This four-disc box set issued by Prestige collects
John Coltrane's sides for the label as a leader in 1957 and 1958, and his last date as a sideman for them. The material on
Lush Life has its origins in two 1957 trio sessions and one quintet date from January of 1958. On the earlier sessions that make up three of the album's five tracks, the saxophonist is in the company of bassist
Earl May and drummer
Art Taylor. On the nearly 14-minute reading of the title tune and "I Hear a Rhapsody,"
Coltrane's company includes pianist
Red Garland, bassist
Paul Chambers, trumpeter
Donald Byrd, and
Taylor. The sessions for
Soultrane were recorded on February 7; the personnel comprised
Garland,
Chambers, and
Taylor -- these latter three making up the pianist's concurrently running trio. While the album as a whole is flawless, its standouts include
Coltrane's first recorded version of "I Want to Talk About You" and closer "Russian Lullaby," which is an early taste of what would become his "sheets of sound" approach.
Stardust was recorded at two sessions in July and December. On the first date the group comprises trumpeter/flugelhornist
Wilbur Harden,
Garland,
Chambers, and drummer
Jimmy Cobb; on the December date, trumpeter
Freddie Hubbard and
Taylor replace
Harden and
Cobb. Stand-out tracks here include the opening title ballad and the hard-swinging "Then I'll Be Tired of You." The final album here, also recorded in 1958, was released as
Kenny Burrell & John Coltrane. The others members of this album's quintet were pianist
Tommy Flanagan,
Chambers, and
Cobb. The set contains a pair of
Flanagan originals, one by
Burrell, and two standards. While
Coltrane feels somewhat constrained here -- even on the upbeat "Freight Train" -- his playing tends to move the groove right toward the session leader, who absolutely shines.
Coltrane's gorgeous tone is heard best on the Oscar Hammerstein II/
Jerome Kern nugget "Why Was I Born?" All of this material has been made available numerous times before in various packages; this one is budget-priced.
–
Thom Jurek, Rovi