John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman [Digipak]

Performer: John Coltrane/Johnny Hartman
Artist: McCoy Tyner; Elvin Jones
Producer: Bob Thiele
Distributor: Universal Distribution

Notes: Ultradiscs are mastered from the original master tapes using Mobile Fidelity's proprietary mastering technique, then plated with 24 karat gold and housed in a stress-resistant lift-lock jewel box. Personnel: John Coltrane (tenor saxophone); Johnny Hartman (vocals); McCoy Tyner (piano); Jimmy Garrison (bass); Elvin Jones (drums). Recorded at the Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey on March 7, 1963. Includes liner notes by A. B. Spellman and Michael Cuscuna. Personnel: John Coltrane (tenor saxophone); Johnny Hartman (vocals); McCoy Tyner (piano); Jimmy Garrison (upright bass); Elvin Jones (drums). The material included here, which finds John Coltrane working with the Red Garland Trio (pianist Red Garland, bassist Paul Chambers, and drummer Art Taylor), was recorded at Van Gelder Studio on August 23, 1957 (the first five tracks, originally issued as the Traneing In LP on Prestige) and February 7, 1958 (the final five tracks, originally released as the Soultrane LP on Prestige), and has been repackaged countless times in various configurations and under various titles. It's all fine hard bop, but hardly Coltrane at his creative zenith, which would come later during his Impulse! years. The CD issue is a straight single-disc transfer of the Prestige double LP of the same title that combined Traneing In and Soultrane in one package. No bonus tracks have been added. ~ Steve Leggett John Coltrane's matchup with singer Johnny Hartman, although quite unexpected, works extremely well. Hartman, who had not recorded since 1956, was in prime form on the six ballads, and his versions of "Lush Life" and "My One and Only Love" have never been topped. Coltrane's playing throughout the session is beautiful, sympathetic, and still exploratory; he sticks exclusively to tenor on the date. At only half an hour, one wishes there were twice as much music, but what is here is classic, essential for all jazz collections. ~ Scott Yanow From his formative days with Miles Davis and Thelonious Monk, through the expansive revelations of his Prestige, Atlantic and Impulse! recordings, John Coltrane revealed many facets of beauty--some full of turbulence, others bathed in serenity. JOHN COLTRANE AND JOHNNY HARTMAN is probably the saxophonist's most graceful, accessible recording in a discography awash in spiritual radiance. When this album was recorded in March of 1963, Coltrane was completing a series of recordings designed to highlight his lyric strengths and the subtle accompaniment skills of his quartet. When the concept of singer was raised, Coltrane reached out to Hartman because the saxophonist considered the crooner's soothing, elegant baritone to be a musical parallel to his own singing sound. The spiritual aura and artistic empathy they achieve on JOHN COLTRANE AND JOHNNY HARTMAN is simply transcendent. Their version of "My One And Only Love" is among the most mesmerizing performances in the history of jazz, as Coltrane's majestic tenor and Garrison's syncopated bass anticipate Hartman's entrance, with his luminous timbre, poetic articulation and hear-a-pin-drop phrasing. Hartman and Tyner turn the opening verse of Strayhorn's "Lush Life" into a theatrical event, setting a bittersweet tone for the ambivalence of the main theme, while their interplay on "You Are Too Beautiful" is tenderness personified. And when the saxophonist finally sidesteps the melody to vigorously expand upon the harmonic and rhythmic implications of the changes to "Autumn Serenade," one realizes that for John Coltrane, beauty was the sum total of his very existence.

Q (10/95, p.136) - 4 Stars - Excellent - "...The emphasis is...on the standard ballads repertoire, while Hartman's rich, intimate baritone in no way diminishes Coltrane's imagination and focus..." Down Beat (11/95, p.73) - 4 Stars - Very Good - "...20-bit Super Mapping eradicates almost all the hiss, underscoring the analog warmth of this 1963 tete-a-tete of unfettered soul..." Mojo (Publisher) (p.110) - 4 stars out of 5 - "[T]his inspired collaboration with iconic saxophonist John Coltrane undoubtedly represents the pinnacle of Hartman's career."

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