Timeless

by

John Coltrane

Edit

Savoy has released a series called, "Timeless," for various jazz artists. From the title, one might get the impression that these are "Best of" collections, but they aren't. Coltrane, like Miles Davis and Cannonball Adderley (two other artists in the same series), did his most significant recordings on other labels, and none of those tracks are represented here. (Incidentally, "Count Down" is not the same piece on his "Giant Steps" album)

This disc is a collection of Coltrane's recordings for the Savoy label only. I doubt he recorded as a leader on this label since all of these tracks were done under trumpeter Wilbur Harden's name (1958). The tracks are decent, typical 50's hard bop, and as is the case with most of the 50's sessions where Coltrane is a sideman (excepting those with Miles), he stands out. Harden was not thinking in the same direction as Coltrane.

That said, since the original albums these tracks came from and the more recent 2-disc collection of those albums are now all out of print, fans of Coltrane and 50's hard bop might still want to pick this up.