The New Jazz Musings

On July 17 1971 it will be four years since John Coltrane died. Unquestionably, he is one of the greatest innovators in jazz history, and will eventually be recognized as one of the most significant contributors to 20th century music. But in today's distorted perspective, where yesterday is old and two days ago is ancient, he is already being forgotten. More precisely, he hasn't even been fully discovered, or appreciated. His music is the root of much of today's musical thrust. For that reason alone it deserves another look. From the seriousness of his music as well as his words (there is no music in the Coltrane discography which is "light") it becomes clear that a vital religious energy motivated him. But it was a cosmic religiousity, the utter opposite of anything provincial. Thus, Coltrane was able to say much more than the private utterings of some little sect can convey. Nor was his music political in any narrow sense. Instead, he was political in the mann...

This is an iconic Coltrane cover from Britain's Jazz Journal, however, where's Coltrane inside ? The December 1961 issue had the annual Jazz Record of The Year poll feature. Coltrane was 18th in the top twenty Jazz records of the year with Giant Steps. Demonstrating where Jazz still was in 1961, Billie Holiday topped the poll with a re-issue, and Pee Wee Russell was 2nd. Nineteen critics provided their top ten records of the year, with a few having Coltrane mid-table. Steve Voce had Trane one and two, Giant Steps and Coltrane Jazz. Africa/Brass hadn't yet been released in Britain (more of that below), unlike e.g. France that had it on the Vega label (IMP 3). Modern Record of the Year was one of six categories, with Giant Steps coming third in the category. Critic Steve Voce, in his two page column, talked about Coltrane's 1961 visit to Britain, and explained a little bit why Impulse records were late to hit the market in Britain. I've noticed this trend, even...

Following a three year stint in the US Army (band), based at Orleans in France, Albert Ayler returned home to the US, then decamped to Sweden in 1962. In 1962, Sweden wasn't yet as cosmopolitan to Jazz as France or Denmark; other popular places for African American jazz musicians in the 1960s. Once in Sweden, making a living as a musician became almost as difficult as Ayler had faced in the US. However through time, he built some strong relationships and friendships, played in Stockholm's top Jazz venues and played (and recorded) outside Sweden in Helsinki and Copenhagen. Nils Edstrom was a photographer who became friendly with Ayler. He recalled Ayler's first performance at Stockholm's Golden Circle club. "Precisely because of Ayler's presence, it was absolutely necessary that you were present when he played, placed in front of him and confronted by his playing, to be forced into trying to grapple with the realisation that this experience was totally unfami...

F or this blog entry I thought I would extract some further 'nuggets' from one of the Jazz publications I've researched and purchased for these blogs. Jazz Journal from November 1966 was the source for a previous blog entry "Coltrane & Coleman - a Critical View from 1966", in which Martin Williams comes up to speed on A Love Supreme to Ascension, Coleman's At the Golden Circle records and The Avant Garde - Coltrane and Don Cherry playing Coleman numbers. The publication has some other articles and reviews, which at the end of 1966, is interesting given the time in the evolution of the "New Music". The British Jazz critic Stanley Dance in his two page entry of notes of wisdom includes a couple of contemporary quotes from two sides of the debate, from two well known musicians. "But I don't want to hear pleasant music today. I want to hear screaming and hollering and picking and biting. That's what the world's about today. An...