Tracklist
Disc 1
01. Say It (Over and Over Again) (Frank Loesser-Jimmy McHugh)
02. You Don't Know What Love Is (Gene DePaul-Don Raye)
03. Too Young to Go Steady (Harold Adamson-Jimmy McHugh)
04. All or Nothing at All (Jack Lawrence-Arthur Altman)
05. I Wish I Knew (Harry Warren-Mack Gordon)
06. What's New? (Bob Haggart-Johnny Burke)
07. It's Easy to Remember (Richard Rodgers-Lorenz Halt)
08. Nancy (With the Laughing Face) (Jimmy Van Heusen-Phil Silvers)
Disc 2
01. They Say It's Wonderful (Irving Berlin)
02. All or Nothing at All
03. Greensleeves (traditional, arr. by McCoy Tyner)
04. Greensleeves
05. Greensleeves
06. Greensleeves --- 45-rpm take
07. Greensleeves
08. It's Easy to Remember
09. It's Easy to Remember
10. It's Easy to Remember
11. It's Easy to Remember
12. It's Easy to Remember
13. It's Easy to Remember
14. It's Easy to Remember
John Coltrane - tenor saxophone;
McCoy Tyner - piano;
Jimmy Garrison - bass;
Elvin Jones - drums.
Disc Two, track 1: Omit Garrison and Jones.
Disc Two, tracks 3-7: Coltrane (soprano saxophone) replaces (tenor
saxophone)
Amazon.com
In 1962, John
Coltrane found himself at the center of a storm of controversy, his
tumultuous, searching music branded "anti-jazz" by one virulent critic.
While Coltrane would continue along that exploratory path for the
remaining years of his career, part of his response to the critical
venom was to record some of the most sweetly lyrical music in jazz
history. The LP
Ballads established him as one of the great
lyric players and set the tone for his collaborations with
Johnny
Hartman and
Duke
Ellington.
The first CD presents the original album in all its luminous glory, the
burnished, silvery sound of Coltrane's tenor meticulously remastered by
the original engineer, Rudy Van Gelder. The second CD presents
supplementary material from the original sessions as well as material
that has only recently come to light. The classic quartet's collective
concentration shows in seven complete takes of "It's Easy to Remember,"
testing its melody again and again until every gesture--from the
flute-like tenor sound to Jimmy Garrison's bowed bass and
Elvin
Jones's
triumphant drum crescendo at the conclusion--is sculpted to perfection.
There are also several takes of the airy "Greensleeves" and a limpidly
beautiful version of "They Say It's Wonderful" with Coltrane in duet
with pianist
McCoy
Tyner.
--Stuart Broomer
