John Coltrane
Blue Train
Blue Note/King Records (Japan) 1977
GXF 3010 (LP) w/insert.
sleeve : EX-(SRW, some wear on side and corner, slightly color-faded)
media : EX+/EX+(some slightly noise)
The only leader album John Coltrane recorded for Blue Note, and an immortal masterpiece that stands as one of the defining works of hard bop. Recorded in 1957 with a powerful lineup featuring Lee Morgan, Curtis Fuller, Kenny Drew, Paul Chambers, and Philly Joe Jones, the album opens with the title track “Blue Train,” an overwhelming performance that builds rapidly in intensity from its weighty theme, with Coltrane’s taut, full-bodied tenor intertwining with Morgan’s brilliant trumpet and Fuller’s deep-toned trombone. From the blues-drenched “Locomotion” and the beautiful ballad “I’m Old Fashioned” to the high-speed brilliance of “Lazy Bird,” this album offers a full taste of Coltrane’s richly developed hard-bop playing on the eve of the modal and spiritual explorations he would later pursue. Japanese pressing released in 1977 as part of King Records’ Blue Note Immortal Masterpiece 1800 series. Includes insert.
A1: Blue Train
B2: I’m Old Fashioned