While we’ll always put Hip-Hop first when it comes to the content we cover, The Source is a brand that appreciates all aspects of our culture — jazz, without a doubt, is included on that list. That’s why we were thrilled to find out that dearly-missed jazz legend John Coltrane has a new album out distributed by “the house that Trane built,” Impulse! Records.
The new LP is titled Blue World, an obvious play on Coltrane’s classic 1958 sophomore album Blue Train that was released on — wait for it! — Blue Note Records. This eight-track recording was actually completed not too long after that album; Blue World was recorded during a three-hour session on June 24, 1964. Originally it was supposed to be the soundtrack to Gilles Groulx’s 1964 drama Le chat dans le sac (English translation: The Cat in the Bag), but it’s been shelved ever since due to being recorded without the label’s knowledge. For French film heads who don’t know, Groulx unfortunately passed away in 1994 but managed to leave behind the master recordings. An archivist from the National Film Board of Canada was able to then make it into this grandiose album after striking a deal with Impulse! Records.
A few tracks are actually takes from other recordings you may have heard in the past. “Naima (Take 1)” comes from the track 2/side 2 recording off Giant Steps (1960), three separate takes of “Village Blues” are included that differ from the one on Coltrane Jazz (1961) and even “Traneing In” is an early cut from a track off the 1958 LP John Coltrane with the Red Garland Trio.
Listen to Blue World by John Coltrane right now on all streaming platforms. Happy Saturday!
