This is comparable to finding buried treasure. Or as Sonny Rollins said, “It’s like finding a new room in the Great Pyramid”. I’m referring to the recently discovered recording by the infamous John Coltrane quartet. These are compositions that Coltrane recorded on March 6, 1963 the day before his duet recording with Johnny Hartman. At this stage in his relationship with Impulse he had the ability to come into the studio and record whenever he wanted. The result of this session is seven tunes, three of them untitled. The album opens with “Untitled Original 11383”, a fiery tune with Coltrane on Soprano. The quartet is in peak form with Elvin Jones pulsating polyrhythms and McCoy Tyner’s soloing provide superb support. “Untitled Original 11386” finds the quartet hitting hard on the Latin flavored melody. “Villa” is a bluesy number with Coltrane recording alternative takes on Tenor and Soprano. What can be said about this quartet that hasn’t been said already. Just another tremendous record by one of the best quartets of all time. Don’t hesitate to purchase.
