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Kulu Se Mama
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sonic totality

Trane Finds His Roots

Unexpected

Stellar and Stunning - One of Coltrane's Best!!

Roots from Africa/New Orleans meets New York and LA

Kulu Se Mama
John Coltrane
Manufacturer: Polygram Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Avant Garde & Free Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music
General | Jazz | Styles | Music
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Meditations

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ASIN: B00004SSSZ
Release Date: 2000-06-06

Tracks:

Kulu Se Mama
Vigil
Welcome
Selflessness
Dusk Dawn
Dusk Dawn (Alternate Take)

Amazon.com

In 1965 John Coltrane was experimenting in a number of directions, regularly augmenting his long-standing quartet with McCoy Tyner, Jimmy Garrison, and Elvin Jones. He began a West Coast tour in the fall with tenor saxophonist Pharoah Sanders as a regular member of the band, and in Seattle he added Donald Garrett, playing both bass clarinet and bass, and drummer Frank Butler to the group before heading to Los Angeles to perform and record. The title track was composed by Juno Lewis, a singer and percussionist who brought a strongly African element into the expanding band. The chanted vocal and layered rhythms create one of Coltrane's most evocative performances, at once tranquil and potent, a gorgeous tapestry of percussion and reed sonorities that suggests a ritual. "Selflessness," recorded with the same group minus Lewis, is one of Coltrane's most luminous themes, a brief and exalted melody that's repeated and gradually expanded into a kind of serene chaos. The developing relationship between Coltrane and Sanders is particularly arresting, the two saxophonists both mirroring and expanding one another's ideas in stunning joint improvisations. These tracks are balanced by some classic quartet pieces recorded a few months earlier. --Stuart Broomer

Customer Reviews:

sonic totality.......2007-03-20

drum solos. layers of percussion. saxes going from lyrical to abrasive to melodic counterpoint in seconds. adventurous textural piano solos expanding the harmonies to points unheard. delicate to thunderous like watching an afternoon storm unfold. restraint, chaos. coalescence and growth. cultures integrated. mothers honored. get this album.

Trane Finds His Roots.......2007-02-18

John Coltrane was undoubtly one of the greatest and most important Jazz musicians of all time, blessed with a marvelous tecnique and creativity like few he did it all in a relatively short career. First as a member of Miles Davis classic band, later with Monk and then from around 1960 to his premature death in 1967 as a brilliant solo musician that is mostly remembered for his spirituality and Avant-Gard records. Trane's diversity as a musicians is simular to Miles in the sense that he was always eager to try new things and he often changed his style of plying. Thus, old Trane records sound nothing like the newer one's where he was getting into the Avant-Gard movememt and exprimenting alot with his music and many of those albums deal with Religious Spirituality and finding his own roots. Trane was fascionated with Islam but also African music. Which this album is influenced by. We had already seen signs of what was coming on his legendary and very much loved spiritual journey "A Love Supreme" from 1964, and Trane would continues making simular albums til he died, "Transition", "Ascension", "Meditation" and this one, which isn't considered among his best one's for reasons I will get into later.

During this very productive, creative and spiritual time of John Coltrane's life he was constantly in the recording studio with his band and alot of albums were made just aswell as alot of posthumously released material. Other then Saxophonists John Coltrane and Pharaoh Sanders we'll find members like Donald Garett & Jimmy Garrison on Bass Elvin Jones & Frank Butler Drums/Percussion, Juno Lewis Percussion/Vocals and last but not last McCoy Tyner on Piano who also plays a key role on this album. This album which is partly influenced by African music is one hard Avante-Gard album to swallow if you're not into the genre, thus it's nothing I would recommend for beginners. It all starts with the title track which is an explosion of diffrent sounds, African Drums, sax sounds from Sanders and Coltrane and singing in an indegenous African language from Lewis I think. This song is both creative and very unique, but could by considered a pain for some people also. It clocks at 19 minutes and you'll find many diffrent parts of it, some slower with more singing and some that sounds more like an Avante-Gard inferno where nothing stops the saxophonists from playing their hearts out. Next up is a drum song called "Vigil" where Elvin Jones plays a key role, Fantastic drummer by the way!. After a while Trane jumps in and the song goes Avante-Gard from there. Third song is among the finest Jazz-Ballads ever recorded, it's called "Welcome" and it differs from everything else on this album. It's slow, meliodic and just adorable to listen to. Trane and pianist Tyner get's most of the credit here. Most people would like this song. Next up is in my oppinion Trane finest moment of his whole career. "Selflessness", it got one of the most wonderful melodies I ever heard and I believe this was his way of comminicating with god since music was religion to him. This key melody starts very slow, but will continue throughout the whole song, eventually it will all go crazy and Trane/Sanders will play their hearts out in a tumult of Saxophones that emualate the sound of Elephants. The latter part may be hard for some people to take but it's undeniable to give them credit for playing so fine together. Pianist Tyner also plays a keyrole here and got his own solo midway. Then we'll get 2 takes of "Dusk Dawn", another meliodic piece where Bassist Donald Garret got an quite unusual solo. Another great song. When the original album was released the only new song was the title track, Vigil and Welcome had already appeared on "Transition" and the last 2 songs were not present. Both of them got released on posthumous albums but eventually when the remastered version came out they were added and made this album absolutely brilliant. The reason why this isn't considered on of his best, is exactly cause of that, but if we judge the album by these 6 songs it's fantastic and deserves to be up there among his legendary records.

Overall, I wouldn't recommend this album to newbies cause it's not an easy album to swallow at first listen, some of the songs are very Avante-Gard or noisy as some doubters would say, however this is one of those albums were we truly find Trane's almost religious commitment to Jazz where we know that he plays with his heart and soul. Some parts may be very hard for some people but it's undeniably meliodic and coherant, especially "Welcome" that is a ballad, "Selflessness" and "Dusk Dawn". If you're new to him check some of his older albums first like "Blue Train", "Giant Steps" and "My Favorite Things", if you have listened to "A Love Supreme" and like that, then check this one too cause it's a wonderful album that really captures the listener and make his emotionally commited to the music aswell.

Unexpected.......2006-03-08

I must say, when I first started listening to this album, I was well aware of Coltrane's straight ahead lineages, such as the early Atlantic Days, Columbia recordings with Miles, Blue Train, among others. However, when I dove into this album, I didn't think much of it.

Of course, being a jazz saxophonist, I bow on my hands and knees to Coltrane for his incredibile technique, musicality, and overall individualism. I found that the more I listened to this album -- especially over time once I had develeoped an ear for free jazz or even quasi free jazz -- I suddenly had a better understanding of what these guys were playing. Before long, I ended up loving this album.

Coltrane, with several others, including Pharaoh Sanders, approach jazz with an African and Indian tinge on this recording date, much like what was sparsely heard on the Village Vanguard recordings. They take it a step further on this album, and combine even heavier elements of world music, even including chanting in an indiginous language (not sure with African dialect, though). The spirituality goes much deeper on this album than John's earlier works. His tone has golden qualities to it, while at the same time, cuts through the ensemble like a double edged sword.

This is definatley not an album for a beginning jazz listener, or even for someone who is not familiar with Coltrane's early works. Some people grow into his free jazz material, and some dive it into it early on. Just be aware that the structure, sound, and musical components of it are much different than even his Classic Quartet recordings. I had no idea what to expect from this album before I heard it, but from reading about it soon after, it seemed worthwhile, even if I didn't care to play like that.

Stellar and Stunning - One of Coltrane's Best!!.......2003-09-10

This is a transitional time period for Coltrane and friends. I've never heard Coltrane do anything quite like the title track before and it's amazing! One wonders what the magic must've been like - to witness that in the studio - Wow! Impressive. Track 2 is an almost 10 minute opus with just Coltrane and Elvin Jones - the first grains of "Interstellar Space" are found right here, a year or two before... This is one of my all time favorite Coltrane albums and I'm stunned that it is not more popular than it is...

Roots from Africa/New Orleans meets New York and LA.......2001-09-08

This one is/has EVERYTHING good music can give you ("Better git it on your soul" :-). You can feel (and see) title track "Kulu Sé Mama" get you straight to Congo square in New Orleans. You get back to your roots and whatever colour of your skin is doesnt matter about this. This is true art, poem, folkmusic, blues, some kind of heavy "funk", freejazz and this is very spiritual.

Sophisticated track "Welcome" is a real beuty, get me thinking of classy hotels in LA, New York, Rio (but it is not "elevator music" but... and "Dusk Dawn"... a classic... New York for me. You get your free jazz kicks from "Selflessness". I am not so found of this one but certainly many freejazz lovers should be instead. "Vigil" is blues, moody, spritual and freejazz, hard bop, avantgarde in same track and is very special. This is a must for jazzfans of experimental and multicultural music but it has its "classical" sophisticated jazz style moments too like in "Welcome".

Essential Coltrane at his best.

Kulu Se Mama
Average customer rating:
Kulu Se Mama
John Coltrane
Manufacturer: Import [Generic]
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Avant Garde & Free Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music
General | Jazz | Styles | Music
Jazz | Imports | Stores | Music
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ASIN: B00005L8YE
Release Date: 2006-12-18

Tracks:

Kulu Se Mama (Juno Se Mama)
Vigil
Welcome

Album Description

Part of the Impulse Best 50! Series. Japanese exclusive 24-bit 96khz digitally remastered reissue of 1965 album. Packaged in a limited edition miniature gatefold LP sleeve.

Album Details

Japanese limited edition release featuring an LP style slipcase cover. 24bit 96kHz digitally remastered. Part of the 'Impulse Best 50' collection.