John Coltrane: A rare and beautiful look into the life of Trane while on the road. Recorded in Europe before going onto the bandstand with Miles, Trane speaks of his favorite records, his biggest influences on the saxophone, and announces he will shortly be leaving Miles's band to form his own group. He speaks of having several people in mind, and eventually including a fifth member of the group! Who knew what the results of this would actually be! This is the most relaxed and open of the audio interviews with Trane.
John Coltrane: One of two extensive interviews with Trane, this interview was recorded while on tour with Miles in 1959. It features a plethora of discussions on the meaning of life, philosophy, Trane's upbringing, and the depth of music in Trane's life. Recorded by interviewer August Blume, it is casual, yet formal in the sense that the subject matter is quite dense. I'm not sure what the circumstances of the interview were, but the subject matter seemed a bit heavy for the vibe of the evening, considering the sounds of pots and pans banging and clanging in the background. Still, an astounding interview.
John Coltane/Stan Getz!: This is hard to imagine, but this video features Trane, Stan Getz, and the Oscar Peterson Trio! The tune is Riftide, and the blowing is pretty spectacular. Given the apparent conflicting styles the band sounds surprisingly good. Peterson comps with the same general concept with Getz and Trane, and because of Trane's sheets of sound approach during this period in his playing, Trane sounds really comfortable with this rhythm section behind him. This is a great one!
John Coltane/Wynton Kelly Trio: I've never seen or heard of this video or audio until recently. The band is Wynton Kelly, Jimmy Cobb, and what sounds like Paul Chambers playing "Walkin' ", most likely while on tour with Mile's band (they play "No Blues" directly afterwards, which is what Miles often played at the end of his sets). This is a killing recording, and a rare gem for Trane to be heard with this band during this period in his playing.
This series of interviews is made publicly possible through the BBC radio broadcasting Corporation, and documents many extraordinary interviews with our greatest jazz masters:
(You must have Real Player to play these interviews)
Pharoah Sanders: Pharoah is a tenor man who continues to astound me. This video of his performance of "My Favorite Things" utilizes Trane's classic interpretation of the tune. His control over pacing, harmonic development and interaction with the band are extraordinary. Pharoah is an artist who constantly re-evaluated his place and role within the music, and this recent recording of him shows just what an amazing improviser and soundsmith he truly is. Check out his use of overtones, altissimo and incredible facility--wow.
Joe Lovano: A great personal interview of Joe Lovano on his website which outlines the new directions of his latest project, "Streams of Expression," which is a monumental effort. A great video is also included of a recent addition to the saxophone world, the "Chromatica," a saxophone which combines two sopranos played simultaneously, and enables a whole world of microtones and polyphonic lines to be played together. There's lots to see on this site, and you shouldn't miss it!