John Coltrane - Interstellar Space
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Free Music Notes for Interstellar Space
Free Music Review: Powerful duets from Coltrane and Ali.
Hit: 5 Stars
"Interstellar Space" is one of the most challenging and interesting pieces ever recorded by John Coltrane-- a duet between Trane (on tenor and bells) and Rashied Ali (on drums), there is little here to hold onto in terms of conventional structure. Additionally, Coltrane plays with such an intensity and fire that as soon as the theme statements are out of the way, his playing can be downright furious. Ali is able to maintain a sensitive accompaniment, joining in the fury that Coltrane shows and occasionally keeping the recordings grounded enough to prevent them from feeling indulgent.
Opener "Mars" should be enough to show the fire and intensity that Coltrane plays with as he tests the dynamic range and potential of his instrument. There is little regard for conventional harmonic structure and Trane pretty much goes to war with Ali. Similar in feel is "Jupiter"-- took me a long time to be able to really get into this (and I *LOVE* free improv). Coltrane springs loose, breaking the boundaries of the instrument, wailing, screaming, playing the sort of fast runs he was known for, "speaking in tongues", he really pulls out all the stops. Whats amazing is that its the briefest piece on the album, yet probably covers the most ground.
One thing that often separates Coltrane from his less interesting contemporaries is his ability to express any number of moods-- "Venus" opens in nearly a ballad form, and while the improvisation proves to be the most challenging, in terms of lack of expected harmonic structure, there is a delicate beauty to the theme statement and his soloing is breathtaking in its range of sound and power. Trane eventualy turns into a man possessed-- moving through two different simulataneous melodies, alternating between ranges of the instrument before bringing it back together. Again, Ali's sympathetic accompaniment shows a nearly psychic bond had developed between these two men in the two years they played together, and when Coltrane seems to be drifting and reaching to the point of sacrificing the integrity of the piece, Ali holds steady and reels him in.
Likewise very much different in mood is the album closer, "Saturn". A feature for Rasheid Ali, opens with a magnificent solo drum performance. Ali shows the complexity of his playing, and in many ways is more conventional-- whereas he was very much texture oriented on the earlier tracks, there's a stronger rhythmic structure below his solo-- it doesn't have that off-beat feel, but its really something as he manages both inside and out. When Trane does come in to state the theme, it is vaguely reminiscent of "India", but again, Coltrane uses this as a springboard, maintaining that sort of dense "India"-ish feel before moving into territory similar to his protege, Pharoah Sanders. While somewhat more melodic than Sanders was at this point, its clear listening to this that the teacher learned from the student, and when the theme comes back in-- we get some nearly straight swing from both Coltrane and Ali that sounds totally brilliant and fits perfectly. Absolutely stunning.
The bonus tracks that augment this CD are equal in quality of performance as the ones that proceed, but may have been left out because they offer even less for the listener to grab onto. "Leo" (originally titled "The Father, The Son, and the Holy Ghost" on "Meditations"), with its aggressive and somewhat brutal theme, and with only Ali supporting him, Coltrane takes off and never looks back, pushing into the corners of his instrument's potential. Ali gets a feature in this as well, first with a brief solo and then trading with Coltrane-- both men play inspired and with a fire even beyond that of the remainder of the performance. "Jupiter Variation" shows Coltrane exploring the extreme upper register of his instrument and he moves relentlessly between phrases, never stopping.
This album is essential, rewarding, difficult, and rqeuires patience as it has its own way and your ears need time to adjust. It is, however, well worth the wait.
Free Music Review: The third ear (apologies to gysin/burroughs)
Hit: 5 Stars
Wow. My uncle is a Coltrane worshipper like myself, and also a jazz drummer, a really smart and wonderful man, but he quits on Coltrane after 1965. We argue about this music from time to time, he refers to it as idiotic or says it doesn't make musical sense, but he's calmed down because he knows how strongly I feel about this music. My ex wife would leave the house every time I put this record on. I confess these points of view just astound me. Here Coltrane breaks through yet again into musical territory that is virgin soil, he was the first here, and really no one has come close since (With all due respect mister Dorward I don't think the Prevost/Parker recordings come close, I love those guys, and I love that recording, but man this music is just too far ahead of anyone else. All the same I agree with you though that people should check those and their other works out too). From this record alone I will say Rashid Ali is the greatest drummer to use a Western drum kit I have ever heard. He doesn't play like a drummer, he plays like a pianist,like Cecil Taylor really, he is concerned with sounds, with novelty, I could listen to a thousand drummers and know him every time, he never really repeats himself, never finds a recurring beat and always sounds new and interesting (it's a shame he never recorded with Derek Bailey or Sonny Sharrock my god what that would have been like!). This record is a duet between Saxophone and drums, how bold is that? Not a sax record with drums keeping the time, but a true duet, with each musician changing, moving, making sounds of beauty, new tones, new rhythm, new space, new moods. Yes, the drums make moods, they even have a sensitive side! My favourite of the pieces is Venus, but I love them all, some of the sounds Coltrane made that are dearest to my heart are on these recordings. God bless John Coltrane and Rashid Ali for this music, it is demanding, intricate, difficult, but it is worth the effort. Back to Prevost, he demands you listen to his "metamusic" and AMM the same way you would read a book,give it your total attention and focus, not a new idea, but to those who view music as entertainment or a mood enhancer/alteration it is good advice. Listen to this music carefully, clear your mind, hear each event, let it speak to you, move through you, let go of all the preconceptions about music that have been put in your head if you haven't already. It doesn't have to communicate verbally or obviously, it doesn't have to have the structures codified by Europeans five centuries ago or time restraints that date back to the running time of a 45 rpm record. Give this a chance like this, just as an experience, it's not meant for entertainment, but for enlightment. Rashid and Coltrane transcend their egos on this one, it can do it for you too, Coltrane beleived the listener was part of the process. And beleive me, the music of John Coltrane can change your life forever. Even if you don't get it at first the effort alone will do so much for your soul and your life. This is one of the key works of Coltranes, and is essential to any record collection, for it is an essential piece of the music of humanity.Free Music Review: John Coltrane's "Interstellar Space".
Hit: 5 Stars
"Interstellar Space" is one of John Coltrane's final masterworks recorded in February 1967, just five months before his untimely death. This was a time when Coltrane's music was at its most innovative, full of creative free-form intensity and experimental musical ideas. Depending on who you talk to, this final era of Coltrane's life could very well have been his best.
With "Interstellar Space", we find John Coltrane accompanied only by drummer Rashied Ali in a series of six explosive sax/drum duets (two of which are bonus tracks not included on the original LP). Each of the six pieces are similar and feature some of Coltrane's best saxophone work - full of emotion and pure expression. His playing alternates between soaring melodicism and harsh atonality with neither style overshadowing the other. Rashied Ali's drumming is a perfect match for Coltrane's rapid fire performances. At times, his drumming is smooth and unintruding. Then, there are other moments when he attacks the drumkit like a meteor using rapid dynamics and complex time signatures. As mentioned before, Ali's drum style and Coltrane's sax compliment each other beautifully.
The remastered CD includes all six tracks recorded during the February 1967 session and presents the album in superb sound quality revealing every nuance of the recordings. The CD booklet includes a detailed essay on the album and its creative process. As a special hidden bonus, the remastered CD also includes two minutes worth of false starts and studio chatter before track 1 begins. In order to hear these outtakes, hit your play button on your CD player and when track 1 begins, hit your rewind button. The disc should scan back into negative numbers revealing the hidden material.
After 37 years, "Interstellar Space" is still one of John Coltrane's monumental works. The album shows off his sax playing in an unadorned style that remains unsurpassed. Because Coltrane passed away just months after its recording, the album sparks a question of "What might have been?" One can only wonder but without a doubt, he definitely stepped out of this world on top with this. "Interstellar Space", one of the final masterworks from an unprecidented master of timeless music.
Free Music Review: The last masterpiece
Hit: 5 Stars
In 1957 John Coltrane recorded his first masterpiece, Blue Train; in 1967, he recorded his last masterpiece, Interstellar Space. Within 5 months of recording these duets with drummer Rashied Ali, he would die of liver cancer.Though it gets lumped with other "late", post-1965 or avant-garde Coltrane recordings, this album sounds very little like any other Trane recording. Even if you dislike Meditations or Ascension, there's a chance that you'll like this -- and vice versa. The absence of Pharoah Sanders makes this record easier on the ears, and a lot less ferocious. On the other hand people who love the hardcore intensity of stuff like Meditations or Sun Ship may find Interstellar Space to be a little too abstract or austere. The absence of piano creates a lot of space, which may be a good or a bad thing depending on your tastes.
There are still some similarities to Meditations, Sun Ship, etc. -- Coltrane's playing is very free, disregarding harmony and melody for sound. The themes are short and range from serene beauty ("Venus") to dense fury ("Leo"). Though it might seem that this music is random or without structure, the order and structure are just in a different musical language. In some parts, Coltrane is conducting a saxophone dialogue with himself.
I'm a fan of course, and must say that the music is unbelievable. If you're a fan of Trane's saxophone playing, keep in mind that he just PLAYS on this album, with none of his abilities impaired in the least. Rashied Ali is obviously not Elvin Jones, but he complements Trane perfectly and fuels his ideas. As long as you know what you are getting into, this should be one of the first purchases if you want to explore Coltrane's late music. And though very little of his other work sounds like it, the quartet sessions composing Stellar Regions and Expression come from the same time period.
Free Music Review: There is nothing else like it in jazz.
Hit: 5 Stars
The later Coltrane material--after the classic quartet had broken up with only bassist Jimmy Garrison remaining--can be taxing at times even for the most dedicated appreciator of Coltrane's art (such as myself). Pharoah Sanders's inhuman screaming on sax and Alice Coltrane's sometimes meandering piano can prove to be unnerving.This recording, though, is different. Coltrane is paired with Rashad Ali. They are alone together--unforgetably, irreplaceably, enchantingly. There is no dissonance between saxophone and piano (say) because it is reduced to drums and saxophone--notes and beats.
The pieces state a theme develop it in free time (but not chaotically) then return to it. Several pieces have Coltrane playing bells at the beginning and ending of the song. What happens is really beyond description, but I'll try anyway. Trane had developed a speed and instensity that at times makes him sound like a whole orchestra of instruments. It's utterly transcends even the "sheets of sound" period about ten years earlier. I have never heard anyone do it before or since. All these pieces, while in a category by themselves, have a structure, a form, a meaning, however remote it may seem to some or at first blush.
Trane and Ali are always in sync, always breathing the same rarified and intoxifying air of creativity. Free jazz is not anarchy--at least not here; it flows out of concentrated lives of musical concentration and inspiration. Lewis Porter, in his matchless book on Coltrane, has intricately taken apart the music hear, revealing it to manifest a sublime (yes, I said sublime) complexity and profundity--if you have ears to hear. If you don't, try again...
John Coltrane was a gift--and it's never been the same since that gift was taken from us. However, so much of the gift was preserved for posterity. For that, I am thankful--and full of wonder and awe.
Doug Groothuis