John William Coltrane was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Working in the bebop and hard bop idioms early in his career, Coltrane helped pioneer the use of modes and was at the forefront of free jazz. He led at least fifty recording sessions and appeared on many albums by other musicians, including trumpeter Miles Davis and pianist Thelonious Monk. Over the course of his career, Coltrane's music took on an increasingly spiritual dimension. He remains one of the most influential saxophonists in music history. He received many posthumous awards, including canonization by the African Orthodox Church and a Pulitzer Prize in 2007. His second wife was pianist/harpist Alice Coltrane and their son, Ravi Coltrane, is also a saxophonist.
Alfred McCoy Tyner is a jazz pianist from Philadelphia known for his work with the John Coltrane Quartet and a long solo career.
Giant Steps is the fifth studio album by jazz musician John Coltrane as leader, released in February 1960 on Atlantic Records, catalogue SD 1311. This was his first album as leader for his new label Atlantic Records. Many of its tracks have become practice templates for jazz saxophonists. In 2004, it was one of fifty recordings chosen that year by the Library of Congress to be added to the National Recording Registry. It attained gold record status in 2018, having sold 500,000 copies.
A Love Supreme is an album by American jazz saxophonist John Coltrane. He recorded it in one session on December 9, 1964, at Van Gelder Studio in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, leading a quartet featuring pianist McCoy Tyner, bassist Jimmy Garrison, and drummer Elvin Jones.
Blue Train is a studio album by John Coltrane, released in January 1958 on Blue Note Records, catalogue BLP 1577. Recorded at the Van Gelder Studio in Hackensack, New Jersey, it is the only Blue Note recording by Coltrane as session leader. It has been certified a gold record by the RIAA.
"Giant Steps" is a jazz composition by American saxophonist John Coltrane. It was first recorded in 1959 and first appeared on the 1960 album entitled Giant Steps. The composition features a cyclic chord pattern that has come to be known as Coltrane changes.
Alice Coltrane, also known by her adopted Sanskrit name Turiyasangitananda or Turiya Alice Coltrane, was an American jazz musician and composer, and in her later years a swamini. One of the few harpists in the history of jazz, she recorded many albums as a bandleader, beginning in the late 1960s and early 1970s for Impulse! and other major record labels. She was the second wife and the widow of jazz saxophonist and composer John Coltrane.
My Favorite Things is the seventh studio album by jazz musician John Coltrane, released in 1961 on Atlantic Records, catalogue SD-1361. It was the first album to feature Coltrane playing soprano saxophone. An edited version of the title track became a hit single that gained popularity in 1961 on radio. The record became a major commercial success. In 1998, the album received the Grammy Hall of Fame award. It attained gold record status in 2018, having sold 500,000 copies.
Crescent is a 1964 studio album by jazz musician John Coltrane, released by Impulse! as A-66. Alongside Coltrane on tenor saxophone, the album features McCoy Tyner (piano), Jimmy Garrison and Elvin Jones (drums) playing original Coltrane compositions.
Olé Coltrane is the ninth album by jazz musician John Coltrane, released in 1961 on Atlantic Records, catalogue SD 1373. The album was recorded at A&R Studios in New York, and was the last of Coltrane's Atlantic albums to be made under his own supervision.
Interstellar Space is a studio album by American jazz saxophonist John Coltrane. It was recorded in 1967, the year of his death, and released by Impulse! Records in September 1974.
Ascension is a jazz album by John Coltrane recorded in 1965 and released in 1966. It is often considered to be a cornerstone of Coltrane's work, with the albums recorded before it being more conventional in structure and the albums recorded after it being looser, free jazz inspired works. In addition, it signaled Coltrane's interest in moving away from the quartet format. Coltrane described Ascension in a radio interview as a "big band thing", although it resembles no big band recording made before it. The most obvious antecedent is Ornette Coleman's octet recording, Free Jazz: A Collective Improvisation, which—like Ascension—is a continuous 40-minute performance with ensemble passages and without breaks. Jazz musician Dave Liebman, commenting on Ascension, recalled that the album was the "torch that lit the free jazz thing".
This article presents the discography of the jazz saxophonist and band leader John Coltrane.
Duke Ellington & John Coltrane is a jazz album by Duke Ellington and John Coltrane recorded on September 26, 1962, and released in February 1963 on Impulse! Records.
Coltrane for Lovers is a posthumous compilation album by American jazz musician John Coltrane, released on January 23, 2001, by Impulse! Records. Its tracks were recorded during December 1961 to April 1963 at engineer Rudy Van Gelder's recording studio in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey. The first in the Verve for Lovers series by Verve Records, the album contains eleven of Coltrane's romantic ballads recorded during his early years with Impulse! Records. The songs feature Coltrane's classic quartet and collaborations with vocalist Johnny Hartman and pianist Duke Ellington.
The Best of John Coltrane is a 1970 compilation album released by Atlantic Records collecting recordings made by jazz saxophonist John Coltrane. The album was released shortly after his death as a part of the "Atlantic Jazz Anthology"—a series of greatest hits compilations for Atlantic jazz artists—and features performances from his brief period recording for Atlantic with new liner notes by jazz journalist Nat Hentoff.
Offering: Live at Temple University is a 2014 live album released posthumously by John Coltrane on Resonance Records. The album was recorded from original master reels stored by WRTI-FM. Proceeds from the album benefit the John Coltrane Home.
Both Directions at Once: The Lost Album is a studio album recorded by saxophonist John Coltrane for Impulse! Records that was first released in 2018. The recordings were made in 1963 during Coltrane's Classic Quartet period and lost for decades.
