Customer Reviews

My Favorite Things: Coltrane at Newport

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Records companies these days can certainly be accused of repackaging old recordings in various forms to squeeze our more sales, and Impulse! is clearly guilty of this when it comes to the Coltrane discography, though who can blame them given the lack of worthy jazz masters these days... But this new release makes sense and is a vast improvement on previous packaging. What we have here is Trane at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1963, originally packaged as Newport '63 (minus the tack-on 4th track, "Chasing the Trane" from the '61 Village Vanguard sessions) along with a return to the festival in 1965, previously included as a double-header date with Archie Shepp released as "New Thing at Newport." Now it's all together in one tidy package that nearly takes current CD length to the limit, with 5 live tunes at just shy of 80 minutes.

I have a sizeable catalog of Trane, but I never purchased either Newport date despite the fact that the version of My Favorite Things (MFT) '63 is often claimed to be the best. But I recently heard it on XM Radio and was engrossed -- I looked it up, found out this new CD was released, and went out and bought it. It's fantastic.

Newport '63 has the quartet (Trane, McCoy Tyner, Jimmy Garrison) with Roy Haynes subbing in for Elvin Jones, who reportedly was in drug rehab for heroin addiction. The disc opens with a rather lame emcee requesting that the crowd "simmer down" for the Coltrane set, apparently because Jimmy Smith had fired up the crowd with his previous act. Anyway, Trane and Co. then open with "I Want to Talk About You," a fairly constained mid-tempo ballad with Trane on tenor. The sound is pretty good on this one, and Trane opens up near the end with an a cappella solo that builds up note upon note. The band then segues directly into MFT, and you can see why this version is considered definitive. Trane is still firmly rooted in his modal playing, and here he takes that framework to its limit, circling in and out of and around the melody. The liner notes make much of the fact that Roy Haynes has a much lighter touch than Elvin, and you have to agree that this gives Trane space and a certain freedom that comes through in his playing. That is also the benefit of a live concert -- subsequent versions of MFT on Live at the Village Vanguard Again! or Live in Japan take that space and freedom even further. Tyner solos in the middle where the sound could be better -- Garrison sounds overly full, whereas Tyner is a bit submerged, but soon Trane's soprano takes over again and what follows is simply some of his strongest soprano work ever recorded. Very advanced explorations, though still not as out there as in his final years. The final number from the '63 set is "Impressions," with Trane starting by briefly stating the theme on soprano. Tyner gets some solo space and is better heard than the rest of the CD, but then Garrison takes a solo and the sound of his already muddy bass really degrades -- while this new CD release adds some heretofore missing parts of his solo, the remainder is edited out (seamlessly, I might add) allowing Coltrane to return on tenor. After stating the theme again, he turns to solo explorations, hinting quite a bit at what was to come from latter day Trane. At around 11 minutes, Tyner and Garrison recede, and Trane and Haynes go at it with an incendiary sparring match that foreshadows Trane's later work with Rashied Ali on Interstellar Space. Again, the 23-minute number allows Trane space to really go ballistic. There's some sound issues at the 17 and 18 minute mark -- it sounds like Trane wanders off mike (maybe he took a stroll to keep McCoy company) -- but that is the flip side of live recording and therefore forgiveable. All in all, I think you'd have to say this is by far the best music by Trane up until 1964 (well, except for Vanguard '61, that is).

The remaining 3 tracks were recorded at Newport '65 just after Ascension and are some of the very last recordings of Trane's group before Pharoah Sanders was added and the lineup began to change. Newport '65 had Monk, Carmen McRae, Diz, Art Blakey, and Archie Shepp preceding, leaving a foreshortened 30 minutes for Trane's group at the end. The first track is just the intro from a rather antediluvian emcee, referring to Elvin Jones, who would have been 38 at the time, as a "newcomer" and a "Detroit boy," and Trane as the "master of them all." The opener is then "One Up, One Down," (featured on the recently released Live at the Half Note dates), and this being 1965, differences are readily apparent. Elvin Jones is a powerhouse and Trane is escaping his modal tethers while the rest are still rooted in their pre-1965 style. Tyner is given generous solo space, but this time he really sounds like he's underwater, in contrast to Garrison whose bass now sounds much more crisp and clear than '63. Trane then rips into things on tenor, getting into his trademark upper register explorations that would typify his final style. Elvin's really bashing away, as if trying to dent the cymbals near the end before they transition to MFT. I'm partial to 1965 Trane, and have never tired of MFT, and this is good stuff, but somehow it seems like things don't quite get the chance to develop this time. The opening soprano salvo isn't that different from previous versions (aside from Garrison's growling vocal accompaniment), though after yet another somewhat anemic Tyner solo (I love Tyner, but I'm telling you, he just isn't well-served by the Newport soundstage), Trane does break into some madcap swirling trills and deconstructions, but all too soon, the playing comes to a close. The crowd erupts into a chant of "More! More!," but the emcee puts the kibosh on that since the venue had to shut down at midnight. Even though you've just heard 80 minutes of CD music, it's hard to not to feel the same as the crowd here, wishing there was more time to hear them play...

So there you have it. Pretty excellent playing by Trane, an interesting juxtaposition of MFT '63 and '65, and less than perfect live audio engineering that often leaves Tyner submerged. All in all, an outstanding re-release by Impulse!, with 80 minutes of incediary Trane and the mostly classic quartet.

I'm no expert on jazz, so this won't be one of those reviews where I dismiss the entire CD based on the fact that the snare drum wasn't properly amplified during the solo at exactly 5 minutes, 33 seconds into the 5th track, etc., etc.... I do listen to quite a bit of Coltrane, and this CD is excellent. Outstanding performances, and the sound quality is very good. And it's almost 80 minutes long . . . a lot of music for your money.

All of the music on this collection was previously available except for the 1963 recording of Impressions w/ Roy Haynes (an excerpt was previously available). The recording apparently had some problems with low-end distortion and Jimmy Garrison's bass. Thanks to the digital revolution, the folks at Impulse were able to clean some of it up, but most of Garrison's solo is M.I.A. (you can't hear the edit as far as I can tell).

It certainly is kind of weird hearing Haynes with Trane. Haynes is a very powerful drummer but he still doesn't have that explosiveness we hear when Elvin is behind the kit. Still, it's great stuff. There is an extended duet between Trane and Haynes on the 23+ minute version of Impressions.
My Favorite Things and I Want to Talk About You are also very good with Haynes. Supposedly this particular performance of Favorite Things is a high-water mark. I'm not so certain though. I definitely prefer Elvin behind the kit. It also sounds like the snare (for which Haynes is well known for his technique) is a bit too "hot" in the mix for my liking but maybe it's just a matter of getting used to hearing the rest of the band playing without Mr. Jones.

The tracks from the 1965 appearance at the Newport festival are also available on the Impulse release "New Thing at Newport". That music is just breathtakingly intense. Explosive! and of course, Elvin is on hand for this performance. Archie Shepp's set on that release is not to be missed either. Shepp and Bobby Hutcherson make quite a good creative team. Of course, you don't get that material here, you'll have to by both CDs to get all of the music and you are going to have to duplicate One Down, One Up and Favorite Things from Trane's 65 set at Newport. That's ok, it is worth owning both discs. I already had "New Thing at Newport" but I just had to have this so that I could hear this extended performance of Impressions. It was worth every penny. This is must have for any Trane fan, period.

I've owned a copy of this disc for about three weeks now and am completely obsessed with it, listening to nothing else. Both Newport sets represented here are masterful.

Others have waxed authoritative here, so I won't attempt that, or to detail the history.

To me the most surprising thing here is the presence of Roy Haynes, who drums for the '63 set. Though his snare sounds like a paper bag or a sheet of bubble wrap (i.e. appalling), his performance is as close to perfection as possible. I associate Haynes more with the bop school, moreso than "the new thing," so this is a cool revelation. His interplay with Coltrane through the '63 set is, if anything, more remarkable than Elvin Jones' work in 1965.

As others have said the take of "Impressions" is phenomenal. There's a six minute McCoy Tyner solo, followed by a real cryin' shame: Jimmy Garrison begins what sounds like promising solo, but we only end up hearing about 30 seconds of it. Why? His bass is so "on mic" that it clips and distorts, and not just a little bit...the first time I heard it I thought I'd blown a speaker, the distortion is that bad. There's no way to clean that up really...so all but the first bit of Garrison's solo is lost to us. Truly a shame. Afterwards, Coltrane re-enters and gradually all the players except he and Haynes drop out. From 10 minutes out the two play off one another in sublime fashion.

The '65 set is comprised of just two numbers. Apparently, things were running late and the quartet was allowed only a half hour. As always, "My Favorite Things" comes off well. "One Down, One Up" is exhaustive and intriquing, though Elvin Jones seems a little lost here and there.

One minor benefit of this disc is the recorded comments of the two emcees and the fact that each insists the audience go home immediately when Coltrane's sets are over! What a different world than we inhabit today. No encores are allowed. Time is up. GO HOME NOW is the unsubtle thinking. The emcee for the '65 set was Father Norman O'Connor. His comments and "personality" are, forty years later, embarassing. He comes off as the kind of annoying "hip vicar" character portrayed so often in 60's British comedy, including the seminal "Beyond the Fringe." It's hard to imagine how, in 1965, you couldn't stop yourself--in public--from using the words "Detroit boy" to describe a black jazz musician (!) and to say Coltrane was, in reference to his band, "master of them all." Master? Does that imply the others are slaves? Oy! Ouch! You just cringe for the guy. Willis Conover, jazz broadcasting veteran, manages to make no such gaffes in 1963.

This release is much better in sound quality than the previous release of some of the same material under the title "Newport '63." If you bought that version I would consider rebuying this as an upgrade. You also get the full version of "Impressions" from the '63 set. And almost as a bonus you get the '65 Newport set, and wow Elvin Jones just kills on "One Down, One Up." You also get to see Trane's evolution in just two short years. Overall this is very enjoyable, and easily accessible.

great live record by john coltrane, above all the version of impression,
i suggiest this record to everibody.
danilo ravanelli

fantastic coltrane, at his best. there aren't many other words to spend for these ultra- famous live recordings. the main importance is that we all miss the giant drummer of the celebrated quartet, elvin jones (who, in those days, was in jail because of drugs, if i remember well). roy haynes is a fantastic drummer, but elvin was unequalled. really, just one of these recordings was almost unknown: the complete version of impressions, from the 1963 concert. but i think that everybody who loves music (not necessarily jazz music) should buy this record. i'd got the former edition ("newport '63") but this one is best.

more smooth and refined than impulse's 2005 release 'Live at the Half Note', this entire album is spacey and airy

Have not heard it; don't need to. Any CD with Coltrane's spectacular rendition of My Favorite Things is an absolute must for anyone who has not heard it. It pinned my ears back when I first heard it in the mid-1970's and it still thrills me today.

Generally not a fan of constant repackagings of the same material, this disc is perfect for me because the Newport '63 album was one of the very few Coltrane albums I never heard/bought.

The Coltrane & Roy Haynes '63 duo performance of Impressions is why you need to own this album. John's playing is monumental! As with One Down, One Up: Live at the Half Note, this album is largely about John and Jimmy. McCoy is intolerable in '65, and Elvin seems to be trying to hang on. Thankfully Alice and Rashied replaced them later in the year

The Gods seem to smite thee when what is seeming like it's going to be a devastating, aggressive Garrison bass solo is cut because (as the notes say) there was some brutal distortion or choppiness on the tape. DARNIT!! Instead we get every second of every mindnumbing Tyner solo. I feel odd talking about McCoy like this, as I enjoy him so much in earlier years. Here and on One Down One Up though, my god. Were '65 the only year from which I knew his playing, I'd flat-out hate him. By '65 he was only in the band out of a sense of commitment or "family" or something. His playing is painfully out of place. John was changing at a rapid rate, and beginning to push his own limits with daring feats of imagination (though moreso on the One Down discs than on the '65 material here). McCoy comes off as a stagnant, one-trick-pony on most of this disc and on the entirety of One Down. I grew to hate his left hand as time went on, as he approached every song the same way, regardless of mood or melody. To put it bluntly, McCoy got old young.

Still... Impressions (this slays me!) and to a lesser extent the two versions of My Favorite Things make this essential. I prefer these 2 versions of MFT because they aren't faded out and don't have a radio announcer talking over them as they begin to get going. Such is the case on One Down. Get this for John & Jimmy but if you'd like to give someone else a try, if you want to hear A BAND, I recommend getting the oft-overlooked Alphaville Suite . That, my friends, is interactive, listening-based ensemble improvisation.