Comments on: Podcast: John Coltrane Centennial Celebration

By: Alun Severn

Alun Severn — Sat, 03 Oct 2026 09:30:57 +0000

I also meant to say that listening closely for the first time in ages to some of those earlier cuts with either Kelly or Garland on piano made me realise how much of a difference it makes when there is a ‘lighter’, swinging pianist in the line-up — the contrast between Trane’s magisterial tone and the chiming swing of either of those players is bewitching.

By: Alun Severn

Alun Severn — Sat, 03 Oct 2026 09:23:26 +0000

I couldn’t agree more regarding Trane’s ballad playing. The eponymous ‘Ballads’ (although I don’t think that that is a strictly accurate usage of the term eponymous, is, but you know what I mean) is a high point but so many albums have glorious slow and mid-tempo ballads and I have been exploring a lot of them over the past week or so. I was also playing David Murray’s lovely Japan-only release on DIW from ’89 or ’90, ‘Ballads’, and couldn’t help wondering whether he saw it as a reply to Trane…

By: Al

Al — Sun, 27 Sep 2026 14:55:31 +0000

Hey, Tim. Thanks for the kind words, and thanks for listening. I’m with you on the ballad playing.

By: Tim Broun

Tim Broun — Sun, 27 Sep 2026 04:27:02 +0000

With all of the coverage of Coltrane’s centennial, this is literally the only place I’ve seen focus on his sweet romantic ballad playing. Hell, it might be the only place I’ve seen it even mentioned! Thank you, Al. This is, to me, is peak Coltrane – the stuff I always return to. The Hartman album is my all time favorite record of any sort of music.