| Coltrane Plays the Blues | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | July 1962 (1962-07)[1][2] | |||
| Recorded | October 24, 1960 | |||
| Studio | Atlantic (New York City) | |||
| Genre | Jazz | |||
| Length | 41:07original LP | |||
| Label | Atlantic SD 1382 | |||
| Producer | Nesuhi Ertegün | |||
| John Coltrane chronology | ||||
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Coltrane Plays the Blues is an album of music by the jazz musicianJohn Coltrane. It was released in July 1962 byAtlantic Records.[1][2] It was recorded atAtlantic Studios during the sessions forMy Favorite Things, assembled after Coltrane had stopped recording for the label and was under contract toImpulse Records. LikePrestige Records before them, as Coltrane's fame grew during the 1960s, Atlantic used unissued recordings and released them without either Coltrane's input or approval.
On September 19, 2000,Rhino Records reissuedColtrane Plays the Blues as part of its Atlantic 50th Anniversary Jazz Gallery series. Included were fivebonus tracks, all of which had appeared in 1995 onThe Heavyweight Champion: The Complete Atlantic Recordings.
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [3] |
| DownBeat |  [4] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [7] |
| The Penguin Guide to Jazz | [5] |
| The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide | [6] |
Coltrane biographerBen Ratliff wrote: "Coltrane Plays the Blues... turned out to be one of the great records in jazz. It was nevertheless overshadowed by other material he recorded during the same sessions..."[8]
Coltrane biographerEric Nisenson remarked: "It is not known if Coltrane intended to make what is now known as a 'concept' album, but listening to these six tracks is like a journey through the blues, from the most primitive to the 'world beat' blues... there is nothing atavistic in Coltrane's playing; as deeply funky as it is, it is still searching new music, as personally Coltranesque as anything he ever recorded, simultaneously old, thoroughly modern, and perfectly beautiful... OnColtrane Plays the Blues the saxophonist had clearly made the heady discovery that the blues had some vital connection with music from exotic places all over the world, all of which had been created through a similar need of the heart."[9]
In a review forAllMusic, Richie Unterberger commented: "Coltrane's sessions for Atlantic in late October 1960 were prolific...My Favorite Things was destined to be the most remembered and influential of these, and whileColtrane Plays the Blues is not as renowned or daring in material, it is still a powerful session. As for the phrase 'plays the blues' in the title, that's not an indicator that the tunes are conventional blues (they aren't). It's more indicative of a bluesy sensibility, whether he is playing muscular saxophone or... the more unusual sounding (at the time) soprano sax."[3]
The authors ofThe Penguin Guide to Jazz wrote that the album is "often overlooked", and stated: "Much of the interest lies in Tyner's withdrawal from some of the numbers, a first experiment with a pianoless trio since Prestige days. Here once again simplicity of statement and sophistication of harmonic structure lie in fertile balance."[5]
Writing about the Rhino reissue forAll About Jazz, Mike Perciaccante stated: "This is one of the least well known Coltrane albums, partly because it is an all blues format and partly because it was released at the end of his association with Atlantic records... It is the beginning of his work with Tyner and Jones in quartet form. For that alone this recording would be important... Long-time Coltrane fans will fall in love with the clean, crisp sound. New fans will be afforded a great opportunity to be introduced to the master's work on this timeless album."[10]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Blues to Elvin" | Elvin Jones | 7:53 |
| 2. | "Blues to Bechet" | John Coltrane | 5:46 |
| 3. | "Blues to You" | John Coltrane | 6:29 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Mr. Day" | John Coltrane | 7:56 |
| 2. | "Mr. Syms" | John Coltrane | 5:22 |
| 3. | "Mr. Knight" | John Coltrane | 7:31 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7. | "Untitled Original (Exotica)" | John Coltrane | 5:22 |
| 8. | "Blues to Elvin" (alternate take 1) | Elvin Jones | 11:00 |
| 9. | "Blues to Elvin" (alternate take 3) | Elvin Jones | 5:59 |
| 10. | "Blues to You" (alternate take 1) | John Coltrane | 5:35 |
| 11. | "Blues to You" (alternate take 2) | John Coltrane | 5:36 |
Side Two track 2 recorded during the evening of October 24, 1960; the remainder during the night of the same day.[11]
