John Coltrane: Coltrane (Deluxe Edition)

Of the two sets, the additional material brought to light on Coltrane seems to be of the greatest value. Disc one preserves the original five album tracks, all of which are now rendered in fabulous 24-bit sound. “Out of This World” swings ferociously and is one of the best of Coltrane’s many extended modal jams. But then, “Tunji,” and “Miles’ Mode” also rank up there pretty highly among the all-time gems.

For the tandem disc seven previously unissued performances are heard for the very first time. “Not Yet” is a churchy amen number by Tyner that was never covered elsewhere to my knowledge and an alternate of “Miles’ Mode” speaks with just as much fire, if not more, than the original leading one to wonder how the decision for the master take was ever arrived upon. A bit more disappointing are four tries at “Tunji,” none of which command the authority of the originally released version. Rounding things out though we have two studio versions of “Impressions,” “Big Nick,” and “Up ‘Gainst the Wall.” As a buddy of mine often advises me, you’ll want to throw out your old copy and get your hands on this new one. It’s the pick of the litter.

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