2008 Woodie Awards
John Coltrane paints a picture with his sax
Chris Garza
Issue date: 3/7/07 Section: Reviews
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One aspect that is quite admirable about jazz is that it is a form of music that does not tell the listener what to feel or think, but paints a picture of what the musicians were thinking and allows the listener to hear whatever it is they want to inside of that picture.
John Coltrane released "Blue Train" on Blue Note Records in 1957. It is an up-tempo hard-bop jazz album and showcases four original songs written by Coltrane along with one soft ballad that he did not compose.
Playing on "Blue Train" is Lee Morgan on trumpet, Curtis Fuller on trombone, Coltrane on tenor saxophone, Kenny Drew on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and "Philly" Joe Jones on drums.
The album cover displays Coltrane gripping a syringe between his index and middle finger while the index finger rests upon his lower lip. The mouth piece of his tenor sax can be seen on his left side while his left arm rests behind his head. A smug, thought-wielding look appears on Coltrane's face as the whole cover is masked behind a blue façade.
The title track opens the album with suspenseful building blocks of trumpet and piano. Coltrane then enters and synchronizes with Morgan on trumpet to create the sound of "Ba-da-di-da-da" then Drew comes in with "Baum Baum." It sounds like you are about to find out who is the genius behind some well-orchestrated crime on an old detective movie.
That, or maybe Coltrane was signaling some sort of warning call to the listener stating, "I hope you know what your getting into." Whatever it may be, it has a suspenseful and ominous feel to it. This continues on a few more times before "Philly" Jones kicks in with the drums and everyone else joins in for the theme as Coltrane begins his extensive solo. The song moves into a faster direction from here. In the background, throughout the song at random points, you can hear Morgan blowing softly on the trumpet re-creating the sound of a train whistle. Each musician solos except for Jones.
Another interesting part of this song is how the musicians will speed up the tempo for a little bit, and then once you hear Jones snap down on his kit, they break it down into a slower sound.
John Coltrane released "Blue Train" on Blue Note Records in 1957. It is an up-tempo hard-bop jazz album and showcases four original songs written by Coltrane along with one soft ballad that he did not compose.
Playing on "Blue Train" is Lee Morgan on trumpet, Curtis Fuller on trombone, Coltrane on tenor saxophone, Kenny Drew on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and "Philly" Joe Jones on drums.
The album cover displays Coltrane gripping a syringe between his index and middle finger while the index finger rests upon his lower lip. The mouth piece of his tenor sax can be seen on his left side while his left arm rests behind his head. A smug, thought-wielding look appears on Coltrane's face as the whole cover is masked behind a blue façade.
The title track opens the album with suspenseful building blocks of trumpet and piano. Coltrane then enters and synchronizes with Morgan on trumpet to create the sound of "Ba-da-di-da-da" then Drew comes in with "Baum Baum." It sounds like you are about to find out who is the genius behind some well-orchestrated crime on an old detective movie.
That, or maybe Coltrane was signaling some sort of warning call to the listener stating, "I hope you know what your getting into." Whatever it may be, it has a suspenseful and ominous feel to it. This continues on a few more times before "Philly" Jones kicks in with the drums and everyone else joins in for the theme as Coltrane begins his extensive solo. The song moves into a faster direction from here. In the background, throughout the song at random points, you can hear Morgan blowing softly on the trumpet re-creating the sound of a train whistle. Each musician solos except for Jones.
Another interesting part of this song is how the musicians will speed up the tempo for a little bit, and then once you hear Jones snap down on his kit, they break it down into a slower sound.
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