John Coltrane's album First Meditations (for Quartet) is a studio album recorded in 1965 but not released until 1977. It's a Quartet version of a suite John Coltrane would record 2 months later with Rashied Ali (drums) and Pharoah Sanders (tenor sax). This is the last recording made by the classic Quartet of McCoy Tyner (piano), Jimmy Garrison (bass), Elvin Jones (drums) and Coltrane ( tenor sax). I can't believe this was their last recording! I would've thought they made more but I guess this is last recording in terms of in the studio, not counting the countless live albums you can get of the classic Coltrane Quartet in 1965. The album was released on Impulse!, a great jazz label back in the day that had countless Coltrane recordings to their name.
First, the album begins with a beautiful tune entitled 'Love'. I've heard a lot of Pharaoh Sanders stuff and it sounds like Sanders, but we all know he got it from Coltrane. But what I mean is that its a beautiful opening over lush piano chords, and the saxophone sometimes engages in over-blowing on the high notes, getting dramatic effect. Basically its a powerful emotional tune with a great saxophone introduction, leading into some great piano arpeggios by McCoy. Then the sax comes back in. I would say that on this Coltrane has a lighter, wispier tone. There's no real tune here but it does sound like a ballad. The music just flows effortlessly, like they just recorded it in one or two takes live in the studio without sheet music. The drums sound like timpani here. Instead of using drumsticks, Elvin Jones used mallets and it sounds great here, adding flair and effect to the atmosphere of the piece. This isn't really a song per se, than it is an attitude, an atmosphere.
Next, is a tune called 'Compassion', another name with emotional ties. This one starts off with more of bluesy bebop feel, having more of a form than the first tune, but still sounding totally free at the same time. Coltrane makes use of over-blowing on the high notes, making the saxophone squeek and squck like nobody else, although there were other saxophonists doing this technique back then, most notably Sun Ra's sax player John Gilmore. But Gilmore used it more for effect. Coltrane uses the technique in the most musical way possible. The notes sound right even though over-blowing isn't proper saxophone technique. If I was a sax player I would definitely learn to do it. Anyways, in this piece Coltrane really extends himself playing a long solo, while the piano is comping in that standard McCoy Tyner comping way. By that I mean he's playing a steady rhythmic pulse with a strong hand, and soloing with the other hand. Once you hear McCoy Tyner you never forget his style and rhythmic touch. Again, like the first piece, this is more of an atmosphere than a song with structure. This is the beginnings of John Coltrane's free-jazz period and you can tell right away just by listening to this. It's interesting to see how Coltrane sounded before that period and how he developed into playing in such a free manner. You can't teach that at school. I don't even think they can teach you how to play bebop or straight-ahead at colleges. They can try but at best you'll only sound like a Charlie Parker clone. Basically these tunes so far have a darker mellow mood and the musicians play off each other, developing ideas.
Then, we have the song 'Joy'. This is more upbeat than the others so far and the drumming especially stands out. It's the great drumming of Elvin Jones. There's a lot of syncopation and emphasis on beats 2 and 4 (a staple of jazz), its so complex but sounds great with the whole Quartet. There's a lot of snare and cymbal hits as well. I would say this tune is modal, which I believe the other tunes are as well. Basically they're staying on certain chord changes and improvising on those alone, not changing it up. Coltrane's second sax solo here sounds amazing. He hits a lot of high over-blown notes, and mixes it up with his classic 'sheets of sound', a flurry of notes played in succession that sound very melodic and are phrased in that Coltrane-esque way. He has a certain way of phrasing where he stops and starts again playing groups of notes. It's very bop and straight-ahead, but it's also very free-jazz at the same time if you know what I mean.
Next, is a tune entitled 'Consequences'. It starts out with some very free drumming before the sax comes in playing these short stabs of music, sounding like complete free-jazz that we would hear more of from Coltrane. The piano playing here is especially free. McCoy sounds like himself but he's playing in a more free way. There's so much going on sonically in this piece even I myself get dumbfounded that this was only 1965 and they were playing like that! They were absolutely killing it here, playing as a unit musically without getting in each others way. The piano solo here is absolutely slaying. After the piano solo, the sax comes back in playing those stabs of sound. I say stabs because that's what hes doing, playing a melody quickly and short. It's really a marvel to hear because with this tune you can really see and hear how he would later play music, in the final year of his life.
Then, the last tune is 'Serenity'. This one starts off as kind of melancholy and haunting, but also beautiful at the same time. It almost sounds like a classical piece of music, especially because Jimmy Garrison is using a bow on his bass, adding this great orchestral ambiance to the piece. McCoy's piano playing here is very classical sounding too. It's like classical meets jazz, but it sounds like free-jazz. It's super cool. Coltrane's sax playing on this piece is the most far out on the whole album. There's melodic lines and moments but there are also chaotic and intense moments as well. This was probably my favorite piece on the whole album.
Lastly, because this is a remastered CD and not a vinyl record there is an extra bonus track. The bonus track is another version of 'Joy'. The thing that really stands out about this alternate version is that there is a bass solo in the beginning of the track. Jimmy Garrison sounds bass-y and melodic but his bass has that woodiness sound to it, like it was recorded un-amplified and just maybe amplified by a mike or something. It's a great sound. He does some interesting things in his solo, like hitting harmonics and making the strings sound detuned, adding great effect. I would say Jimmy Garrison is a very characteristic bass player. All of these guys are. They sound like themselves, which is probably the hardest thing to do as a musician, especially as a jazz musician. I have to say that this is one of the best jazz albums I've heard in a while. It's my style of jazz. It's straight-ahead of the 1960's but it sounds modern to my young ears. I could hear people playing like this today in New York or Chicago. I hear Pharaoh Sanders playing like this today, although he's getting up there in age. This is an album that straight-ahead, blues, and bebop guys can like as well as fans of improvised music, avant-garde, and free-jazz. This is basically the beginnings of free-jazz and boy does it sound beautiful. You really can't beat this band. Everything they did together was great. For me, this band rivals Miles Davis's classic Quintet. Check this one out.
