In 1964, the National Film Board of Canada asked John Coltrane to record the soundtrack for a French-language film titled Le Chat Dans Le Sac (The Cat In the Bag). Amazingly, no announcement was made that Coltrane was adding new performances to this film. In June of that year, Coltrane’s “classic quartet” entered Rudy Van Gelder’s studio and updated five previously recorded Coltrane originals. For many years, viewers of the film who recognized the music thought that they were listening to the original recordings, though in fact they were new.
Then, the tracks lay in some recess for more than five decades. With the arrival of Blue World via Impulse, we can hear these newly discovered recordings for the first time. The tracks were recorded in June 1964 between sessions for Crescent and A Love Supreme· At this time, John Coltrane’s music was heading in an avant-garde direction.
“Naima (Take 1)” has the familiar strains of Trane’s sax flowing effortlessly across the top before McCoy Tyner’s piano takes the helm, with his delicate, intricate style of playing. That has the effect of impacting far more than the easy, laid back feel implies. Coltrane’s sax re-enters over an interestingly syncopated rhythm section from Jimmy Garrison on bass and Elvin Jones on drums – but we should be ready for this: This is the classic quartet, which Trane appeared with over several recordings and which delivers an easy, yet powerfully effectual playing style when the elements come together.
“Village Blue (Take 2)” is swingy, slow and easy on the ears, with the group once again taking a repeated motif and working and re-working it, swapping back and forth in the way great players do. Trane’s tenor here is immense, yet there is a gentleness to the touch as well, which adds a softened line here and there.
“Blue World (Take 1)” preludes with a glorious bass line from Jimmy Garrison before Jones and Tyner join to create a mysterious atmosphere. John Coltrane then adds a haunting, emotive melody, his perfect modal tonality belying the relatively simple harmony. Phrases of complexity and variety are introduced to contrast beautifully with the clear linear tune he plays – and this is what made Trane the master of his craft, as he weaves and gets creative over a steadfast rhythm section. The momentum, as ever, is unrelenting, the tensioned energy mesmeric and the riff over heavy drums moves toward a well-honed finish.
“Village Blues (Take 1)” is a well re-worked (or should that be pre-worked given the take number) version of the song, with a slower delivery of the melody and a spacey, broken up backing, enhanced no end by the rivulets which Tyner introduces on the piano, adding ear candy to the mix. The utter togetherness and harmonic developments by the end of the track, with Trane searing over the top is a joy in itself.
“Village Blues (Take 3)” is lighter, snappier and contains even more of those rivulets of sounds from Tyner. It’s absolutely wonderful, and must have given the film-makers no end of trouble while trying to choose which takes to use. The middle section is amazing, with all of the musicians coming in hard and heavy before deciding en masse to take it right own, slow and stall – with the exception of John Coltrane, who soars away. This is a lesson in interpretation and communication, if ever there was one. “Like Sonny” is packed with grace notes from the sax, blasted at speed over harmonic suggestions from the ensemble before Tyner takes the lead and a melody is set by the piano, over a suddenly emergent walking bass. A lovely track – an exploration of the ‘Blue World’ title track with harmonic expansions and the dissonant contents of the final phrases are joyful, especially as they work to create a harmonic finish.
“Traneing In” begins with clear, resolute bass, during which the full, deep-bellied rumble of the instrument can be heard for just shy of three minutes. The drums and piano join in next, with the piano ringing out a joyful theme, and the bass now strolling underneath, working the changes and providing a steady foundation over which the piano works. Just after five minutes in, Trane joins, adding his flourishes and tonal quality, creating the essence of completion, his innate ability for finding any gaps in the harmonic arrangements which are available and filling them clear and present. This is the best worked track of Blue World, and a highlight. “Naima (Take 2)” is a slow, easy-on-the-ears version of the track, once again taking the familiar and creating with it something comforting – yet there are renewed ideas, further thoughts and inspirational variations. The final section, enhanced by innovative drums, is beautiful.
Blue World is lyrical, as you might expect from Coltrane, but it’s also different from the music the quartet was taking to the road at the time of this 1964 recording. It has the energy, the poignancy and the sensual quality which John Coltrane brought to his music, along with the unassailable understanding that the quality and intuition brought to the recording by the musicians of the quartet emphasizes and inspires his playing. For those who know Coltrane, there is here the essence of the musician. This album makes a great introduction for a new generation, and for those familiar with Trane. There are elements from periods both before and to follow, from glimpses of his incendiary playing on the late recordings to the dark and profound emotive style of his earlier works.
It can be tempting to wonder at the many lost recordings which are being put out by estates or record companies from great players like Coltrane, Thelonious Monk and Miles Davis. The stories of how they were made, hidden away, found and discovered may conjure up images of record impresarios somehow seeing into the future at the time of recording or practice sessions, and working out how much to release and how much to hold back as they watched the lives of their best musicians form and unwind. You may also wonder if there is a store put back of every recording ever made, just in case there is a time in the future when a release might be favorable.
John Coltrane could have released these tracks at the time but did not, so is it perhaps tempting to wonder about his own take on them?
Nevertheless, it’s a fact that the continued release of hidden recordings is a wonderful way to hear or re-hear tunes played differently. Blue World is not so much an album recording, but a collection of takes, retakes and workings – and for that alone, there is value and listening can be an education in itself. Six months after this recording was made, A Love Supreme was to be released. A four-part suite, it recorded in a single session with the same musicians in the same studio – yet with a profound difference in sound.
Blue World was recorded to fulfill an assignment set not by the quartet but by the film company and to this extent, that set limits. The National Film Board of Canada, who produced the film, had as their intent the fostering of a distinctly Canadian media voice – so many of the projects they commissioned were not personal visions made by new directors. The film involves a lengthy self evaluation by the young lead. So, it was the film, not the performance which was the intended center of attention. In this way, perhaps the performances here were tempered a little. If so, the release of these recordings now perhaps turns that on its head.
Wonderful, engaging, mesmeric music – simply Trane, with perhaps his best ensemble of musicians ever. However it came about, John Coltrane’s Blue World is a gift from the past to those familiar with his work and those new to it. One we should treasure and enjoy. This. is. ‘Trane. Simple really.
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