JAZZ ICONS: JOHN COLTRANE LIVE IN '60, '61 AND '65

Series 2; Featuring Oscar Peterson and Stan Getz

John Coltrane

Jazz Icons: John Coltrane provides an epic 95-minute overview of a true giant of 20th-century music. Three separate shows reveal Coltranes ascending creative arc from hard bop innovator as a member of the Miles Davis Quartet in 1960 to consummate bandleader in 1961 to unrivalled jazz visionary in 1965. This DVD not only features Tranes classic quartet with Elvin Jones (drums), Jimmy Garrison (bass) and McCoy Tyner (piano), but also spotlights him onstage with other jazz legends including Stan Getz, Eric Dolphy and Oscar Peterson. Includes mind-blowing versions of his signature tunes My Favorite Things and Impressions.

From the Foreword: "Its hard to imagine that John Coltrane's recording career lasted only 12 years. His was an unending intellectual and spiritual quest through music. No one with such an extraordinary degree of talent worked as hard to master his instrument and to seek the deepest form of human expression through it.....In that 12 years, Coltrane was always instantly identifiable, yet always changing and evolving. The three performances on this DVD show in dramatic relief the most important phases of his career.....These newly discovered 1960 performances with Miles Daviss rhythm section find him near the end of his 'sheets-of-sound' period, which gave us such masterpieces as 'Mr. P.C.' and 'Giant Steps.' Coltrane was anxious to form his own group and this final tour with Davis was a favor to the trumpeter. His restlessness shows through in his playing here and elsewhere at the time. It is fascinating to hear him with one of his early idols Stan Getz and his playing seems to challenge Getz to a new level.....The 1965 Comblain-La-Tour performance, providing some great visuals, allows us to see the group at the peak of its powers and near the end of its run. By the end of the year, McCoy and Elvin were gone and one of the most innovative and exciting ensembles in jazz was no more."--Michael Cuscuna, July 2007

The 7 volume Jazz Icons Series 2 features classic performances from some of the greatest legends of the past 50 years, captured in their prime in various locations from the 1950s through the 1970s. The DVDs are transferred from the original masters, and each DVD features a 24-page booklet with an essay written by an authoritative jazz historian as well as rare and unseen photos. The series is produced with the full support and cooperation of the artists or their estates, many of whom are contributing rare personal photographs, memorabilia, and forewords. These concerts have never been officially released on home video, and in many cases, the material was never broadcast. We are very proud to present all of these DVDs.

"This is like the discovery of a bonanza of previously unknown manuscripts of plays by William Shakespeare." Nat Hentoff, Wall Street Journal.

"These historic DVDs are among the most important visual/aural documents to be mined from the ever-yielding, seemingly hidden jazz treasury. Now, most importantly, they are available to the entire world." Ira Gitler, co-author, The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz (Oxford)

"Considering the almost alarming proliferation of jazz DVDs on the market today, and their extremely variable quality, it is good to know that Reelin In The Years can be trusted to bring viewers nothing but the best in content and presentation." Dan Morgenstern, Director, Institute of Jazz Studies, Rutgers University; author, Living With Jazz (Pantheon Books)

Contents:

Germany 1960:
1. Autumn Leaves
2. What's New
3. Autumn in New York
3. On Green Dolphin Street
4. Walkin'/The Theme

Germany 1961:
1. My Favorite Things
2. Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye
3. Impressions

Belgium 1965:
1. Vigil
2. Naima
3. My Favorite Things

Features:
24-page booklet
Liner notes by Ashley Kahn
Foreword by Michael Cuscuna
Cover photo by Chuck Stewart Booklet photos by Roger Kasparian, William "Popsie" Randolph, Lee Tanner, Hans E. Hael, Ed Van Der Elsken, K. Abe
Memorabilia collage

Musicians