' The Bean" with trumpeter Charlie Shavers and a pair of collaborations with fellow tenor Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis), but it is recommended that listeners (beginners and experts alike) instead acquire the complete sessions, since the blues were only a small aspect of the Coleman Hawkins story.

Bobby Hutcherson - Wise One (2009) {Kind Of Blue KOB 10034}
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© 2009 Kind of Blue / Recording Arts SA | KOB 10034
Jazz / Post-Bop / Vibes

Slow-building and soulful vibes from Bobby Hutcherson – working here in set of tracks with a heavy influence from John Coltrane – including some key classics from the Coltrane songbook, plus a few standards that have had famous readings by The Great One! Hutcherson's vibes ring out with a sense of majesty that we don't remember before – carried along by some great work from the rest of the group – Anthony Wilson on guitar, Joe Gilman on piano, Glenn Richman on bass, and Eddie Marshall on drums – players who hit a sweet modal groove on some of the best numbers, with a quality that almost takes us back to some of our favorite Hutcherson moments of the 70s. Titles include "Wise One", "Like Sonny", "Equinox", "Spiritual", "Dear Lord", "All Or Nothing At All", "Nancy", and "Aisha".