Live At The Village Vanguard: The Master Takes
John Coltrane's legendary 1961 stint at the Village Vanguard marked one of many watersheds in his career. For the first time on record, Coltrane was delving into extended solos, featuring another saxophonist in his front line and extending the rhythmic palette of his group to include East Indian tinges. Eric Dolphy stands out in the Village Vanguard sessions, both for his poingnant bass clarinet work on "India" and for his dragon-like alto sax elsewhere. As usual with the "classic" Coltrane Quartet, pianist McCoy Tyner and drummer Elvin Jones create a storm of crisp chords and torrential rhythms. This creates an ideal foil for Coltrane's irrepressible saxophone creativity.Andrew Bartlett