On December 9th, 1964, John
Coltrane and his classic quartet (Elvin Jones, Jimmy Garrison and McCoy Tyner)
went into the legendary Van Gelder Studio in New Jersey and recorded A Love
Supreme--the four-part suite that has influenced musicians and reached
generations of fans far beyond the jazz world. Far less known is the fact that
Coltrane, his classic quartet and two additional musicians--the legendary
saxophonist Archie Shepp and second bassist, Dr. Art Davis--returned to the
studio the next day to cut the opening part of the suite again. Until now, the
complete picture of what happened on those two days, including all takes,
overdubs, and even studio chatter, has been unavailable.
That will
change on November 6th when Verve Music Group proudly releases A Love Supreme:
The Complete Masters, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the release of this
seminal recording. It will include this alternate version, taken from reels
from the personal collection of John Coltrane and originally recorded in
incredible sonic detail by Rudy Van Gelder, along with revised notes and detailed
information on these amazing lost sessions. This release will kick off a
celebration of the 60th anniversary of the Verve label, which will include
myriad catalog releases, digital exclusives and box sets through the end of
2016. (Verve includes the catalogs of legendary imprints like Impulse!, Decca,
MGM, Blue Thumb and many more.)
With the
availability of long-lost session reels, A Love Supreme: The Complete Masters
brings together all existing recordings and written outlines for the first time
to paint the most comprehensive and accurate picture of the A Love Supreme
story. It reveals how Coltrane's masterpiece came together, from its initial
conception as a nine-piece performance--it turns out the original plan was for
a nine-piece band, including three Latin percussionists--to how it changed and
developed in the studio. While the 2002 edition of A Love Supreme did include
some of the music recorded at the second session, The Complete Masters is the
first to feature all six takes of "Acknowledgement," the opening
section of the suite, in their entirety, providing a deeper understanding and
appreciation of how Coltrane would allow music to mature in the studio. The box
also presents takes one and two of the track "Acknowledgement" from
the sextet sessions in stereo for the first time.
A Love
Supreme: The Complete Masters will be available in two formats: a 2-CD set,
including the original best-selling album, along with unreleased mono
"reference" versions of two tracks, owned by Coltrane himself, and
seven unreleased performances from the two sessions. A 32-page booklet features
an extensive essay by Ashley Kahn, noted producer, instructor and author of A
Love Supreme: The Story of John Coltrane's Signature Album, rare photographs
from the sessions and all of Coltrane's surviving musical sketches and written
elements for the groundbreaking, four-part suite, including the words that
would become the poem, "A Love Supreme."
A 3-CD
"Super Deluxe Edition" of A Love Supreme: The Complete Masters adds
what is currently the only documented live recording of the album, a spirited,
impromptu performance from the Festival Mondial du Jazz Antibes in July 1965,
which had been previously available on a 2002 edition of the album. This 3-CD
set is presented in a larger format that includes additional information about
the live material and a personal introduction by Carlos Santana.
A Love
Supreme was Coltrane's most pre-conceived, meticulously planned musical
recording: "This is the first time I have everything ready," he
famously told his wife Alice after composing the suite in their Long Island
home. It was also his most successful, a high-water mark in Coltrane's career
and popularity in 1965-generating two GRAMMY® Award-nominations, and earning
him top position in various polls that year. That A Love Supreme remains a
permanent fixture in lists of Greatest and Most Important musical recordings of
the modern era--Rolling Stone magazine places it at No. 47 in its "500
Greatest Albums Of All Time"--speaks to the enduring significance of Coltrane's
music and his message of spirituality.
In 2015,
John Coltrane's recordings continue to be studied and celebrated by musicians
and music fans alike; the overwhelmingly critical success of the 2014 release
of Coltrane's 1966 concert recording, Offering: Live At Temple University,
which garnered a GRAMMY® Award for its liner notes, stands as further proof of
the timeless reach of Coltrane's musical innovations.
As Kahn
writes in the essay to A Love Supreme: The Complete Masters: "Fifty years
after its release, voices that speak of divine light and supreme love have
trouble being heard. Lines that divide people run deep. At odds with itself,
the world lacks the spirit to ascend and is needful once again of a spiritual
recharger like A Love Supreme. The sound and message of John Coltrane remain
more relevant than ever."
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