Eleven years ago, my mother was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. Between her diagnosis in May, 2013 and her passing in October, 2014, John Coltrane's music provided me with spiritual comfort and direction. To this day, whenever I feel lost, A Love Supreme and everything John recorded afterwards returns me to solid ground.
Thank you for this video!! I am new to your channel and while I had listened to Love Supreme previously, I had no idea about all the backstory of the record and going into it again with this newfound knowledge really helped me get a new appreciation for this great album. I also discovered the live recording from France through your video, and it was so much fun to listen to!!
Jazz vocalist Kurt Elling composed a "jazz vocalese" to Resolution, and his recordings are great. He did it with his own ensemble on his album "Man In The Air" and also on Bob Mintzer's album "Old School: New Lessons" where Bob took Elling's vocalese and wrote an arrangement for full jazz orchestra.
please keep doing jazz reviews, as a (mostly) non-musician I've struggled with interpreting jazz and your creative/poetic descriptions are evocative and inspiring :)
Great job, Ms. Devoe! Seriously, for someone who doesn't know the technical side of music, from someone who also worships music without the technical knowledge, you described this album beautifully. Thank you!
Inspired analysis Abbey - so well thought out and researched! I'm a pretty seasoned jazz listener and you brought out so many interesting qualities and beautiful facts about this piece of music. Loved your Naima vocalisation! 😀 Well done Abbey!
I want to be honest, Abby. I clicked on this expecting my "Abby is in waaaaay over her head now" moment. But no, you stood your ground, faced your fear, and served it up: Coltrane as you see it, articulated beautifully. Respect. applause applause applause
My sister and I used to sit at the piano and put our fingers as far an apart as possible and call it dad’s music. He was a a jazzer, and quite enjoying our mockery. Made me a better listener in retrospect
At 17 during the beginning of my senior year of high school, Ibought a very used VW Beetle for $500. I installed an 8-track tape deck in it and this is the first recording I bought to play in it so this record has a lot of good memories for me. The next week I got Weather Report and John McLaughlin.
Everyone: "A love supreme is an incredibly deep, complex album that can take many many relistens over years to fully comprehend" Coltrane: A love supreme A love supreme A love supreme A love supreme
I have a devout catholic friend, who uses A love Supreme, as prayer devotional. He listens to side one for his morning reading and meditation. Side two for devotions and reading before bed to end his day.
@@abigaildevoe every day side one is sunrise and side two is sun down. I forget. Is this routine called vespers?? I forget. Is this catholic meditation routine called Vespers??
Elvin (Fucking) Jones. Absolutely right! Great video. I could not have said and done this any better myself. My "love supreme" is probably Charles Mingus' live version of "Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting" on his "Mingus At Antibes" album. Ted Curson spits fire on his trumpet solo. Booker Ervin is incredible in his tenor sax solo. Then, Eric Dolphy brings the house down on my favorite solo of all time. And I've seen footage of them performing this. How are they just standing there motionless in front of a microphone? It sounds like the rapture is upon us and Dolphy's just singing from the pulpit. (No, I'm not really religious, either, but I was raised Catholic.) Either that or Rahsaan Roland Kirk's "Saxophone Concerto" on "Prepare Thyself To Deal With A Miracle." That said, Coltrane's output from "A Love Supreme" thru "Meditations" is probably the greatest output by one artist over a year's time...including Dylan's '65-'66, the Beatles' 1967 (or...any other year of theirs), or Mingus's 1959.
I saw Elvin and McCoy Tyner live around 1972-1973 and interviewed Archie Shepp, (almost played with him once!), Sun Ra and met several other of these musicians. You did a great job on this! Future recommendations might be Ornette Coleman, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, McCoy Tyner and Cecil Taylor and Alice Coltrane records if you have not done so already!
Absolutely love this video. The psychedelic rock content is always amazing but it's so much fun to see you dive into jazz and talk about it so passionately.
Interesting that Jimmy Hendrix got mentioned in the introduction to this video as he was supposedly inspired by Charlie Christian, the first electric guitar hero.
8:53 - I'm not a jazz musician, though I play interpretations of some jazz standards, This is my take, but real jazz musicians correct me where I'm wrong (it's also hard to read when notes on written on the actual score lines). Coltrane is mapping out the different parts. Part I - Horn starts out in E natural, drums kick in with a specific beat (I don't read percussion music scores), bass and piano start in with E flat minor. The horn starts the first theme of the song before going into a solo in 4/4 time. Hard to read the rest of Part I handwriting. Part II is in B flat minor with a quick bar of specific notes though that might be the piano solo, which is followed by another horn solo and then goes back to the melody. Part III looks to be a bass solo in C minor, and I can't easily make out the rest of the handwriting clear enough to comment, but maybe the Horn starts Part IV. My best guess.
On COSMIC MUSIC John & Alice open THE SUN with the chant; "May there be peace and love and perfection, throughout all creation, oh God.". So A LOVE SUPREME is not Coltrane's only recorded vocal. OTHERWISE, no notes. Love yr work.
You don't have to remain naive to music education. A little music theory couldn't hurt; it might be a key to unlock even greater understanding. I have a degree in music theory and composition and i am grateful for it even though i am not a professional musician.
You did it. I'm impressed. I've been listening to this since it came out. To see it reverberating across four generations like this almost makes the state of the rest of the world bearable. (You're going to make me finally break down and listen to the MC5.)
I ✨love✨ this episode. For so many reasons 😩 You are such a brilliant lady, Miss Abby. I mean that literally…you are so smart it makes my heart burst to hear your personal impressions of this music while tying it all up in one very groovy bow. I admit I haven’t been able to watch full episodes in a long while (I watch 60 seconds every Monday tho I promise heheh) but damn. Congratulations to me for picking this one to get back into it LOL ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
@@AnEverydayHouseholdItem Have you read the whole blazing dumpster fire of a comment section? I'm amazed some of these guys could type their comments, seeing they were fapping so hard with the other hand
The consistency in the quality of your reviews is just second to none. I would be interested in learning a little about the process of how you chose which albums to review and those you put to one side for a rainy day. Thanks for all you do.
there’s so much in my collection i’d love to cover but just doesn’t have the audience for a full episode: francoise hardy, tommy james, lots of john mayall live recordings, pretty much everything after 2010. it’s a matter of weighing what there’s an audience for and not doing too much of the same thing in a row (i even feel bad when i cover 2 albums released in the same year back-to-back!) other than that, it’s simple really. if i love it (or i’m just curious about it,) it goes on the albums list
@@abigaildevoe Thanks, Abigail. I appreciate you taking the time to respond. I am happy to wait sans bated breath for Steely Dan when sufficient demographics meet the requirements. :)
Wow! A departure from the usual playlist, and an excellent choice. Could you get a Charles Mingus in a future episode? Something with "Jump Monk" or "Moanin'" or "Good Bye Pork Pie Hat"? Similar to Coltrane, Mingus had a great wife. The Charles Mingus Band still plays in NYC, and credit goes to Sue Mingus, who recently passed away. That is a story worthy of a VM. You can think of jazz performers grouped by instrument, like 'saxophones', or 'drums' or 'Piano', and debate who among the several were the best. But Mingus is like no other jazz performer/composer.
First time viewer to this channel. Abigail, I'm super impressed by your vast knowledge of music. I thought I knew a lot after 64 years, but you have me beat. Thanks for your take on A Love Supreme. I learned a lot.
I always enjoy that the presentations are like little plays, with structure, costumes and information . Coltrane did play with a singer on only one album , a guy with a mezzo bass tone, Johnny Hartman.
A what? A mezzo bass? There's no such thing. Johnny Hartman was a baritone. This just goes to add weight to my theory is that the people who watch this channel are just as big a bunch of know-nothings than the creator is
Alice's solo records are exceptional works. I did manage to see her live and she was extraordinary. Modal jazz is, in simplest terms, different ordering of the scales beyond major and minor scales. The modes are considered to have origins in Greece and they can simply be described as treating a scale as originating at different points from the key. Miles Davis is usually credited as introducing these, but they are based on concepts, in jazz at least, by George Russell and in classical music, extensively used by Olivier Messian much earlier. You can think of things like an Indian scale or middle eastern scales as examples of different modal scales, but there are many, many modes. I don't know if that helps.
@Chromexus I am aware of this. George Russell developed the approach in jazz in the 1950s. Most composers were aware of modes, and they were intermittently employed wh 0:00 en composers wanted to expand their tool kits. But Messiaen developed an entire language out of modes.
i wish it was burned into my brain from some actually intelligent reason, but no. editing every song into giant steps was a big meme 2 years ago and i was obsessed.
I’m one of those unfortunate people who didn’t “get” jazz, then I watched La La Land and it quickly became one of my favourite genres, this album is an absolute essential
I love that you did a jazz episode! I'm never sure whether or not to cover the jazz albums, because it'd be so easy to get too technical, and because it can be a divisive genre. Thanks for going there!
@@AnEverydayHouseholdItem - that did occur to me, though I heard the story years ago, just as I was typing the comment. Be well and take the horn out of your mouth every little once in a while. Or not. I'm glad John was that passionate.
I'm curious to see when you go down the Canterbury rabbit hole and I'm sure you will. Talk about what jazz did to those cats! Sure, it was essentially an underground movement, or in the parlance of the 90's, "alternative". I've always felt that the Canterbury scene was a catalyst for what more mainstream bands of the late 60's ended up trying out by the 70's.
Super job, Abby, in delineating and opining one of the greatest albums all time -- sacred, eternal, and worthy to be on that gold digital disk still heading cosmic interstellar on one of the 2 Voyagers. Bravo :)
I just wanna say that, as a black viewer, it’s refreshing to see you cover more black artist on your channel. Hope theres more to come in the near future.
i think what you ask is reasonable and balance is always a good thing. I can see that a lot of people have liked what you said. just to say that vinyl monday's origins began, to a large degree, with the generous gift of a large ready formed collection of a few hundred records. she got into a lot of the albums already discussed on this channel by working through that collection. other gifts from subscribers arrive intermittently. she consistently talks about black music. there is so much love for vinyl monday it ensures that there is a lot of clamour for this and that to be covered. i'm not speaking for abigail devoe i'm just saying that the premise of the channel, from my viewing experience, is the overview of a personal collection ( classic rock psych folk ) a vinyl collection : and not necessarily to provide a comprehensive history of music. great thing is she will listen to our shout outs, aquire accordingly and there's always next week!
The 1960s and 70s were a rich time for just about all popular music genres. R&B, Soul, Funk and Jazz artists were doing tremendous things during that period. I think it's inevitable that AD will be reviewing some of that material.
@@alanclayton9277 Thanks for this reply, but I’m already aware of this information. I’m just saying that, as a black person, I would like to see her cover more black artist/music on her channel, as there are a lot of black music and artist from the ‘60’s and ‘70’s that are either criminally underrated or completely ignored. It would be nice to see somebody (not just Abby) to at least shed light on these artist and bring more attention to them. Plus it feels nice to feel represented. You have to understand, as a minority, representation is very important to me.
For those newbies who want to first tread lightly, listen to Blue Train, My Favorite Things, maybe even Lush Life, before you step into, A Love Supreme..
Super interesting review of an album (or suite) everybody should listen at least once. I personally think of it as a challenging piece of music that moved the dial forward in tonality, modality, and other technicalities... One should never be afraid of records like Kind of Blue, Smokin' at the Half Note by Wes Montgomery, or this one. Jazz is NOT music for the "musically educated" or the "elites". The only thing jazz snob people achieve is driving potential fans away. So congratulations on this one. Great analysis.
Your ignorance is profound. You do have to have at least some basic comprension of how music works and what the musician is trying to achieve in order to understand jass. Your statement just legitimizes lazy listeners, like our commentator, who can't be bothered respecting what the musicians have laboured to do.
@@JavierMoreno1 There's just no need to patronize her. It's cruel and it just makes her go further out in things she in no way understands, making a bigger fool of herself
@@thisyearswalrus6837 I don't care. Music is entertainment, period. You should know that because that's what JAZZ is about. By the way, she has a channel with content, you don't. Give me something to talk about.
@@Handles_allow_RUclips_spying You are right, handles allow youtube spying. (May 2022). Coltrane's good for everybody, despite knowing about Eb9aug chords or just having a good time. Why can't all of you snobs realize you are wasting time and alienating people who want to know and discover?
Your music reactions are so entertaining! I lived in San Francisco a block away from the Church of St. John Coltrane when it was on Divisadero Blvd. I attended for the music. I don't know who showed up every week, but they played the best jazz I ever heard live.
You are doing a great job. I am a jazz electric bassist. Not a pro but it's a wonderful hobby. I am a rocker at heart but in music school they did not offer rock, so jazz it was. Very happy to discover jazz, it takes work but it is worth it to be a jazz listener.
And with this, Abigail has officially levelled up. Just picked up the vinyl version of the Complete Masters version of this. Perfect timing. Seriously though - you are "must watch" content every week, no matter which album. Your research, presentation, and enthusiasm are top-tier. You should be truly proud of what you've given us today. Thank you. And mark my words: someday, you're going to do Talk Talk's Laughing Stock (and maybe even do Spirit of Eden along with it; trust me, you'll make an amazing episode of this duo). I'm calling it now.
Hell yeah, another Talk Talk fan I think she once said that Wealth was the one of the most beautiful songs she's ever heard, it's on one of her monthly Spotify playlists.
Fun fact: it took years and years before it was publicly known that the poem in the gatefold were the words for Psalm. Somehow nobody put the 2 and 2 together. It must have been mind-blowing to those who figured it out by themselves. I think it only became common knowledge in the 1990s with the advent of CD liner notes. And if you read the words and listen to the music it‘s easy to follow, as every phrase he plays matches every word perfectly.
Hello Abigail, I'm glad you've been touched by the magnificence of Coltrane and "A Love Supreme". Thanks also for mentioning the beautiful album "Crescent", which was the first Coltrane album I bought, as a teenager in 1972. I never saw Coltrane live; he died in 1967, which is just before the time I started getting into jazz. I have however been fortunate enough to see the late McCoy Tyner three times and Elvin Jones twice and these were indeed special moments. Bear with me; I'm going to cut and paste something I've posted in a few other RUclips videos where the topic was John Coltrane. It's about something that I did in college: "The most epic listening session, however, was in college, around 1975 or 76. I like many musical genres, but by that time the music I listened to most frequently was jazz and of course the great saxophonist John Coltrane was a musical hero to me and several friends. We concocted a plan to listen to all the John Coltrane albums we could get together, in chronological order, in one marathon session, which we called "The Coltrane Lock-In". I think there were four of us that were the main participants. Between all of us, and borrowing a few more albums from some other friends, we put together about 30 Coltrane albums, or maybe a few more. The entire lock-in lasted just a little under 24 hours. The core group of us were there for the entire time, but I lived in a communal house and several other friends and housemates would come in and listen for an hour or two, then pop in the room the following morning and say: "Are you guys really still at it?"...LOL. We heard the incredible evolution of Coltrane as an artist through his roughly 10 year career as a solo artist, starting with his late fifties hard bop period on Prestige and Blue Note records ("Blue Trane", "Black Pearls", "Bahia" etc.). Then onto his stuff on Atlantic records with the ground breaking "Giant Steps" as well as "Coltrane Plays the Blues", "My Favorite Things", "Coltrane Jazz", "Ole" etc., and then into his increasingly spiritual and unbelievably powerful records from the early and mid sixties on the Impulse label like "Africa Brass", "Crescent", "Impressions", "Live at Birdland", "Coltrane", "Live at the Village Vanguard", "Ballads", "Selflessness", the majestic masterpiece "A Love Supreme" etc., etc. The final six or seven records were the very wild, so-called free jazz stuff from the last couple years of his life (1966 and 67) like "Ascension", "Meditations", "Sun Ship", "Live in Seattle" etc., ending with the somewhat somber but beautiful "Expressions". About half way through the Lock-In one or more of the core participants may, or may not, have ingested some very strong mind-altering substance that may, or may not, have aided in our understanding the avant garde music of Coltrane's late period. Anyway, it was time very well spent...LOL."
I picked up the R'n'R' religion in 1956 when I heard Heartbreak Hotel on the radio. I was 3. It is quite a flexible religion and the common thread is "music". I have a r'n'r' parable for every occasion. My Favorite Things is quite nice. It goes with "do-re-mi". It's all connected!
Don't be scared. It's only music. As you say in the video, just go with how it makes you feel. Incidentally that group is one of the greatest and transcendent in the history of music. Personal opinion.
It kinda surprises me that of the several vinyls I've encountered during my trips to Walmart, THIS is among them. No other jazz albums- not even in CDs.
Great reaction! Many musical terms that are scary (but I hope to understand). More jazz reactions are welcome...along with the rock, psych, etc. RIP Wayne. Pretty sure I met/spoke with him, either at a Pere Ubu show (please react to The Modern Dance) or at the Cynthia Plastercaster docu screening (maybe both--she was really nice).
i’m a huge fan of cynthia, was gutted that she passed before i got to meet her. she was the perfect combo of my background in visual art and love of rock-and-roll. i’ve seen the doc, it’s equal parts inspiring, fascinating, and hilarious (and now i own some of her work!)
I bought the last two albums reviewed, Love Supreme and There's a Riot... I cannot recall a time when I have acquired two such brilliant and compelling albums. I think of albums like novels, but I do more music listening than reading.
An incredible album from John Coltrane with a fantastic personnel. What an awesome review for Vinyl Monday! Kudos to you Abigail🙏. Always look forward to and enjoy watching each episode- all artists and reviews of their albums are very informative, truly inspirational and highly entertaining. Much gratitude😊🙌🎵🎼🎵🌏
@@abigaildevoe completely unrelated but you should check out Pharaoh Sanders’ Karma if you love A Love Supreme, it’s kinda like it’s weirder younger brother
I saw Elvin Jones live on his last UK tour. He was in his early 70s and without question the greatest drummer I've ever seen - still had that polyrhythm magic!! I got to meet him afterward and he was really cool - even gave me a hug!
In the sixties I went to the light house church of jazz club specifically to see him, leading his group. , only because I knew he was a famous jazz player, not because I had an understanding of drumming . I was too young to be in the club, but took a seat next to his drum kit at the edge of the stage, as I usually did , hoping to learn something. All I learned was that east coast dress style included silk socks, as his dress shoes were prominent in my sight line I had seen Buddy Rich lead a band and put on a bombastic solo display , and I guess I expected something like that , since all the big rock acts always gave the drummer a spotlight recognition . The guy played only accompaniment all night , using only brushes, and I was kind of disappointed , not comprehending the scene . I barely remember the man looking down and giving me a quizzical glance before he started work.
Elvin Ray Jones, in Yoshi's Club, Embarcadero West in Oakland. I was there!!! Maybe 1986? You and Elvin Jones... SQUEEZE!!!! OH MY GOD!!!! I'll forget....🙏
Coltrane was a huge influence on Jerry Garcia. They both tend to play in paragraphs. This being the case, Bob Weir looked to McCoy Tyner to develop his techniques. There are times on this album that I hear Bobby and Jerry play.
Two things: 1) Like a lot of folks, my aversion to jazz has less to do with the music than the fans. I have been avoiding this album because of the "eat it junior, its good for you" attitude from folks who insist that their refined taste makes them smarter than me. Your review managed to be smart without the rarified pretensions that we usually get from discussions of jazz, and your enthusiasm is 100% genuine. Maybe its because you are neither a snob nor a dude. At any rate, you have convinced me to check it out. 2) Wayne Kramer's last version of the MC5 included two friends of mine, and they are both beside themselves. Kramer was apparently a beautiful human being and a generous soul who had a profound impact on their lives even in a relatively short time. Heck, his passing got me in a funk and I did not even know him, degrees of separation notwithstanding. It is a colossal bummer that I missed seeing them and maybe that is part of the reason that I am feeling a bit hollow. It seems that you feel the same way. Consider this a virtual hug.
@@abigaildevoe he has a great song called blue monk if you haven’t heard that one yet, that one got me into him. He has a pretty good live album w trane and his album solo monk is pretty good. Check out Dinah it’s a cool short one
I remember the first time I heard this album… I was hypnotized until the very end, and to this day whenever I put this album on it feels like the first time. This album is something unique!
The way you do those pauses and then like punchline style dramatic emphases on the words, Abigail!! “The greatest jazz album……. EVER!!!!!!” So priceless. This is why I ❤️ VM!!!!
My dad (gone more than 10 years now) was a jazz guy, who came of age in the 50s. He loved all the jazz pop and the more arty albums from that period, but starting in the 60s, with people like Mingus, Coltrane and even Miles, he explained that this new jazz was more for musicians than for listeners like himself. IDK if that's a fair assessment, but I kind of wish he were here so he could see (hear) what you said in this review. Also, Jack Kerouac's On the Road has some of the best written (semi-fictional) eye-witness experiences of live jazz ever written. I know that this book is 20 years earlier than ALS, but it's my understanding that JC's (note his initials!) career goes back that far. I wonder if that's how Doctor Sax came into being?
what’s your love supreme? comment below ❤️
Freddy Fazbear
Musically ? Heaven Up Here by Echo & The Bunnymen is my all-time favorite album.
My wife. I'm not terribly original, but love will do just fine for me.
This doesn't have to do with the question just wanted to say this is one of your best episodes
I have to say I have Love Devotion Surrender and Life Divine is an amazing piece of music. Two guitar gods going at it!
7:12 "Both an artist and a muse." Life goals for me, my friend. I'm only halfway there so far, but . . . 🙏
Eleven years ago, my mother was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. Between her diagnosis in May, 2013 and her passing in October, 2014, John Coltrane's music provided me with spiritual comfort and direction. To this day, whenever I feel lost, A Love Supreme and everything John recorded afterwards returns me to solid ground.
Thank you for this video!! I am new to your channel and while I had listened to Love Supreme previously, I had no idea about all the backstory of the record and going into it again with this newfound knowledge really helped me get a new appreciation for this great album. I also discovered the live recording from France through your video, and it was so much fun to listen to!!
Much respect: you took on a challenging and difficult subject and didn't get your ass kicked. Or be boring.
Kurt Elling has an incredible singing version of Resolution after which I have never listened to the original Resolution the same again
Jazz vocalist Kurt Elling composed a "jazz vocalese" to Resolution, and his recordings are great. He did it with his own ensemble on his album "Man In The Air" and also on Bob Mintzer's album "Old School: New Lessons" where Bob took Elling's vocalese and wrote an arrangement for full jazz orchestra.
Impressive rendering of giant steps by Abigail
I just bought this record. Thanks!!
I love that running gag where you use "Our Prayer" as a swearing bleep!
please keep doing jazz reviews, as a (mostly) non-musician I've struggled with interpreting jazz and your creative/poetic descriptions are evocative and inspiring :)
Great job, Ms. Devoe! Seriously, for someone who doesn't know the technical side of music, from someone who also worships music without the technical knowledge, you described this album beautifully. Thank you!
Inspired analysis Abbey - so well thought out and researched! I'm a pretty seasoned jazz listener and you brought out so many interesting qualities and beautiful facts about this piece of music. Loved your Naima vocalisation! 😀 Well done Abbey!
A love supreme
A love supreme
A love supreme
Supreme, supreme
A love supreme
A love supreme
I want to be honest, Abby. I clicked on this expecting my "Abby is in waaaaay over her head now" moment. But no, you stood your ground, faced your fear, and served it up: Coltrane as you see it, articulated beautifully. Respect. applause applause applause
A Love Supreme is one of the reasons why I'm still a Christian and still alive. :)
You excel yourself with your analysis of this record. Impressive.
the makeup and look and hair is perfect this time
My sister and I used to sit at the piano and put our fingers as far an apart as possible and call it dad’s music. He was a a jazzer, and quite enjoying our mockery. Made me a better listener in retrospect
At 17 during the beginning of my senior year of high school, Ibought a very used VW Beetle for $500. I installed an 8-track tape deck in it and this is the first recording I bought to play in it so this record has a lot of good memories for me. The next week I got Weather Report and John McLaughlin.
Everyone: "A love supreme is an incredibly deep, complex album that can take many many relistens over years to fully comprehend"
Coltrane:
A love supreme
A love supreme
A love supreme
A love supreme
I have a devout catholic friend, who uses A love Supreme, as prayer devotional. He listens to side one for his morning reading and meditation. Side two for devotions and reading before bed to end his day.
that’s beautiful
@@abigaildevoe every day side one is sunrise and side two is sun down. I forget. Is this routine called vespers?? I forget. Is this catholic meditation routine called Vespers??
Yet again you’re the person with the most interesting record content I’ve found in the wild
Elvin (Fucking) Jones. Absolutely right! Great video. I could not have said and done this any better myself.
My "love supreme" is probably Charles Mingus' live version of "Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting" on his "Mingus At Antibes" album. Ted Curson spits fire on his trumpet solo. Booker Ervin is incredible in his tenor sax solo. Then, Eric Dolphy brings the house down on my favorite solo of all time. And I've seen footage of them performing this. How are they just standing there motionless in front of a microphone? It sounds like the rapture is upon us and Dolphy's just singing from the pulpit. (No, I'm not really religious, either, but I was raised Catholic.)
Either that or Rahsaan Roland Kirk's "Saxophone Concerto" on "Prepare Thyself To Deal With A Miracle."
That said, Coltrane's output from "A Love Supreme" thru "Meditations" is probably the greatest output by one artist over a year's time...including Dylan's '65-'66, the Beatles' 1967 (or...any other year of theirs), or Mingus's 1959.
I saw Elvin and McCoy Tyner live around 1972-1973 and interviewed Archie Shepp, (almost played with him once!), Sun Ra and met several other of these musicians.
You did a great job on this! Future recommendations might be Ornette Coleman, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, McCoy Tyner and Cecil Taylor and Alice Coltrane records if you have not done so already!
"a love supreme....a love supreme... a love supreme..." It took me until I was 60yrs old to enjoy and not be afraid of it, you'll get there.
i hope i’m always a little afraid of it. i’d be heartbroken if i were desensitized to something as earnest as a love supreme
Absolutely love this video. The psychedelic rock content is always amazing but it's so much fun to see you dive into jazz and talk about it so passionately.
Interesting that Jimmy Hendrix got mentioned in the introduction to this video as he was supposedly inspired by Charlie Christian, the first electric guitar hero.
8:53 - I'm not a jazz musician, though I play interpretations of some jazz standards, This is my take, but real jazz musicians correct me where I'm wrong (it's also hard to read when notes on written on the actual score lines). Coltrane is mapping out the different parts.
Part I - Horn starts out in E natural, drums kick in with a specific beat (I don't read percussion music scores), bass and piano start in with E flat minor. The horn starts the first theme of the song before going into a solo in 4/4 time. Hard to read the rest of Part I handwriting.
Part II is in B flat minor with a quick bar of specific notes though that might be the piano solo, which is followed by another horn solo and then goes back to the melody.
Part III looks to be a bass solo in C minor, and I can't easily make out the rest of the handwriting clear enough to comment, but maybe the Horn starts Part IV.
My best guess.
On COSMIC MUSIC John & Alice open THE SUN with the chant; "May there be peace and love and perfection, throughout all creation, oh God.". So A LOVE SUPREME is not Coltrane's only recorded vocal.
OTHERWISE, no notes. Love yr work.
nothing to be afraid of, very entry level
Greatest record ever made.
@6:01 the best part of the video
Wow I just stumbled upon you and you're really quite awesome keep it up
Elvin Jones and Ginger Baker had a drum off, probably still in YT.
yes they did!! 25 minutes of do what you like. elvin’s quote about ginger lives rent-free in my brain
You don't have to remain naive to music education. A little music theory couldn't hurt; it might be a key to unlock even greater understanding. I have a degree in music theory and composition and i am grateful for it even though i am not a professional musician.
Omg Abigail is rad!
You did it. I'm impressed. I've been listening to this since it came out. To see it reverberating across four generations like this almost makes the state of the rest of the world bearable. (You're going to make me finally break down and listen to the MC5.)
your channel works! deeply impressive background work and compelling delivery. another old music buff subscribed
I ✨love✨ this episode. For so many reasons 😩 You are such a brilliant lady, Miss Abby. I mean that literally…you are so smart it makes my heart burst to hear your personal impressions of this music while tying it all up in one very groovy bow. I admit I haven’t been able to watch full episodes in a long while (I watch 60 seconds every Monday tho I promise heheh) but damn. Congratulations to me for picking this one to get back into it LOL ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Yee. Mega Simp there.
@@AnEverydayHouseholdItem Have you read the whole blazing dumpster fire of a comment section? I'm amazed some of these guys could type their comments, seeing they were fapping so hard with the other hand
@@AnEverydayHouseholdItemI’m sorry no one loves you
This was a really great review. Only two albums have this complete transportation to another realm for me. A Love Supreme and Wish You Were Here.
The consistency in the quality of your reviews is just second to none. I would be interested in learning a little about the process of how you chose which albums to review and those you put to one side for a rainy day. Thanks for all you do.
there’s so much in my collection i’d love to cover but just doesn’t have the audience for a full episode: francoise hardy, tommy james, lots of john mayall live recordings, pretty much everything after 2010. it’s a matter of weighing what there’s an audience for and not doing too much of the same thing in a row (i even feel bad when i cover 2 albums released in the same year back-to-back!)
other than that, it’s simple really. if i love it (or i’m just curious about it,) it goes on the albums list
@@abigaildevoe Thanks, Abigail. I appreciate you taking the time to respond. I am happy to wait sans bated breath for Steely Dan when sufficient demographics meet the requirements. :)
2:03 your New England accent came out right there haha jk, great video as always, Jazz can be difficult to review but you did a great job imo.
it’s inevitable really - just check out the beatles episodes 😭
Wow! I'm very impressed with your review of this album. Great title too.
This episode is your best yet. ♡
Wow! A departure from the usual playlist, and an excellent choice. Could you get a Charles Mingus in a future episode? Something with "Jump Monk" or "Moanin'" or "Good Bye Pork Pie Hat"?
Similar to Coltrane, Mingus had a great wife. The Charles Mingus Band still plays in NYC, and credit goes to Sue Mingus, who recently passed away. That is a story worthy of a VM.
You can think of jazz performers grouped by instrument, like 'saxophones', or 'drums' or 'Piano', and debate who among the several were the best.
But Mingus is like no other jazz performer/composer.
Coltrane is incredible. His work with Miles Davis is tremendous as well. Kind Of Blue is my favorite jazz album of all time.
First time viewer to this channel. Abigail, I'm super impressed by your vast knowledge of music. I thought I knew a lot after 64 years, but you have me beat. Thanks for your take on A Love Supreme. I learned a lot.
I always enjoy that the presentations are like little plays, with structure, costumes and information . Coltrane did play with a singer on only one album , a guy with a mezzo bass tone, Johnny Hartman.
A what? A mezzo bass? There's no such thing. Johnny Hartman was a baritone. This just goes to add weight to my theory is that the people who watch this channel are just as big a bunch of know-nothings than the creator is
Alice's solo records are exceptional works. I did manage to see her live and she was extraordinary.
Modal jazz is, in simplest terms, different ordering of the scales beyond major and minor scales. The modes are considered to have origins in Greece and they can simply be described as treating a scale as originating at different points from the key.
Miles Davis is usually credited as introducing these, but they are based on concepts, in jazz at least, by George Russell and in classical music, extensively used by Olivier Messian much earlier. You can think of things like an Indian scale or middle eastern scales as examples of different modal scales, but there are many, many modes. I don't know if that helps.
Some of Bruckner's sequences were modal. Wayne Shorter- even pre-Miles-was writing in modes as well.
@Chromexus I am aware of this. George Russell developed the approach in jazz in the 1950s. Most composers were aware of modes, and they were intermittently employed wh 0:00 en composers wanted to expand their tool kits. But Messiaen developed an entire language out of modes.
Excellent job! Looking forward to more jazz reviews.
In 2002, they found a much better tape of the album and if you love the music you might want to get a new copy.
RISE UP ✊🏿
Wow. Singing Giant Steps. Iam impressed. Not easy to do. You go girl!!😮
i wish it was burned into my brain from some actually intelligent reason, but no. editing every song into giant steps was a big meme 2 years ago and i was obsessed.
I’m one of those unfortunate people who didn’t “get” jazz, then I watched La La Land and it quickly became one of my favourite genres, this album is an absolute essential
la la land and whiplash: both movies i loved, both movies are gateways to jazz (whether the pretentious-type jazzheads like it or not!)
Birdman won best pictue and Antino Sanchez played Jazz drums@@abigaildevoe
I love that you did a jazz episode! I'm never sure whether or not to cover the jazz albums, because it'd be so easy to get too technical, and because it can be a divisive genre. Thanks for going there!
Real Moment: John says to Miles "man I can't stop playing!" and Miles responded (deep whisper) "take the horn out of your mouth".
he would have had to take the horn out of his mouth in order to say "man I can't stop playing!"
@@AnEverydayHouseholdItem - that did occur to me, though I heard the story years ago, just as I was typing the comment. Be well and take the horn out of your mouth every little once in a while. Or not. I'm glad John was that passionate.
Singer-songwriter Laura Veirs has done some biographical songs about women in music. One is "That Alice", about Alice Coltrane.
i’ve never heard of this! i’ll have to check it out
Wes Montgomery’s jazz guitar also was pretty influential for psych guitar
i found an original copy at the salvation army.
I'm curious to see when you go down the Canterbury rabbit hole and I'm sure you will. Talk about what jazz did to those cats!
Sure, it was essentially an underground movement, or in the parlance of the 90's, "alternative".
I've always felt that the Canterbury scene was a catalyst for what more mainstream bands of the late 60's ended up trying out by the 70's.
Super job, Abby, in delineating and opining one of the greatest albums all time -- sacred, eternal, and worthy to be on that gold digital disk still heading cosmic interstellar on one of the 2 Voyagers. Bravo :)
NO WAY they sainted trane AND sent a love supreme to space??
Unfortunately they kept "Love Supreme" Off the Voyager. "Here Comes the Sun" Almost Got on@@abigaildevoe
Probably the greatest spiritual jazz album. Excellent, heartfelt review. More jazz, please.
I look so forward to Mondays!! Thank you so much Abigail!!!
I just wanna say that, as a black viewer, it’s refreshing to see you cover more black artist on your channel. Hope theres more to come in the near future.
music is music, no need to bring ethnicity into it
i think what you ask is reasonable and balance is always a good thing. I can see that a lot of people have liked what you said.
just to say that vinyl monday's origins began, to a large degree, with the generous gift of a large ready formed collection of a few hundred records. she got into a lot of the albums already discussed on this channel by working through that collection. other gifts from subscribers arrive intermittently. she consistently talks about black music. there is so much love for vinyl monday it ensures that there is a lot of clamour for this and that to be covered.
i'm not speaking for abigail devoe i'm just saying that the premise of the channel, from my viewing experience, is the overview of a personal collection ( classic rock psych folk ) a vinyl collection : and not necessarily to provide a comprehensive history of music.
great thing is she will listen to our shout outs, aquire accordingly and there's always next week!
The 1960s and 70s were a rich time for just about all popular music genres. R&B, Soul, Funk and Jazz artists were doing tremendous things during that period. I think it's inevitable that AD will be reviewing some of that material.
@@dundee12 as a minority, I disagree with this statement.
@@alanclayton9277 Thanks for this reply, but I’m already aware of this information. I’m just saying that, as a black person, I would like to see her cover more black artist/music on her channel, as there are a lot of black music and artist from the ‘60’s and ‘70’s that are either criminally underrated or completely ignored. It would be nice to see somebody (not just Abby) to at least shed light on these artist and bring more attention to them. Plus it feels nice to feel represented. You have to understand, as a minority, representation is very important to me.
For those newbies who want to first tread lightly, listen to Blue Train, My Favorite Things, maybe even Lush Life, before you step into, A Love Supreme..
Super interesting review of an album (or suite) everybody should listen at least once. I personally think of it as a challenging piece of music that moved the dial forward in tonality, modality, and other technicalities... One should never be afraid of records like Kind of Blue, Smokin' at the Half Note by Wes Montgomery, or this one. Jazz is NOT music for the "musically educated" or the "elites". The only thing jazz snob people achieve is driving potential fans away.
So congratulations on this one. Great analysis.
Your ignorance is profound. You do have to have at least some basic comprension of how music works and what the musician is trying to achieve in order to understand jass. Your statement just legitimizes lazy listeners, like our commentator, who can't be bothered respecting what the musicians have laboured to do.
@@thisyearswalrus6837 Hahahahahaha you're right. Next.
@@JavierMoreno1 There's just no need to patronize her. It's cruel and it just makes her go further out in things she in no way understands, making a bigger fool of herself
@@thisyearswalrus6837 I don't care. Music is entertainment, period. You should know that because that's what JAZZ is about. By the way, she has a channel with content, you don't. Give me something to talk about.
@@Handles_allow_RUclips_spying You are right, handles allow youtube spying. (May 2022). Coltrane's good for everybody, despite knowing about Eb9aug chords or just having a good time. Why can't all of you snobs realize you are wasting time and alienating people who want to know and discover?
Really enjoyed this review. Tongue in cheek entertaining and approachable as well as deeply insightful & respectful. 👍
Your music reactions are so entertaining! I lived in San Francisco a block away from the Church of St. John Coltrane when it was on Divisadero Blvd. I attended for the music. I don't know who showed up every week, but they played the best jazz I ever heard live.
Without a doubt A Love Supreme is a work of heightened genius, virtually unequaled in a genre of artistic endeavour. We will never see its like again.
You are doing a great job. I am a jazz electric bassist. Not a pro but it's a wonderful hobby. I am a rocker at heart but in music school they did not offer rock, so jazz it was.
Very happy to discover jazz, it takes work but it is worth it to be a jazz listener.
also john densmore from the doors has cited elvin jones as a huuuuge inspiration, you can 100% hear it in his playing style!
And with this, Abigail has officially levelled up.
Just picked up the vinyl version of the Complete Masters version of this. Perfect timing.
Seriously though - you are "must watch" content every week, no matter which album. Your research, presentation, and enthusiasm are top-tier. You should be truly proud of what you've given us today. Thank you.
And mark my words: someday, you're going to do Talk Talk's Laughing Stock (and maybe even do Spirit of Eden along with it; trust me, you'll make an amazing episode of this duo). I'm calling it now.
I couldn’t have said it better! AD has the next level research, presentation & enthusiasm, hands down!
Oh Yes, Talk Talk, top choice. My preference is more their 3 middle albums. But a top suggestion.
Hell yeah, another Talk Talk fan
I think she once said that Wealth was the one of the most beautiful songs she's ever heard, it's on one of her monthly Spotify playlists.
Your writing and descriptions continue to get better and better.
Fun fact: it took years and years before it was publicly known that the poem in the gatefold were the words for Psalm. Somehow nobody put the 2 and 2 together. It must have been mind-blowing to those who figured it out by themselves. I think it only became common knowledge in the 1990s with the advent of CD liner notes. And if you read the words and listen to the music it‘s easy to follow, as every phrase he plays matches every word perfectly.
Hello Abigail,
I'm glad you've been touched by the magnificence of Coltrane and "A Love Supreme". Thanks also for mentioning the beautiful album "Crescent", which was the first Coltrane album I bought, as a teenager in 1972. I never saw Coltrane live; he died in 1967, which is just before the time I started getting into jazz. I have however been fortunate enough to see the late McCoy Tyner three times and Elvin Jones twice and these were indeed special moments. Bear with me; I'm going to cut and paste something I've posted in a few other RUclips videos where the topic was John Coltrane. It's about something that I did in college:
"The most epic listening session, however, was in college, around 1975 or 76. I like many musical genres, but by that time the music I listened to most frequently was jazz and of course the great saxophonist John Coltrane was a musical hero to me and several friends. We concocted a plan to listen to all the John Coltrane albums we could get together, in chronological order, in one marathon session, which we called "The Coltrane Lock-In". I think there were four of us that were the main participants. Between all of us, and borrowing a few more albums from some other friends, we put together about 30 Coltrane albums, or maybe a few more. The entire lock-in lasted just a little under 24 hours. The core group of us were there for the entire time, but I lived in a communal house and several other friends and housemates would come in and listen for an hour or two, then pop in the room the following morning and say: "Are you guys really still at it?"...LOL. We heard the incredible evolution of Coltrane as an artist through his roughly 10 year career as a solo artist, starting with his late fifties hard bop period on Prestige and Blue Note records ("Blue Trane", "Black Pearls", "Bahia" etc.). Then onto his stuff on Atlantic records with the ground breaking "Giant Steps" as well as "Coltrane Plays the Blues", "My Favorite Things", "Coltrane Jazz", "Ole" etc., and then into his increasingly spiritual and unbelievably powerful records from the early and mid sixties on the Impulse label like "Africa Brass", "Crescent", "Impressions", "Live at Birdland", "Coltrane", "Live at the Village Vanguard", "Ballads", "Selflessness", the majestic masterpiece "A Love Supreme" etc., etc. The final six or seven records were the very wild, so-called free jazz stuff from the last couple years of his life (1966 and 67) like "Ascension", "Meditations", "Sun Ship", "Live in Seattle" etc., ending with the somewhat somber but beautiful "Expressions". About half way through the Lock-In one or more of the core participants may, or may not, have ingested some very strong mind-altering substance that may, or may not, have aided in our understanding the avant garde music of Coltrane's late period. Anyway, it was time very well spent...LOL."
I picked up the R'n'R' religion in 1956 when I heard Heartbreak Hotel on the radio. I was 3. It is quite a flexible religion and the common thread is "music". I have a r'n'r' parable for every occasion. My Favorite Things is quite nice. It goes with "do-re-mi". It's all connected!
I listened to this again tonight. Was reminded how much of a technical genius Rudy Van Gelder was.
Don't be scared. It's only music. As you say in the video, just go with how it makes you feel.
Incidentally that group is one of the greatest and transcendent in the history of music. Personal opinion.
It kinda surprises me that of the several vinyls I've encountered during my trips to Walmart, THIS is among them. No other jazz albums- not even in CDs.
Great reaction! Many musical terms that are scary (but I hope to understand). More jazz reactions are welcome...along with the rock, psych, etc. RIP Wayne. Pretty sure I met/spoke with him, either at a Pere Ubu show (please react to The Modern Dance) or at the Cynthia Plastercaster docu screening (maybe both--she was really nice).
i’m a huge fan of cynthia, was gutted that she passed before i got to meet her. she was the perfect combo of my background in visual art and love of rock-and-roll. i’ve seen the doc, it’s equal parts inspiring, fascinating, and hilarious (and now i own some of her work!)
Trane did an album of all vocals with Johnny Hartman. Thanks for diving in here.
I bought the last two albums reviewed, Love Supreme and There's a Riot... I cannot recall a time when I have acquired two such brilliant and compelling albums. I think of albums like novels, but I do more music listening than reading.
Since you have done Coltrane, I would love to see your review of “Bitches Brew”
An incredible album from John Coltrane with a fantastic personnel. What an awesome review for Vinyl Monday! Kudos to you Abigail🙏. Always look forward to and enjoy watching each episode- all artists and reviews of their albums are very informative, truly inspirational and highly entertaining. Much gratitude😊🙌🎵🎼🎵🌏
The Drums 🥁 Have Empathy ! ✅️
for the life of me i couldn’t find the original meme but man i wish i could, it’s so good
I know someone’s gonna request Ornette Coleman on every single post like the Zappa guy once did
i miss zappa guy :( the mascot of the comments section! i hope he’s well
@@abigaildevoe completely unrelated but you should check out Pharaoh Sanders’ Karma if you love A Love Supreme, it’s kinda like it’s weirder younger brother
I saw Elvin Jones live on his last UK tour. He was in his early 70s and without question the greatest drummer I've ever seen - still had that polyrhythm magic!! I got to meet him afterward and he was really cool - even gave me a hug!
Yeah, Elvin is known for his huge bear hugs. What a beautiful man he was, with dear friends everywhere he went,
In the sixties I went to the light house church of jazz club specifically to see him, leading his group. , only because I knew he was a famous jazz player, not because I had an understanding of drumming . I was too young to be in the club, but took a seat next to his drum kit at the edge of the stage, as I usually did , hoping to learn something. All I learned was that east coast dress style included silk socks, as his dress shoes were prominent in my sight line
I had seen Buddy Rich lead a band and put on a bombastic solo display , and I guess I expected something like that , since all the big rock acts always gave the drummer a spotlight recognition . The guy played only accompaniment all night , using only brushes, and I was kind of disappointed , not comprehending the scene . I barely remember the man looking down and giving me a quizzical glance before he started work.
Elvin Ray Jones, in Yoshi's Club, Embarcadero West in Oakland. I was there!!! Maybe 1986? You and Elvin Jones... SQUEEZE!!!! OH MY GOD!!!! I'll forget....🙏
I love this album! Really loved your take as well
Coltrane was a huge influence on Jerry Garcia. They both tend to play in paragraphs. This being the case, Bob Weir looked to McCoy Tyner to develop his techniques. There are times on this album that I hear Bobby and Jerry play.
Two things:
1) Like a lot of folks, my aversion to jazz has less to do with the music than the fans. I have been avoiding this album because of the "eat it junior, its good for you" attitude from folks who insist that their refined taste makes them smarter than me. Your review managed to be smart without the rarified pretensions that we usually get from discussions of jazz, and your enthusiasm is 100% genuine. Maybe its because you are neither a snob nor a dude. At any rate, you have convinced me to check it out.
2) Wayne Kramer's last version of the MC5 included two friends of mine, and they are both beside themselves. Kramer was apparently a beautiful human being and a generous soul who had a profound impact on their lives even in a relatively short time. Heck, his passing got me in a funk and I did not even know him, degrees of separation notwithstanding. It is a colossal bummer that I missed seeing them and maybe that is part of the reason that I am feeling a bit hollow. It seems that you feel the same way. Consider this a virtual hug.
Kudos to you getting in the ring with this giant record. Nice job.
Would love to see more jazz in the future. I think you’d really like Thelonious Monk.
i feel like a bad baby-jazzhead for not liking monk more. maybe i’ve been listening to the wrong period?
@@abigaildevoe he has a great song called blue monk if you haven’t heard that one yet, that one got me into him. He has a pretty good live album w trane and his album solo monk is pretty good. Check out Dinah it’s a cool short one
I remember the first time I heard this album… I was hypnotized until the very end, and to this day whenever I put this album on it feels like the first time. This album is something unique!
The way you do those pauses and then like punchline style dramatic emphases on the words, Abigail!! “The greatest jazz album……. EVER!!!!!!” So priceless. This is why I ❤️ VM!!!!
Thank you for properly introducing Elvin F@&KING Jones 👏👏👏
My dad (gone more than 10 years now) was a jazz guy, who came of age in the 50s. He loved all the jazz pop and the more arty albums from that period, but starting in the 60s, with people like Mingus, Coltrane and even Miles, he explained that this new jazz was more for musicians than for listeners like himself. IDK if that's a fair assessment, but I kind of wish he were here so he could see (hear) what you said in this review. Also, Jack Kerouac's On the Road has some of the best written (semi-fictional) eye-witness experiences of live jazz ever written. I know that this book is 20 years earlier than ALS, but it's my understanding that JC's (note his initials!) career goes back that far. I wonder if that's how Doctor Sax came into being?
Please more Jazz!
Congrats for coming around to St John
Wow! That was great Ms. Devoe! You are a musical Goddess.