Customer Reviews

Echoes of a Friend

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"Echoes of a Friend" offers one of the finest tributes to the memory of John Coltrane that this listener has heard. Who better to extend the musical accolades than Tyner, who of course served in Coltrane's famous quartet for the last six years of the great saxophonists life?

This album was recorded five years (1972) after Coltrane's death, and Tyner's musical progress is evident, especially on his version of "My Favorite Things." Recording it was a bold move, given the intense identification of the piece with Coltrane. Tyner had of course played on the Trane's original version in 1960 and on nearly all of the saxophonist's subsequent reinventions of the tune. Tyner stays away from the familiar hypnotic waltz-time refrain he had played on the original. This version is at times thunderous, almost orchestral in its density, and its rhythms, melodies and overtones are far more complex than any version I heard him play with Coltrane. It's a masterpiece.

Another great inclusion is "The Promise," which he recorded with Coltrane on the "Live at Birdland" release. The composition was, for me, one of Coltrane's best, although it's rarely if ever mentioned when Coltrane's best writings are discussed. Tyner captures the tune's dark melodicism, but he takes the tune at a slightly different pace and again layers powerful chords over lyrical passages he creates with his right hand.

One of Trane's enduring legacies is that he urged musicians always to look for their own voice. There have been many musicians since his death who have found ways to imitate his sound. Tyner showed with this release (he was only 32 years old at the time) that he had truly absorbed the message, incorporating the best elements of Trane's music with his own unique sound on the piano.

McCoy Tyner is one of the most important pianists in jazz history. His 40+ year career is remarkable for its diversity and consistent high quality. I consider this recording his crowning achievement. Not only is "Echoes of a Friend" my favorite Tyner recording, I consider it to be one of the finest solo piano recordings I have ever heard. This is not easy listening music. If you like Kenny G., this is not for you. This is intense, passionate music played by a virtuoso musician. Think "Art Tatum meets Igor Stravinsky" and you'll have some idea what this CD is like. Along with Coltrane's "First Meditations (for Quartet)," this is some of the most astonishing spiritual/religious music ever recorded. (And this is coming from an atheist!) Buy this CD, turn out the lights, lie down with your head between the speakers, and prepare to have your consciousness altered.

McCoy has reached the pinnacle of piano mastery with this performance. My favorite things is quite possibly his most exotic and incredible work. I love this album. It is my favorite next to "Kind of Blue" and "My Favorite Things" by Miles and John respectively. It is also a great exhibition of modal jazz perfected by Miles in the 60s..

This is one of the most beautiful, inspired solo piano discs of all time by anyone. It is quietly played but burns with intensity, and is nearly addictive--unlike many solo piano albums it cries out to be played repeatedly for years.

An absolute gem of an album, Echoes Of A Friend is a collection of solo improvisations inspired by Tyner's friendship and partership with the great John Coltrane. McCoy is at the peak of his expressive abilities here - alternating passages of quiet grace with others of overwhelming power and passion. A moving tribute, indeed.

This is some of the best playing he has done ever! What an incredible set of solo piano. This is as thoughtful and moving as one would expect from a dedication to Coltrane from Tyner. Indeed, Tyner plays as if his "friend's" legacy depends on it and as if his "friend" could hear him.

I can't believe I blew seventeen bucks on this CD. Tyner's work on Coltrane's albums was lovely, but this is a self-indulgent, mindless hammer job on some beautiful songs which deserved better. I can't help but think that Tyner was unstrung by his grief when he recorded this. A bummer.