Expression
When he died on July 17, 1967, John Coltrane was in a period of exploration, and while his musical pedigree afforded him a level of jazz authenticity that perennial outsiders such as Albert Ayler, Ornette Coleman, and Cecil Taylor could only dream of, the cathartic, rhythmically turbulent music of 1965-1967 tested the indulgence and endurance of even his staunchest fans. But Coltrane was a creative lightning rod for any number of improvisors, and while a few jazzmen, such as the Art Ensemble of Chicago and Julius Hemphill, followed his spiritual lead, his vertical constructs and open-ended modality also found fruition in the open-ended, electric blues and jazz of groups such as Cream, the Jimi Hendrix Experience, the Mahavishnu Orchestra, and the many bands of Trane's old mentor Miles Davis. "Ogunde" is an ecstatic, rolling ballad, all white-peaked waves and billowing winds, in the lyric tradition ofA Love Supreme. Likewise, on "Offering," the centerpiece ofExpression, Trane proceeds from a stirring lyric prelude, through spasmodic rhythmic abstractions, culminating in a jubilant, wailing dialogue with the droning, pulsating percussion of Rashied Ali.--Chip Stern