Customer Reviews

COLTRANE The Classic Quartet: Complete Impulse! Studio Recordings

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The music on this 8 CD set is beyond praise, containing all of the material that Coltrane recorded in the studio for Impulse, though not anything that included any additional horns. The Dolphy cuts, which were mostly live, are not included, and neither are the albums with Ellington or Johnny Hartman. But otherwise, this is representative of Coltrane at his most influential. Included are the complete sessions that would become the albums; Coltrane, Ballads, Cresent, A Love Supreme, The John Coltrane Quartet Plays, Transition, Sunship, Infinity, and First Meditations, along with cuts from some of the other albums that are primarily live, such as Impressions or Live at Birdland. This music can arguably be considered the most important music of the last 40 years, as the Classic Quartet probably had more influence on the course of jazz and rock than any other single group in the history of American popular music.

So the crux of the review here is on packaging. The CDs are presented in a bound, book-style case with an extensive liner booklet. The whole is then encased in a rather ugly metal framing. Gone are any references to the distinctive original artwork of the Impulse albums. However, the book style case does have the advantage of keeping the individual CDs together, making it harder to loose them.

The cuts themselves are not presented as albums but rather in the order they originally were recorded. This has the advantage of allowing you to hear the story of the group's growth, from the first rather conservative albums Trane made to the brink of his late style on albums like Sunship. Fortunately, both the suites A Love Supreme and First Meditations were recorded in sequence and are presented as such, but to experience any of the other albums as they were first released requires extensive reprogramming. While this is not personally a big issue to me, it may be to some listeners and so I give you fair warning.

The final disc in the set consists of alternative takes of many of the studio sessions. I do appreciate that fact that the producers put these alternative takes on a separate CD rather than interspersing them with the other material. These takes are interesting for documentary purposes, but there are solid reasons why they were rejected and I find that I don't listen to this disc as much as I do the others in the series.

If you already have most of the Impulse albums of Trane, this is a boxed set you should pass over. There's nothing new here that you wouldn't have in some other form, and the alternate takes are certainly not worth the price. But if you only have a few of Trane's classic Impulse albums, then this is probably a good buy for you, along with the Complete Live at the Village Vanguard sessions. Between the two, you get a wonderful portrait of this seminal band. But keep in mind these two caveats; you don't get the original artwork and liner notes with this set, and you need to do extensive programming to recreate the albums as they were released (and in fact, with some of the mixed live and studio albums, you need both boxed sets to do this). I give the set five stars because of the music. I cannot in good conscience do less...but if the packaging is a big issue to you, you might take away a star and a half for that.

Hard to add much to the comments [...] concerning the beauties of the music contained in this set. I do feel somewhat ambivalent about this particular reissue, however; the casual listener may still find it more satisfying to possess the original albums in their current remastered CD format.

This set is physically quite beautiful: a silver metal slipcover encloses a leatherbound folder that contains eight CDs in pockets and a perfectbound booklet whose primary colour is silver. But this repackaging displaces a number of important features of the original albums. The truly inexcusable thing here is the suppression of the original liner notes, in particular that to _A Love Supreme_. The notes to that album were written by Coltrane himself, fittingly for his most personal and ambitious album to date: & they included a deeply felt free-verse prayer he wrote which is given musical utterance in the final section of the piece. (Literally so: you can follow along with the text as you listen to the music, each note corresponding to a word.) & the evocative covers of the original albums are nowhere reproduced in the booklet. It's bizarre that the organizers of this boxed set had no difficulties in deleting all such historically important material from this reissue, while meanwhile completely rearranging the tracks in order of their being set down in the studio, as is the current pedantic fashion in reissues. The result of this reordering is to damage the integrity of albums (& again, it was _Coltrane_ who decided on the running order of the albums). Even the author of the liner notes to this set, Bob Blumenthal, admits that one album here, _Ballads_, is "a beautiful album-length statement" & that "Generations of listeners have enjoyed the original LP order". So why mess with it, given that rearranging the tracks provides minimal insight into the sessions? The vapidly reverent tone of Blumenthal's booklet sits ill at ease with the lack of reverence for Coltrane's intentions & even for Coltrane's words. (Hard to believe Blumenthal won an award for the liner notes, which are bland & uninformative, though they have the occasional entertaining goof, as when he speaks of "the metabolic sweep of this eloquent performance". Very disappointing, given the superb notes by David Wild to the Vanguard set.)

Now, the music. The set basically splits into two phases: material from 1961-64 and a huge amount of material from 1965; the split comes almost exactly halfway through the set (on disc 3), between _A Love Supreme_ & _Plays_. The material on the first three or four discs is mostly very familiar, being some of the most famous recordings of Coltrane's career: _Ballads_, _Crescent_, _Coltrane_ & _A Love Supreme_ (plus the studio portions of _Live at Birdland_ & _Impressions_, & a few other odds & ends). Though Coltrane was as always exploring, the first few of these albums represent something of a temporary resting-point in his career: they are less exploratory than the 1961 Vanguard sessions, often keeping to a slow-to-medium groove & a lofty but impassioned tone that has finally left his furious "sheets of sound" approach way behind. _A Love Supreme_ is the turning-point, with its ambitious use of the suite form, & its programmatically wide emotional & musical range: while it has some of the wildest & fastest playing on the set up to this point, it concludes with "Psalm", a ballad which points the way to free-time exercises like "Dearly Beloved" in the future. After this point, the group changes direction, and despite Blumenthal's protestations in the liner notes it does indeed sound like the quartet becomes less & less unified as Coltrane increasingly looks for a new, freer music. There's an extraordinary amount of material from 1965 here, much of it unreleased until after Coltrane's death. Some of it is rather aimless modal exercises, some not even titled ("Untitled Original 90314" and "90320"). Sometimes Coltrane has the band essay "free" accompaniment during his solos, but Tyner reverts to conventional time playing & chords during his solos. Jones clearly isn't too comfortable playing in completely free time (see, for instance, "Sun Ship")--& indeed he never really got the hang of that style (cf. his often awkward attempt to revisit it on _Momentum Space_, a recent trio disc with Dewey Redman & Cecil Taylor). Nonetheless, there's much meat to be picked out of these sessions (which were released on albums like _Transition_, _Living Space_ & _Sun Ship_), like the fine "Vigil" (a sax-drums duo) or the gentle "Dearly Beloved", or the superb flat-out performances (with Roy Haynes subbing for Jones) on "After the Crescent" and "One Down, One Up". The best album of the 1965 discs is the unjustly little-known _First Meditations_, a quartet performance of a suite better known in the version later recorded with Pharoah Sanders & Rashied Ali added to the basic group. This version includes "Joy", which was dropped from the suite for the sextet version (& replaced with the incredibly harsh "The Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost"); it's extremely welcome to have here. Coltrane's music perhaps too rarely expressed sheer "joy": it is a music of great radiance & nobility, but its devotion to the higher spiritual plane didn't have the celebratory, joyous whoop of Ayler's rather differently devotional music, for instance (see Ayler's Greenwich Village sessions), or the purely secular joy of Ornette Coleman. _First Meditations_ is thus all the more valuable for its emotional roundedness.

Lastly, I should comment on the final disc: this contains previously unreleased alternate takes & studio breakdowns. This is extremely welcome: the most valuable inclusions are fresh versions of "Crescent" & "Resolution" which are nearly as thrilling to listen to as the originals.

This set is basically an important scholarly document that because of financial exigencies has been packaged like a coffee-table book. Its real importance is in putting all this stuff in one place, in particular the more obscure 1965 material, & recovering some interesting alternate takes. Nonetheless, listeners would be well-advised to consider the reissues of the original albums as the best way to listen to the more "classic" albums on this set. Those who find "later" Coltrane hard going are also warned that this set has a fair bit of such material: they will likely find little after disc 3 to their taste...though they might benefit from some openmindedness.

In some ways it's almost silly to comment on the content of this set. Those who are Trane fans will understand immediately the import of this collection; those who are casual fans will likely not want to bear the expense of making the purchase. I found myself in a different area. I had nearly all of the material on vinyl. Since I'd played much of it heavily, this release was a welcome way to upgrade at one fell swoop. Despite my familiarity with the material, I found the package was very well put together.

I understand the criticism that live material from the Birdland and Village Vanguard lps are not included, but I think the criticism is invalid. First of all, the notes make clear up front that this is a release dedicated exlusively to the quartet of Trane, Tyner, Garrison and Jones, and those live recordings featured Roy Haynes on drums, in the first case, and Eric Dolphy on reeds in the second.

In addition, Impulse has released the Vanguard sessions in a multidisc set and points out that that session is an essential companion to this release.

The decision to arrange the tracks in chronological order bothers me not one whit, and this is where the preference of the individual listener comes particularly into play. I am so familiar with the original ordering of tracks and the tunes themselves that I find it informative to listen to the tunes in the order that they were conceived -- at least from a recording perspective.

The ordering, for me, is in fact one of the strongest features of the release. More than any other artist that I know of, Coltrane was driven by change. Hearing the tracks in chronological order offers a revealing insight into his creative process.

The key to approaching this set lies, in my opinion, in closely reading and following the fine liner notes provided by Bob Blumenthal and by the discography. Blumenthal offers insightful comments about the quartet and the tunes and also mentions programming changes the listener can make for comparisons or if he or she wants to listen to tracks in the order they were originally released.

As for the music, well, as I said, if you are a fan, you don't need me to tell you the richness that is contained within this set. To review the music would require more space than is permitted. If you are not prepared for more than eight hours of very intense, probing music, don't bother.

Still, for a revealing look at the complexity of Coltrane's approach, I recommend in particular discs 1, 2 and 5. The first two show his ability to handle ballads in the midst of exploring what were then the outer reaches of jazz. The fifth -- although this could be said of discs 6 and 7 as well -- demonstrate, for the listener willing to engage his journey, that the most challenging of sounds can be accessible for those willing to open their minds to new sounds.

Posting a "review" or "critique" of such music? Might as well toss off another review of Merton's Seven Storey Mountain, New Seeds or Asian Journal- and pat myself on the back for CONTRIBUTING something. (To quote Churchill : "slush, mush, and gush." ) But since I've already posted reviews of the Pablo LIVE TRANE set and Merton's INNER EXPERIENCE, you can call me a hypocrite if you want.

Still, I will mention that the transfers are stellar, and the content of this box is as complete as it could have been at the time of its release, in 1998. But since then, and in the wake of producer Bob Thiele's death, some additonal tape sources from his collection have come to light. If I am not mistaken, these include :

1) The tape masters of this Classic Quartet's very first studio date in December 1961, including four alternate takes of "Greensleeves", done "a la My Favorite Things". Sadly, the first-generation tape master of the best, Trane-chosen take (i.e., the one which was issued on 45 RPM in 1962) remains lost. This means that, for both this boxed set and the later, deluxe edition of BALLADS, a vinyl copy of the issued "45" had to be dubbed.

2) Additional takes from the 1962 COLTRANE and BALLADS sessions, including two relatively short, studio versions of "Impressions" and a newly discovered piece called "Not Yet".

3) A newly discovered tape source for A LOVE SUPREME (December 9, 1964). Until 2002, what we had been hearing was from a 3rd generation tape with added compression and equalization - not to mention a left channel flaw at the beginning of the third track. But a flawless, non-equalized, non-compressed tape source, only one generation down from the original master, was located in EMI's London vaults. (It had been sent there as the basis for British LP pressings.)

Yes, gentle reader, the first-generation tape masters for not only the preferred take of "Greensleeves", the original COLTRANE and CRESCENT albums, but even for A LOVE SUPREME - the album which not only changed countless lives but probably made Coltrane AND Impulse more moola than any other - were reportedly ERASED. (Whoever made that "executive decision" gets my vote for the ANNUAL 'HECKUVA JOB, BROWNIE' AWARD.)

Now, I am NOT one of those "original cover art" fanatics - with the exception of the unsurpassedly beautiful album covers which Alex Steinweiss created for Columbia Masterworks, in the late 1930s to early 50s. (He's still alive and kicking : God bless him.) And of course the unique 50s-60s, "post-Bauhaus" Blue Note covers of Reid Miles...But I have to agree with the other reviewers who find this set's metal packaging to be graceless and UGLY.

Even worse, the provided "notebook" sleeves tend to scuff the discs. (Upon purchasing this set, I immediately rescued the discs by placing them in seperate jewel boxes.) WHEN will you CD marketing people ever outgrow these "clever" absurdities? As if, for all the world, you were aiming a Heavy Metal boxed set at the early-to-mid-teen market? In a full-price historical re-issue, yet? Why should it be "asking too much" to demand packaging worthy of John Coltrane : something durable, "disc-safe," AND clean and simple?

"Classic Coltrane Quartet Completists" (look, Ma - alliteration) who own this set will also have to purchase the subsequent 2-CD deluxe editions of the COLTRANE and BALLADS albums. The new BALLADS tracks are not ABSOLUTELY essential Trane...I have to agree with the reviewer who wrote that seven alternate takes of "It's Easy To Remember" may be too much of a good thing. Not to mention that "Greensleves" works only so well, "a la My Favorite Things," to sit through five takes of it - in spite of the Dorian modality common to both tunes. But the new COLTRANE tracks ("Miles' Mode", "Tunji", "Not Yet", and those two short "Impressions") are obviously more "central" to the Coltrane Canon. For instance, the pristine drive and ELAN of the alternate take of "Miles' Mode", and almost unearthly "groove" which the Quartet reaches in "Not Yet" - captured in astoundingly visceral sound quality - must be heard to be believed. In any case, for completists who must have it ALL, it's out there.

A WARNING : Over 60 percent of this set is composed of the Classic Quartet's final - and highly prolific - sessions of February through September 1965. So if you just aren't into the post-LOVE SUPREME period, but you feel ready for a boxed set of Trane in which to "lose yourself," then you may want to go with the Pablo LIVE TRANE set (Euro concerts from 1961 to 1963)...Then, the Impulse discs : the deluxe edition of COLTRANE, LIVE AT BIRDLAND, CRESCENT and the latest transfer of A LOVE SUPREME. And if post-SUPREME Trane still scares you, then by all means, check out TRANSITION for perhaps the best and most lucid of the post-SUPREME works. (The February '65 tracks which made up the album immediatley following SUPREME - THE COLTRANE QUARTET PLAYS - are actually darker, more dense and harmonically "outside" than some of the work which came just afterwards.)

Granted : overall, the 1965 sessions are a challenge for even the most sympathetic listener (you wouldn't play these at a dinner party), but they give back far more to the listener than they initially demand...which is why I recommend TRANSITION. The "Suite" (June 10, 1965) is a kind of abbreviated, slightly wilder LOVE SUPREME, and for those who will brave it, "Vigil" (June 16, 1965), a duet for Trane and drummer Elvin Jones, is a safe gateway to the post-Quartet Trane (e.g., the February '67 INTERSTELLAR SPACE tracks). But I especially recommend the other two TRANSITION tracks as ESSENTIAL listening - even for those who "want no part of" post-SUPREME Trane :
(1) "Welcome" (June 10, 1965) is similar to the 1963 "After the Rain", but more serene. It strikes me (and many others) as a stretch of hard-won peace : a tranquil island, if you will, in the midst of an increasingly stormy tonal sea. By comparison, the gentler and better known "Dear Lord" (May 26, 1965) is less compelling.
(2) To me, perhaps more than any other single recording, the title-track "Transition" (June 10, 1965) is the very essence of Coltrane and of his Classic Quartet. Even before you get to the improvised solos, the D-Phrygian-mode "head" melody is in itself a ruthlessly honest, yet pleading, kind of exploration : bristling and burning, yet lucid and internally CLEANSING. Constantly pushing the "natural" boundries of the tenor sax, Trane aims for notes higher than the instrument is designed to produce - and sometimes gets there. This reaches a culmination from about 11:18 to 12:15, where Trane seems to be caught in a ferocious battle between his inner angels (normal register) and demons ("paranormal," higher register). Listen to this track a few times, each day, for a week, and 'psychotherapy' or 'anger management' may become redundant.

Still, those who truly care about Trane - whether or not they own this boxed set - WILL need to pick up the latest, closer-to-the-source remastering of A LOVE SUPREME (with or without the additional, live 1965 version). The improved tone quality and immediacy IS worth it.

For two essential reasons ( 1 - newly discovered tape masters and 2 - combersome, disc-scuffing packaging), this boxed set could stand a re-do. If it happened, I'd be the first to not only eat crow, but Give Thanks. (Meanwhile, the blue boy in the corner, holding his breath?...That'd be me.)

I've never heard this collection. But before you ignore my review, listen to this-- I own, individually, EVERY album in this collection, and many other Coltrane recordings as well. I'm telling you now, this box set is the Holy Grail to me-- if it had been released three years ago I could have saved a bundle of money by buying it. Here are ALL the essential Coltrane recordings. In my opinion, this was his only ensemble (excepting possibly the one with Paul Chambers) that actually sounded like a real band. These guys are the real article, the old masters of the new sound. Elvin Jones, especially, should get an honorary degree from every percussion school in the world for the drumming he did on this material. If you think of jazz as mellow, uptight, or boring, this is the collection that will change your mind. Trust me. You'll be glad you did.

I have had this for about 3 years now and I love the music and have a love-hate relationship for the box set itself. Note the following:

(1) Original artwork - missing
(2) Original liner notes - missing
(3) Poem to A Love Supreme - missing
(4) Order of albums released since his death (i.e. Sun Ship, Living Space) - missing
(5) Title track of Kula Se Mama - missing
(6) New remaster of A Love Supreme (which is incredible) - missing
(7) All tracks arranged in chronological order (rather than order as per albums) except the out-takes
(8) Serious examination of the contained work - missing
(9) I think that now there is only 2-3 tracks that are not available on the individual remastered albums.
(10) This actually does not contain all the studio recordings of the Quartet if you look at the additional tracks on remasters released in the past 3 years.

Personally, I think (1)-(3) is unforgivable. If you buy this, you are still going to want to go and get the new remaster of A Love Supreme.

This being said, this is a convenient way to get hold of a whole load of incredible music. It is a extremely hard-wearing box set also (unlike many). However, I think that with all the remasters around now, most of which contain material not present on this, if you can be patient, go through the albums individually. Alas, this box set is now hopelessly out-of-date.

I recently purchased the new John Coltrane box set, and have been taking it in at about 1 CD a day since. Today, I got to #6, which consists mostly of "Sun Ship." Every disc has been an adventure, a roller coaster ride, still sitting in my seat. This ain't smooth jazz, folks. But oh, the experience of it! The immensity! Just today I sat back and felt a force, a visceral energy that cried out for beauty amidst a world that seems far too preoccupied to pay much attention. Startling, raw, shocking, shimmering...yesyesyes, all of these and countless other emotions that don't make the jump from music to printed word...As a "jazz" (even better: MUSIC) lover and musician myself, I cannot think of a better antidote to this more and more material, scandal-seeking, empty-headed "culture" than taking an honest look at (and a listen to) what men like John Coltrane (& the rest of the band) did with their time. In one word? This release is IMPORTANT. Even if you "don't like Trane after 1960." Can anyone out there say that they "liked" Coltrane the first time they heard him? I can't, and most folks probably can't either, because as is the case with much art whose sheer intellectual and creative complexity demands our fullest of attentions, this music is something we need to immerse ourselves in. Yes, to "make time for." (Shocking, no?) Regardless of our initial reluctance. Only then will we begin to fathom the importance of Coltrane's search, as we understand that "Coltrane's search" is really "humanity's search" which in the end of course is OUR search. And I need'nt add that I'm not speaking in strict musical terms here. This is LIFE we're dealing with! Coltrane, like the best of artists, never stopped, and "jazz", like the best forms of art, never stopped either, contrary to those media darlings who believe that "jazz" stopped after 1957. I could not recommend this music, or this box set, any higher, and I sincerely hope that others don't forsake this music for whatever else might be more readily and easily "appreciated"...your reward for investing the time (and the $$$!) will be returned immeasurably.

...or so you may ask yourself when purchasing this Coltrane 'brick', but a few hours down the road and that indestructible metal band that envelopes the set will be the last thing on your mind.

I am sure a real music historian could say a lot about this set...more than the OK but not super informative book included. Let's start by saying that if you don't already own these albums, this is a fantastic purchase. Those of us who weren't either introduced to Coltrane through their parents -or- are not old enough to have collected it when the music was being made face a rather sizable problem, that being Coltrane's sizable output! Where does one begin? There are other Coltrane box sets, or you could just start randomly buying albums, but knowing a little about Coltrane and having heard A love supreme, First Meditation and a few other odds and ends on this set, I was well aware of the power of the Classic quartet. There is no real underestimating of how fantastic this unit was--and in this nearly nine hour collection we see them evolve from the more straight ahead tracks on Coltrane and Ballads (which are still not really so straight ahead) to the beginnings of free-jazz. There is really something here for everyone, but to my ears at least it is all incredible. Plus, there is something to say for being able to load your cd-deck with 9 hours of coltrane and just forget about it...who else are you going to trust your time too?

My only real complaint (the inexplicable metal sleeve isn't a complaint, just a point of perplexion) is that I think (as with many box sets) they could have documented the source of the material in a more straight-forward way. Buying it from a store you can't be sure just what you are getting, and even after you have it, you'll be digging through the book a while before you figure out just where all the tracks came from. In a few cases you can't tell at all. I understand Impulse's desire to treat this as a chronological document of studio recordings (tracks are not presented as they originally were released, but in the order recorded), but I'd still like to know what albums the set covers, and which tracks they correspond to.

Well despite that, this is a really solid set and Impulse! should be proud of it. Definitely something to pass down to the offspring and grand-offspring.

By the end of Disc 7, the listener is fully immersed in Coltrane's adaptation and revolution of free jazz. The second (or alternate) version of "Joy" from First Meditations comes at you without any warning, and once you're hit, you are momentarily transfixed by the elements which made the classic quartet truly Classic: awesome timing, unrelenting drive, power, control, and, of course, Coltrane's multiphonics, overblowing and rapid-fire solos. This contrasts with Coltrane's playing at the start of Disc 1 where the listener is greeted by the warm melody and smooth, harmonic interpretation of "Greensleeves."

These recordings are essential (if not this box set) and belong in every jazz and music lover's collection. I enjoy this collection because it collects every track recorded during these formative years, both for Coltrane and for the Impulse! Label, and organizes them in chronological recorded order. As you listen to this set, it is as if you are right there in the studio with Coltrane, session after session, listening to the artist create his masterpieces. However, on a similar note, by presenting all of the tracks in chronological order, the initial flow of the original albums is lost. I find that I enjoy the individual albums more than having all of Coltrane's work lumped together, chronological or not. There is a much more personal and emotionally responsive flavor in listening to each album separate from another.

This set is for completists and novices alike. Aside from Disc 8, appropriately titled "Works in Progress" which presents the listener with John Coltrane at work on polishing his art, there is nothing new here. This set is invaluable for encapsulating the string of albums released in 1965, beginning with The John Coltrane Quartet Plays and ending with the final quartet piece, First Meditations, which would be expanded in many ways, both sonically and artistically, within the coming year (but not featured here).

In fact, everything released here can be found on the previously released albums: Coltrane, Ballads, Live At Birland, A Love Supreme, Crescent, The John Coltrane Quartet Plays, Dear Old Stockholm, Living Space, Transition, Sun Ship, and First Meditations (plus some material from Infinity, which is extremely difficult to find). In fact, Impulse! has recently begun releasing the individual albums (such as Coltrane and Ballads) in Deluxe Edition 2-CD collections with supplementary material from the original sessions. And the Deluxe Edition of A Love Supreme, with the extended live version, is not to be missed. Suffice it to say, then, this set truly is not "The Complete Recordings."

It goes without much implication that this truly is John Coltrane, one of the twentieth century's musical geniuses, and without Coltrane, much of popular music would not be quite the same. Even during his time, during the 1960s, several future giants, such as Jimi Hendrix, Sly Stone, and Jerry Garcia, would boast that it was John Coltrane who inspired them to play music in the manner they did. And Coltrane's music is not to be missed. If you don't invest into this set, which is reasonably priced for the amount of music you receive, at least check out the individual albums which make up this collection. They are absolutely invaluable.

I won't use this space to review the incredible music of the John Coltrane Quartet. Completely unnecessary!

Some reviewers and commentators dislike the presentation of the pieces in the order of their recording rather than organized by albums. I think this is a minor quibble, especially considering that the transition from the LP-era to the CD-era has already "mixed things up" considerably. For example, the modern CD issue of the album "Transition" drops "Dear Lord" and adds two pieces from "Kulu Se Mama." "Dear Lord" shows up on "Dear Old Stockholm," which was not a '60s Coltrane album. "Living Space"-- a current CD-- did not exist then. Some Coltrane pieces ("Vilia" and "Dear Old Stockholm") were released on contemporary albums featuring numerous artists ("The Definitive Jazz Scene, Vols 1, 2 and 3"). The posthumous albums "The Mastery of John Coltrane, Volumes 1 and 2" do not at all appear on CD-- the pieces were diverted to other CDs. So, putting his works in recording order makes sense to me.

A few albums, such as "Sun Ship," the quartet version of "Meditations" and "A Love Supreme," do appear on this collection with all tracks together.

If you have an iPod and a Mac, you can "recreate" the original albums, in proper track order.

The boxed set is limited to studio recordings performed by the classic quartet (with a few minor allowances at drums and bass), thus two pieces from "Impressions" are missing-- you can find them on the Complete 1961 Village Vanguard set--and only two pieces from "Live at Birdland" are included, for example "Alabama." I wish they had made another exception and included the title track to the album "Kulu Se Mama," thus bringing that album completely into this set.

I do agree that it is a shame that the album covers and original liner notes are missing. And I am glad that I have the "A Love Supreme" CD separately.