Ornette Coleman: New York Is Now & Love Call Revisited

These sessions, the last two Ornette Coleman would record for Blue Note Records, in April and May of 1968, are generally remembered for the rhythm section. Was it Coleman or producer Francis Wolff that invited John Coltrane's former sidemen, bassist Jimmy Garrison and drummer Elvin Jones to record? Was this a scheme to draw the Coltrane listener into Coleman's domain? Likely no. Jones had left Trane's band when Rashied Ali was introduced into the band and the saxophonist shifted to more free jazz. Coleman had recorded earlier with the drummers Billy Higgins and Ed Blackwell, before switching to Charles Moffett for the Golden Circle sessions in 1965, and then his ten (yes 10!) year old son Denardo Coleman. Garrison's former experience with the saxophonist was as bassist on Coleman's Ornette On Tenor (Atlantic, 1962).

What is often overlooked is the appearance of Dewey Redman in this session. Like Coleman, Redman was originally from Fort Worth, Texas. He played in a high school band with Coleman, Prince Lasha, and Charles Moffett. He had moved to New York and can be heard in the Ornette Coleman-influenced Old and New Dreams band. On these two sessions, Redman was shedding his Texas tenor sound for Coleman's modern approach. Redman's vocalizations still exhibit the tradition and play off handsomely against Coleman's biting tone. This is a tug-of-war of sorts with Jones, Garrison, and Redman pulling Coleman one way and being pulled in an opposite direction. Tracks like "Toy Dance," "Check Out Time," and "Round Trip" harken back to Coleman's earlier recordings for Contemporary, and "Love Call" has Coleman picking up a trumpet which points to his future experimentation. Fans of John Zorn's Spy Vs. Spy: The Music Of Ornette Coleman (Nonesuch, 1988) will recognize the signature "Broad Way Blues" first heard here and the Ken Nordine-inspired improvisation "We Now Interrupt For A Commercial" with Coleman sawing on a violin, is an interesting throwaway.

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