Exploring vintage jazz vinyl with a focus on label and pressing details, discographical information and critical musings on the music found within the grooves.
A beautiful 1963 album by the classic Coltrane Quartet that has garnered some controversy over the years, but in the end has proven to be an essential part of his long and varied discography.
Read MoreThe jazz world lost one of the last living legends from the golden age of jazz when Bobby Hutcherson left us at the age of 75. Here are four live performances that I've been going back to this past week as a reminder of what a giant talent Hutcherson was as both a composer and a performer.
Read MoreBy the time Enlightenment was released in 1973, McCoy Tyner had already been all over the jazz scene in the 1960s, before making the move to Milestone records 1972. With Milestone he would release a string of outstanding records, the earliest of which (including Enlightenment) would play an important part in cementing his status as one of the giants of jazz piano.
Read MoreNewcomers and casual jazz fans will associate McCoy Tyner only with John Coltrane's classic 1960's quartet, but his discography is full of some phenomenal albums he made as a leader throughout the 1960's and 1970's. Live At Newport is no exception, it's a stimulating performance with Tyner and company firing on all cylinders at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1963. Three of the tracks are performed by a quintet (with Clark Terry and the now obscure Charlie Mariano on the brass) and two feature just the trio of Tyner, Bob Cranshaw and Mickey Roker.
Read MoreI always find myself conflicted about late-period Coltrane recordings: are they pure brilliance or just a whole bunch of noise? Meditations finds a middle ground for Trane's forays into the free jazz that he was beginning to explore towards the end of 1965. What makes it accessible to the less adventurous listener are the passages of quiet and relaxed beauty.
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