Blue Train (1958)
John ColtraneWhat is it about Lee Morgan that demands my attention? Here I am casually listening to one of the greatest albums of all time — “I’m Old Fashioned” is on, Morgan’s solo comes last, and my head snaps up from what I am doing.
Whereas Miles is wispier, smoother, Morgan is stout and defiant. All right, both are defiant, which is one of the things I love about MD. But Morgan’s tone runs bright and almost flamboyant, where Davis’ is darker, more somber.
Blue Train (1958)
John ColtraneThis was my first serious listen to Blue Train on the new Inspire SET, volume hovering around 80%—and this little amp absolutely delivers. There’s something about the SET presentation here that feels right for a record like this: dimensional, unforced, revealing without turning analytical. The more I listened, the more the stage came into focus, not as an abstract audiophile trick, but as a room with bodies in it. …
Moanin’ (1958)
Art Blakey and the Jazz MessengersDropping into Moanin’ after The Sidewinder and Somethin’ Else feels like stepping into a room where the lights have just been dimmed and someone cracked a window for the night air. It’s still unmistakably a Van Gelder space—dark background, crisp outlines, the sense that each musician has been carved into the air with careful hands—but here the edges feel a touch more defined than on the Adderley record. You can …
The Sidewinder (1964) Redux
Lee MorganDropping the metaphorical needle on The Sidewinder again for my inaugural monthly playlist felt a bit like meeting an old friend after years apart and realizing they haven’t aged a day—maybe even picked up a little more charm. I’ve written about this album before, but hearing it now, in the context of this December hard-bop constellation, I’m struck by how perfectly it still defines what “jazz” means in the cultural …
Hard Bop Constellations
Various ArtistsAnnouncing a new approach my listening: a monthly playlist of related albums that I will listen to and write about, discussing cultural connections, impressions, and backgrounds: I’ll tag this series. It’ll provide me with a focus each month, so I’ll know what I’m listening to throughout half the month, anyway. I’ll begin this experiment with a modest-sized list, say around ten albums, and go from there. I figure a …
The Sidewinder (1964)
Lee MorganLee Morgan’s The Sidewinder (1964) is a groove-fueled jolt of swagger, sophistication, and soul that straddles the boundary between hard bop and popular culture. It became Blue Note’s unexpected hit, sneaking into jukeboxes and even the Billboard charts, and in the process, it helped save the label from financial trouble. Think of it as the jazz equivalent of an indie film that suddenly finds itself breaking box …
Mid-March Playlist
Various ArtistsMy listening session today had another eclectic playlist, ranging from experimental atmospheric soundtracks to ninety’s pop. The Cronus was set to ultralinear mode through the whole session, and while none of the music sounded bad, there were obvious sonic stand-outs, both meh and yeah. I mention this, because my last system, I tended to avoid certain types of music since they sounded flawed. In this system, while it …
