John Coltrane: Legacy

JOHN COLTRANE
Legacy

Legacy is yet another John Coltrane box in a world of John Coltrane boxes. It is a selection of some of Coltrane's most arresting work and generally good, even though any Coltrane collection is always going to fall short of the mark on some score. This set distinguishes itself by containing music from all phases of Coltrane's career, incorporating music from a variety of labels. This inevitably makes Legacy one of the better sets around as an introduction to the music of this jazz giant. For those who are big fans of Trane's work, it may not be all that essential.

The tracks here were chosen and sequenced by John's son, Ravi Coltrane, a saxophonist in his own right. There is some nice work taken from Coltrane's Atlantic days, including "Naima" and an alternate take of "My Favorite Things." The Impulse! period is, of course, well-covered, though it is awfully hard to listen to two sections from "A Love Supreme" and not the rest of this classic piece of music. Other standouts include some good performances with Miles Davis ("Stablemates" and "Two Bass Hit") as well as "Trinkle Trinkle" with Thelonious Monk. Tranes time with Monk,while brief, was an essential element in the development of his individual style.

Rather than move chronologically through the entire set, each disc is chronologically structured around a different aspect of Coltrane's music. The first disc covers his harmonic innovations while the second features more rhythmic aspects of his playing. The third features drummer Elvin Jones, Coltrane's long-time artistic soulmate, and the fourth is a series of live performances.

Those who are really deep into Coltrane's music would probably enjoy the Complete Impulse Quartet Recordings, but for a great many listeners Legacy would likely prove a good collection of Coltrane's music.