One has to work his way up to Coltrane. Start with maybe Charlie Parker, and once Coltrane had been assimilated, give Ornette Coleman a listen. Wild, baby!
Help me understand John Coltrane .... seriously.
Hi Everyone,
Listen I have a favor to ask, and those of you better educated in Jazz can help me.
I always have a tough time listening to John Coltrane. It's like he's talking a different language.
Can any of you point me to recordings I should listen to on Tidal or Quboz or whatever that set me up to better appreciate the man?
Thank you for the musical education.
Best,
E
Listen I have a favor to ask, and those of you better educated in Jazz can help me.
I always have a tough time listening to John Coltrane. It's like he's talking a different language.
Can any of you point me to recordings I should listen to on Tidal or Quboz or whatever that set me up to better appreciate the man?
Thank you for the musical education.
Best,
E
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- 170 posts total
It took me quite a while to “get it” as well. I first stayed with things like Kind of Blue which he accompanied on. Then I went with A Love Supreme, but, it didn’t really speak to me. Then I bought Blue Train. I was also listening to a lot of Wayne Shorter at the time. Slowly it started to click. The quick runs no longer sounded random. Then I found Lush Life. This is a delicious mellow album that is very easy to greet you. I went back to Giant Steps because I started craving more avant garde sounds like Eric Dolphy and Ornette Coleman. I came across a fantastic piece on YouTube that explains the Coltrane Changes musically and mathematically. I highly recommend it. For some reason I can’t post a link here, but, it’s titled The Most Feared Song In Jazz, Explained on YouTube |
This thread has been one of my favorites on AG. Really great, and people sgarung love of music and not going “violent-nerd” on kit. I’ve been a jazz head since 7th grade and JC remains a favorite. But my unles, an accomplished and well-regarded bass player, especially swing, hates hard bop. So ymmv. Eric, I love these suggestions, particularly those who speak of how music grows on you. I felt the same about Sun Ra as you did with JC i think, and have now come to enjoy SR, though it still depends on mood. However, in the classical realm, no one makes my skin crawl like many Benjamin Britten pieces do. Thanks for asking the question. Great discussion resulted. |
Erik, this article I have posted already in jazz for afc.thread, you may take a look there sometimes, at least it has some very good music. On Coltrane, you might find it interesting; http://www.openculture.com/2017/04/the-tone-circle-john-coltrane-drew-to-illustrate-the-theory-behind-his-most-famous-compositions-1967.html Stephon Alexander, cosmologist and author of The Jazz of Physics, talks math and music, John Coltrane and Einstein. https://youtu.be/0nhIEO59OnY I am not sure if understanding is related with liking, so will post few albums with Coltrane that are 'easier' to listen to https://youtu.be/sCQfTNOC5aE https://youtu.be/8RRV3dzOOyY https://youtu.be/ya1xRmRBWUQ https://youtu.be/dPGmmLUwNvk https://youtu.be/uue1io35msQ |
- 170 posts total