One Down, One Up: Live at the Half Note
JOHN COLTRANE
Impulse/Verve
It's been an exceptional year for unearthed jazz treasures. On the heels of a Parker/Gillespie live recording from 1945 (Uptown), and a 1957 Monk/Coltrane set from Carnegie Hall (Blue Note) comes this 1965 double disc, culled from late-night radio broadcasts, that captures the John Coltrane Quartet in all its blistering glory. It's hard to say which one of the three is best, or most important (although that nod probably goes to Parker/Gillespie), but I'll pick a favorite: this one.
One Down, One Up documents the Trane quartet in the comfortable confines of the renowned New York nightclub in March and May, just months before his long-standing band — drummer Elvin Jones, pianist McCoy Tyner and bassist Jimmy Garrison — split up, and Coltrane went on to a new ensemble and freer sounds.
The disc includes four tunes, the centerpiece being the title track, where Trane quickly hints at the melody, and then launches into a 26-minute solo filled with seething intensity and fountains of imagination. Such Herculean improvisations were not unusual for the saxophonist at this point; he would sometimes solo for more than an hour. This version of "One Down, One Up" had been passed around as a bootleg for decades, and has gained mythical status as one of Trane's best ever recorded improvs.
I'm not ready to go that far, but it is a mindfucker: He begins with a bevy of serpentine lines, works into squalls and smears, and builds to several crescendos. Tyner drops out after 11 minutes, and then Garrison departs, leaving the volcanic Jones and Trane to rip it up 'til the end.
The other tenor piece, "Song of Praise," ranks a strong second here, with Trane starting in meditative mode and building to a frenzied muscularity. The two soprano-sax numbers — "Afro Blue" and "My Favorite Things" — are less galvanizing but still stunning in their own way. The latter, probably Coltrane's most famous song, goes on for nearly 23 minutes and succinctly repeats the melody several times. When the saxophonist rebuilt his band and added skronker Pharoah Saunders, this tune was rendered all but unrecognizable.
A word about sound quality. This version was taken from Coltrane's private tapes and, other than a few drop-outs during the title track, features first-rate fidelity. *****
ERIC SNIDER
West Oaktown
COLOSSUS
Om
Leave it to Charlie Tate, a lapsed cabinet maker from London now based in NoCal, to come up with one of the best jazz 'n' hip-hop efforts to come along in quite a while. A former sideman with the likes of Roy Ayers and Neneh Cherry, he programs drums and plays keys, bass and percussion on West Oaktown, while four Oakland MCs — Capitol A, Delphi, Azeem and Regi B — ladle on their smooth flow and urbane rhymes. The rhythm tracks ooze sultry funk and swing grooves, and ring with electric piano and slinky guitar lines. The vocalists complement their raps with able singing. West Oaktown also includes a bonus disc of remixes that offers a more chopped up, turntablistic take on the songs. (www.om-records.com) ****
ERIC SNIDER
The Best of Snoop Dogg
SNOOP DOGG
Priority
The name of The Doggfather's greatest hits album is a little misleazziding — The Best of Snoop Dogg After 1998 would be more accurate. Missing are the tracks that made Snoop famous: "Who am I (What's my name)?" and "Gin and Juice," from his 1993 debut Doggystyle — the album that had white kids everywhere asking their folks what indo was. Best Of is made up almost exclusively of tunes from Snoop's time with Master P's No Limit, and though some gems can be found here (the mellowed-out "Stacey Adams," an ode to the dress shoe, is one of the most underrated hip-hop songs of all-time), there are often too many izzle's and too little substance. ***
MAX LINSKY
Loose in the Air
THE DOUBLE
Matador
The latest in the endless stream of indie rock groups emerging from Brooklyn, The Double makes the jump to the relative big leagues with its third record. The group has a spacey but glossy sound that combines the sexy strut of the new-wave revivalists with counter-mainstream atmospherics like high-pitched feedback and eerie organs. There's not a massively catchy jam here that everyone can rally around (and maybe the group doesn't want one), but the album is never boring. This isn't the masterpiece that The Double is capable of, but keep your fingers crossed. *** 1/2
COOPER LANE BAKER
Careless
STEPHEN BISHOP
ABC
A wimp-rock guilty-pleasure classic. Bishop epitomized West Coast mellow, but I still have a soft spot for his wounded tenor and deft ear for melody ("Save it For a Rainy Day"). Plead-fests like "One More Night" and "Never Letting Go" had post-adolescent males spilling tears all over their polyester shirts. Believe me — I was there.
ERIC SNIDER
This article appears in Oct 26 – Nov 1, 2005.