Guitarist Kenny Burrell and legendary tenor saxophone player John
Coltrane got together in 1958 to create and improvise in a wonderful
session of modern day jazz. With the help of Tommy Flanagan (piano),
Paul Chambers (bass), and Jimmy Cobb (drums) this meeting of jazz
giants is immortalized with the 20 Bit K2 Super Coding remastering techniques.
Coltrane was the king of the impromptu jazz session in the fifties.
This is the reason there were so many strides in the development of
jazz during this time period. The ability of these special men to
flex their musical muscles and take a chance was the driving force
of jazz music. Without this journeyman focus, jazz-fusion would have never been realized.
This was also the time Coltrane introduced his "sheets of sound" methodology.
Coltrane, along with Miles Davis were the prototypical jazz expressionists
always on the move looking to come up with a new sound or angle with
their playing style. They always did, and this is but one example
of many sessions when Coltrane broke away from Davis, taking along
his sideman for a fantastical musical adventure. Many have considered
this time frame to be Coltrane's most creative. It's evident in each
and every song that he inspired Kenny Burrell to play some standout
guitar. The sheets of sound are all over this session. You can hear
long breaks were each artist takes time to show how they are able
to sculpture the music with their chosen instrument. Tommy Flanagan
has his moments in his original number "Big Paul." It stretches out
over fourteen minutes and makes you realize that the star headliners
of this album were in some very good company. Flanagan also brings
to the forefront the song dedicated to Trane entitled "Freight Train."
Consistency was Trane's trademark. I have never found lapses in
any of his works, in fact with each subsequent listen of these now
infamous collaborations, there is always something new to discover
in each song. Coltrane is arguably one of the most influential musicians
we have every known. He was right along side Miles as a leader and
innovator that was respected and revered by listeners and peers alike.
1. Freight Trane (Flanagan) - 7:22
2. I Never Knew (FioRito/Kahn) - 7:06
3. Lyresto (Burrell) - 5:43
4. Why Was I Born? (Hammerstein/Kern) - 3:15
5. Big Paul (Flanagan) - 14:04
