The Heavyweight Champion: John Coltrane on Atlantic

John Coltrane's tenure with the Atlantic Records label was remarkably brief; he recorded his first session with the label in January, 1959 and his last for them before leaving for Impulse! in May, 1961. But what a body of work it is, two and a half years of jazz that continues to fascinate and instruct fans and musicians a half century later. The label released eight albums during Coltrane's lifetime, including such iconic titles as Giant Steps and My Favorite Things, as well as two posthumous releases of outtakes that came out during the 1970s. The Heavyweight Champion: The Complete Atlantic Recordings collects all this material and more, presenting all the existing master takes from his Atlantic sessions along with a bonus disc that shows you the development of several songs by presenting them in incomplete takes leading up to the final version.

The set is attractively packaged, a sturdy cardboard box including seven discs and a hardcover booklet whose photograph-dotted, glossy pages feature essays on Coltrane and remberances from his bandmates and peers. The box set presents Coltrane's Atlantic sessions in chronological order, a significant change from the scattershot way that the LPs originally came out in the 1960s and (counting the posthumous issues) 1970s. Coltrane was an artist who was always trying new things and to develop as a musician, so this is really the right way to hear him.

Some things come into clearer focus this way; the first session, for example, was released as Bags and Trane in 1962, but it's actually from January 1959. Moreover, the record was billed as by John Coltrane and (Modern Jazz Quartet vibraphonist) Milt Jackson, but hearing it here you can tell that the session was really Jackson's in the first place and that Coltrane's name was featured so prominently to help capitalize on his popularity. Anyway, it's a pretty good session with a stellar cast all around--joining the pair are Connie Kay on drums, bassist Paul Chambers and Hank Jones (brother of eventual Coltrane Quartet drummer Elvin) on piano. This date features an assortment of Jackson originals and standards, and it's certainly nice and tasteful even if it doesn't sound much like the music Coltrane had moved on to at the time of the LP release.

The centerpiece of the set--and Coltrane's tenure on Atlantic--is the set of recordings that went into the landmark Giant Steps LP. In addition to the final takes, there is an interesting earlier session featuring Cedar Walton on some of the albums tracks, and the last disc features several partial takes that show several songs (mostly from Giant Steps, but there are a couple of others) in a developmental stage--one take will be fast, one slower, etc. Though you may not want to hear these takes repeatedly, they are fascinating studies to hear at least once. 

Giant Steps is justly canonized as a jazz classic.  It probably features Coltrane's best and most distinctive work as a composer. For my money, though, Coltrane's finest hours as a soloist during this period come in the sessions released on lp as My Favorite Things and Ole.  The title track of the latter, a long modal vamp to a flamenco rhythm anchored by bassist Dr. Art Davis is one of my personal favorites from Coltrane's entire career, while his recording of the Rogers and Hammerstein showtune is simply one of the most famous jazz recordings ever.  The series of deceptively simple numbers originally issued as Coltrane Plays the Blues are all enjoyable, as is an interesting session of interpretations of Ornette Coleman pieces featuring MJQ bassist (and early Coleman advocte) Percy Heath along with Coleman sidemen Don Cherry on trumpet and drummer Ed Blackwell.  This set initally came out in 1966, credited to Coltrane and Cherry under the title The Avant Garde.

Late Coltrane drummer Elvin Jones once opined that people he knew who got into Coltrane eventually wanted to have everything he ever recorded.  So I guess that tells you what you need to know about this set.  If you are new to Coltrane and unsure whether you want this much of his music, chances are buying this set will save the trouble of collecting all the individual discs later.  If you are already a fan, you either already want or actually own The Heavyweight Champion.