I’m going to buy four John Coltrane albums
Two classic, two experimental...
A Love Supreme
Blue Train
Ascension
Sun Ship
Thoughts, criticism, alternatives please.
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I've never really
enjoyed A Love Supreme, but it is mega acclaimed. Blue Train is awesome. Not familiar with the other two.
Lush Life is a pretty great example of his earlier, mellow stuff.
Africa/ Brass is his best.
its good...but not his best.
I got 'Ballads' for my birthday last year.
It's very beautiful and technical and I'd recommend it.
Giant Steps is his best album.
It's got everything on it. Get that one instead of Sun Ship. Cheers.
'Steps and Blue Train are the two I would give to anyone regardless of taste
Classic Albums.
^ rubbish. ignore....buy sunship
I'd second ballads
Bar the title track, Blue Train isn't as great as it's reputation suggests. I'd go for either Ballads or Giant Steps.
For late-period Coltrane, the live records are often better than the studio. Live in Antibes (from 1965) has a good cross-section of material, as well as a quartet version of Ascension (Blue Valse).
Sun Ship is decent, but if you're only getting 4 Coltrane albums, it's far from essential. Interstellar Regions (a duo with Rashied Ali) is far better if you're after the really free stuff.
A Love Supreme is a good call.
So my pick of 4 would be:
Giant Steps (or Ballads)
A Love Supreme
Live at Antibes 1965
Interstellar Space
Thanks for this
I will check out that live album. I tend to be naturally prejudiced against live albums in any genre (unwarranted I'm sure.)
why the heck are you prejudiced against live albums???!!!!
Jazz live albums seem to buck the trend
improvisational qualities etc
Yeah I'm a studio stan for sure and
generally shy away from live albums. Jazz is def a different story though and often the live versions are better.
Lush Life is so good. SOOOO good.
I've got a few Coltrane albums mainly because he looks SO FUCKING COOL on the covers.
I just bought "...Plays the Blues" at the weekend, because it was £3 in HMV.
Not really a suggestion, I just wanted to join in.
Africa/Brass is essential
As is Coltrane with the Quartet (1962)
i would also get..
live at birdland
crescent
living space
first meditations
interstellar regions
the man was a BEAST...as was tyner, mccoy, garrison...
and of course, ascension
fucking jazz, how do they work?
just waffle on and hope for the best.......and have an amazing drummer
seriously though
i like jazz, i have a reasonable grasp on music theory and stuff; no idea what's going on most of the time.
oh so you're in ionian mode, that don't impress amee much. actually it does.
shit ionian mode is the least impressive mode isn't it
see i really don't know what's happening
i think ionian's just the normal one isn't it
regardless aye, I have no idea what's going on either
For 'experimental' get
Interstellar Space and The Olatunji Concert. Both really intense but actually very satisfying. The latter is his second to last ever show I think.
Apart from the title track I don't think Blue Train is really regarded as a classic by Coltrane afficionados, it just happens to be on Blue Note with a cool name and famous cover. Get My Favourite Things and Giant Steps.
am i the only one here that doesnt rate giant steps?
sonics on columbias jazz records aint that great either.
And Love Supreme and Africa Brass
And Live at the Village Vanguard. You can't just get 4 Coltrane albums.
I have most of what he put out on Atlantic and Impulse. That's a shedload of albums. Staggering to think it all came out over 8 years, with so much progression over such a short time.
the hendrix of sax
I'd have to say
The Best of John Coltrane
My only criticism...
...is that you're only buying 4 records!
Why four?
I'd say Giant Steps, A Love Supreme, Thelonious Monk Quartet with John Coltrane at Carnegie Hall, and something "out there", your choice.
I don't want to overwhelm myself
four is enough to get into properly for now considering I don't have infinite amounts of money or time!
don't be a pussy!
get meditations!
my favourite things, giant steps, love supreme, interstellar space .....
but also definitely get the albums he did with Johnny Hartman and Thelonious Monk.
A Love Supreme
Giant Steps
John Coltrane and Duke Ellington
Crescent
My Favourite Things
The John Coltrane Quartet Plays
Would my favourites, in that order and theynall pretty much essential in my view. They probably all sit somewhere around the middle in the continuum of his work from relatively accessible to really hard going (although the album with Ellington is fairly reined in).
If you want a really accessible one go for Ballads, if you want a challenging one go for Acsension or Sun Ship or Meditations.
Basically there is loads of it, and almost all of it is worthwhile.