John Coltrane
The Complete 1961 Village Vanguard Recordings

Being able to go back in time and visit New York's Greenwich Village in the fall of '61 would be a daydream for a jazz lover. The Five Spot hosted Ornette Coleman's quartet in the early weeks of October, followed by Cecil Taylor. Lennie Tristano and Lee Konitz were at the Half Note, and Sonny Rollins was at the Jazz Gallery. And then there was the Village Vanguard, of course, which had hosted the Bill Evans Trio with Scott LaFaro just a few months earlier, recording the most beautiful piano trio music in decades.

And it was at the Village Vanguard, the temple, the symbol of the best live jazz, that John Coltrane arrived on October 24th, staying until November 5th. The recordings cover the nights of November 1, 2, 3, and 5, totaling 22 performances of 9 different compositions, four and a half hours of intense and concentrated music on 4 CDs. The music his band played there caught almost everyone off guard, so much so that much of the audience and critics, due to their limitations, did not appreciate the concerts. The repertoire, first of all, did not meet the expectations of those who wanted to hear yet another “My Favorite Things,” more standards, and ballads.

During these sessions, four versions of “India,” four of “Spiritual,” and three each of “Impressions” (which is none other than Miles Davis's "So What") and “Chasin' The Trane” (a tense, obsessive blues) were recorded. There were two each for “Greensleeves,” “Miles' Mode,” and “Naima,” and only one version of “Brasilia” and “Soft As in A Morning Sunrise.”

A range of pieces in which John’s passion at the time for “non-western music” is completely satisfied. Strong exotic hues pervade “India” (of course!), as well as “Spiritual” and “Greensleeves,” thanks to the fact that John plays the soprano sax instead of the tenor (and sounds like a snake charmer), due to the oriental modes used (the famous modal jazz), and the particular instrumentation. In fact, alongside John's “classic” quartet, which included McCoy Tyner on piano, Jimmy Garrison or Reggie Workman on double bass, and Elvin Jones on drums, we find none other than a giant of modernism, the bass clarinet Eric Dolphy (who also plays the alto sax on “Impressions,” “Brasilia,” and the first two versions of “Chasin' The Trane”). Besides Dolphy, present in most tracks forming an extraordinary quintet, two interesting figures complete the instrumental lineup: Ahmed Abdul-Malik, a bassist known for his collaboration with Thelonious Monk, who, however, plays the oud here, a type of Middle Eastern lute with a typical exotic, buzzing sound, giving a very distinctive sound to the first, second, and fourth versions of “India”; and a certain Garvin Bushell, who plays the oboe in the second and fourth versions of “India,” and the “contrabassoon" (a kind of even lower bass tuba) in the second and fourth versions of “Spiritual.” Neither of the two solos, but their contribution is important for the group sound. The excellent Roy Haynes also appears among the credits, who replaces Elvin Jones on drums in the second version of “Chasin' The Trane,” which opens the second evening, because Elvin was late (as always!).

On the Dolphy-Coltrane relationship, and how much Eric was integral to this group, much more than a special guest, dozens of pages could be written, as well as about their favorite topics: improvisation techniques, scales, modes, sounds, methods to push “beyond.” Here we can enjoy the practical results of their theories: music on a razor's edge, one step from free jazz (indeed it could also be defined as free jazz; the good kind, though!), edgy, complex, articulated, capable of leading to a trance state, in a vortex of sounds and rhythms. The two avant-gardists are truly on the same wavelength, their artistic partnership in these recordings reaches levels of understanding comparable to those of Dizzy Gillespie with Charlie Parker, or Django Reinhardt with Stephane Grappelli, or Ornette Coleman with Don Cherry.

No need to dwell on the individual versions of the tracks, but repeated listening pays off immensely and allows one to notice the sometimes macroscopic differences, even in mood, from one evening to the next.

Suffice it to say that the third version of “Chasin' The Trane” has entered legend: 15 minutes of crazy, brilliant, terrifying, powerful saxophone improvisation in a trio with bass and drums. John is an earthquake, Garrison has an equally powerful sound, and Elvin Jones performs one of his best performances, highlighting his circular and polyrhythmic vision of rhythm, a perfect framework for John's abstract but anthropomorphic picture.