Customer Reviews

Bags & Trane

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This 1960 release does both Coltrane and vibist Jackson proud. Coltrane was considered at the time a "New Wave" proponent with his then-shocking "sheets of sound" vertical attack, while Jackson was a bebop mainstay. On "Bags and Trane" they sound utterly at ease with one another and produce some beautiful jazz.

At the core of the album is the obvious respect that the two musicians had for one another. Coltrane attacks more aggressively, but his hard-edged sound proves a perfect foil for Jackson's mellow, ringing vibes. On "The Night We Called It a Day," you can hear how carefully they listened to each other, one solo blending into the other without costing the tune a beat.

Pianist Hank Jones, Jackson's Modern Jazz Quartet bandmate drummer Connie Kay and longtime Trane collaborator bassist Paul Chambers solidify the album. Jones, in particular, plays a wonderfully understated piano, relying largely on space and single notes to deepen the contrast with Trane's dense attack.

The CD adds tunes originally found on the vinyl release "The Coltrane Legacy," and the new material is a plus. The ballad "Stairway to the Stars" offers a particularly poignant turn by Coltrane, who isn't afraid to show his emotion, and "Centerpiece" is a great mellow blues.

This album will be rewarding to fans of Coltrane and Jackson alike. Best of all, if you're a fan of both (like me), you'll get a double dose from two great jazz musicians who showed how much they respected one another by listening to every musical word the other had to say.

With all the press and discussion that surrounds the album immediately following this one, GIANT STEPS, this cd is all too often overlooked. Big mistake! This is one of my favorite cd's from Coltrane's time with the Atlantic label. I noticed in the previous reviews that a few people referred to Coltrane's sound and style as "harsh" or "attacking". That caught me off guard, I've never considered him to sound harsh on this at all. I could understand people thinking that way about some of his late-period playing but on this cd his playing flows like liquid silk. So many people think of Coltrane only as a harmonic genius but listening to this cd it is impossible to deny his total brilliance and mastery of rhythm. Quite simply, no one felt the pulse of a tune the way Coltrane did. This is not the scouring, searching, peeling away the layers of self to find redemption Coltrane of later years (a Coltrane which I myself love, but some people hate), this is Coltrane in a straight-ahead format, turning phrases inside out and back around into themselves, and doing it with incredible tenor tone. I love the sonic quality of this recording, Coltranes tone is just beyond words on this cd.

For sheer beauty and swinging mastery of melodic improvisation it almost doesn't get any better than what Coltrane does here on tunes like Be-Bop, Bags & Trane, Stairway To The Stars, etc...

And no, I am not forgetting about the rest of the band. Paul Chambers is brilliant on this cd. Milt also shows what he was made of on this cd, and he was made of some very fine stuff. What someone thinks of this cd overall may well depend on what they think of the vibraphone. If you don't like vibraphone then you may wish Milt Jackson wasn't on this, but if you do like it then this really is a classic recording. And quite honestly, if you're just a Coltrane fan this cd is still completely worth it even if you hate the vibraphone. I think this cd has, without a doubt, some of Coltrane's most incredible playing of the 1950's.

This is a very nice disc. Milt Jackson on Vibraphone calls for some funky type of riffs that seem to crescendo once or twice per solo. What is nice is that usually it will be Coltrane and Jackson back to back, leaving each other a lot of room to do individual solos, and then they will come in together very triumphantly. "Stairway to the Stars," the first track in the disc (but not on the originally LP release) is a very nice, mellow track which is perfect for a nice dinner.

I do recommend, however, that rather than buying this album you purchase "The Heavyweight Champion: John Coltrane, The Complete Atlantic Recordings." This 7-CD set may be a little pricy but you get all 10 of Coltranes Atlantic recordings plus a disc of all of the outtakes. The Bags & Trane sessions are particularly emphasized on the box set, so you get much more than you would just buying "Bags and Trane."

Enjoy

I passed on the original LP, but this reissue with twenty additional minutes of music by, on the one hand, the quintessential jazz blues player and, on the other, the most influential jazz innovator of the past half century, led me to reconsider my decision of 40 years ago (I was poorer then, too).

Listening to the album again, I'm finding that the source of my reservations at the time are now a source of pleasure. Not only are the primary players conscious of their different musical styles, but each brings a "second" for support: Coltrane has Paul Chambers, his colleague from the Miles Davis Group, and Jackson has Connie Kay, his associate from the the Modern Jazz Quartet. The result is a rhythm section that is never quite in synch. Paul lays down as powerful, unflappable a bass line as I've ever heard from him while Connie Kay reminds me of a trailer or dinghy faithfully in tow. Coltrane leans forward on the time, keeping up with his man, while Bags waits on the beat, as though listening to his own accomplice.

Is there a "winner"? The advantage is definitely Coltrane-Chambers. On the other hand, Hank Jones is so effective in bridging the gap, playing in the "middle" of the beat, that the whole thing works. In fact, the undeniable tension in the rhythm along with the players figuring out ways to deal with it create a whole new layer of musical interest.

I'm really inclined to four and a half stars, but the principals, not to mention the performance of the roadbuilder, Paul Chambers, forbid it.

Milt Jackson and John Coltrane complement one another marvelously in this collection of quintet recordings from 1959. The rhythm trio features Hank Jones on piano, assisted by Paul Chambers on bass and Connie Kay on drums. Jackson is here in familiar territory with a group that isn't far from MJQ. The differences are Coltrane and the interplay. The disc commences with a bonus track, the standard "Stairway to the Stars." Here is Coltrane in his best ballad form, excercising restraint and what is as close to lyrical as he gets. Milt Jackson spins his filligrees, nets of sound, as usual, and Coltrane answers seemingly from a distance, with clarity. The next track is Bags' "The Late Late Blues," a simple theme that Coltrane explores in his legendary sheets of sound. His clarity is such that you can hear the patterns evolve within the sheet. Paul Chambers' bass is prominent both in its steady line and in solo. "Bags & Trane" begins with a simple call and response. Bags' intricate solo is followed by Trane's brief statement, again exemplary of his improvisational skill. Hank Jones piano solo proceeds Paul Chambers' arco solo followed by traded breaks by Bags and Trane. "Three Little Words" is a mid-tempo tune that cooks. It begins with Bags' statement of the theme and then Trane establishes the groundwork for his solo and goes to the invention--arabesque variations built on the theme. Trane's solo here is exemplary--worth studying for insights into his method. Jackson's extended solo illustrates his inventiveness and Hank Jones continues into traded fours between Trane, Connie Kay, and Bags. Which leads one to extoll Connie Kay's gifts. Here is a consumate professional at work. He is delicate and tasteful when necessary, but he swings explosively as well. "The Night We Called It a Day" is a quiet ballad, but Jackson's lyrical solo and Coltrane's lengthy invention are masterful. Again, Trane's solo is an object lesson in his method. But these guys can blow the roof off. That's apparent in Dizzy Gillespie's "Be-Bop" where Bags starts off at breakneck speed and Coltrane blows hard and quick--probably the only tenor player aside from Johnny Griffin who blows as hard and fast as Bird with coherence. This is sheets of sound--a style that can become "cerebral" that euphimism for boring when you want your jazz visceral. The Jones solo arrives apace with Chambers and Kay cooking in the background down to Bags and Trane trading breaks. Cerebral doesn't happen here. A hard bop classic. The remaining tracks, "Blues Legacy" and "Centerpiece" follow suit. The first is a simple call and response blues riff with some gigantic solos. The last is an old favorite of mine, but despite Bags' wonderful solo it doesn't have Annie Ross, alas. Nevertheless, this is a very good CD. Highly recommended, too.

I went to the store to buy new speakers and this was one of the CD's I brought. The sound of Bag's Vibes and Trane's horn set the mark for quaility jazz. They trade solos so smoothy that they seem like the same thoughts just different instruments. Coltran's playing here is different Than his other stuff like African Brass or A love Supreme. It is straight foward and very smooth. Of course Milt's playing is top notch as well. Stairway to the Stars and Bags and Trane steal the show. This is a tremendous CD. It is in the Top five of the Fifty Jazz CD's I own

This collaboration has been a favorite of mine since I discovered the vinyl in high school 40 years ago. The soul of jazz, and in particular, of these two splendid musicians, is laid bare. The "sheets of sound," mentioned by another reviewer, are used sparingly as Coltrane uses his horn economically to give us only the notes that are needed. Even the boistrous "Bebop" leaves us wanting for some jazz archaeologist to dig up a "first take" that might last 15 minutes longer. Milt Jackson can make you laugh, cry, or just plain get hypnotized with the magic of the mallets. No more words needed. Get this CD!

An alternate name to define this CD could be collaboration. Two giants of the jazz field stepped into the studio to record something that resulted in sheer straight ahead jazz beauty. Uptempo call and response, executed with such precision and total harmony that it is hard to differenciate where one begins and one ends as they both articulate on instruments seemingly incompatible yet bound by melody. The gentle side of Coltrane meshes perfectly with the soft sounds of vibes as played by Milt Jackson. "Bags and Trane" features a tightly interlocked musical piece that includes the thumping bass of Paul Chambers that makes it hard to sit still. "Three Little Words" features a rich introdutory solo by Coltrane that is quickly forgotten as Jackson takes over where Trane left off. This continues for seven minutes of bliss as each band member takes a turn adding an element of his own "voice", but it is Coltrane and Jackson who showcase their talents most. Bluesy and meloncholy at times, as in "The Night We Called it a Day" both Coltrane and Jackson share the limelight in a subdued manner, reflective and forward at once, it is the perfect title for this song. The Dizzy Gillespie composition,"Be-Bop," is at such a frantic, almost frenetic pace, that although it is old it fits perfectly with the fast paced lives and times we live in today. The three bonus tracks add an addional 20 minutes to the original Atlantic recording. Of the three I personally prefer "Centerpiece" as it features Jackson playing in complete harmony to the point where one has to listen very carefully to hear the vibes when they are playing simultaneously. A straight ahead jazz number this is the epitome of a classic jazz song, easy going yet swinging enough to make one bop his head to the rhythm. "Blues Legacy' shows yet another side of Coltrane as he plays in a more rhythm and blues style that sounds more like Ace Cannon or possibly Maceo Parker. The rootsy side of Coltrane eventually gives way to the unmistakeable sound of his that has often been immitated. It is a classic number with rhythm and blues roots. In order to get a good profile of Coltrane this is an essential recording to see a facet of him rarely seen. By no means am I giving less credit to one of the founding members of the Modern Jazz Quartet, remember I started by saying this could have been aptly titled colloboration. Two giants of their instruments creating one sound, jazz at it's finest. Add this to your collection, file it under still cool.

There is some very nice interplay between Jackson and Coltrane on this album. It's the best I've ever heard Milt sound, as a matter of fact. I don't think he quite keeps up with Coltrane, but who can? "Three Little Words" is a Coltrane soling clinic, and "Blues Legacy" is a marvelously arranged and executed song as well. "Stairway to the Stars" litls along dreamily, the way a song with that title should. As mentioned, Jackson has never, in my opinion, sounded so fluid and confident and uninhibited. A great CD to add to any serious collection.

An unusual album from Milt Jackson and John Coltrane who you wouldn't expect to be playing with each other. Recorded in 1959 this was made just before 'Giant Steps', but its completely different from that classic album.

With Jackson alongside Coltrane the whole album takes a much more bluesy turn especially when Jackson is playing, and indeed there a couple of blues tracks on the album. So when you hear Jackson on these tracks its the same Jackson who played with the MJQ and made a number of great albums with Oscar Peterson. However, Coltrane was pushing the boundaries at this stage, so the contrast between his solo on say 'The Late Late Blues' and Jackson's is quite dramatic.

The supporting cast is, as you would expect top notch. On drums is Connie Kay, Bass is Paul Chambers and Piano is Hank Jones.

My favourite track is 'Be-Bop', a Dizzy Gillespie tune taken at a frightningly fast tempo, on which Jackson swings through his solo with amazing panache and Coltrane (obviously in practise for things to come) just blasts through the chord sequence like it was a 12 bar (which its not).

A great album that improves everytime you listen to it.