Playlist for the Unpopular Music webcast for September 26, 2015

On today's program, we mark the 89th birthday of the iconic and transformative musician John Coltrane (September 23, 1926 - July 17. 1967). Now, as someone who wishes his program to be different from typical radio presentations, and who has more than once voiced his dislike of birthday tributes in jazz programming in particular, "why am I doing this" is a valid question. Why do one for a ubiquitous and legendary figure (albeit, deservedly so), when the the next day is the birthday of John Carter, someone you repeatedly say is a criminally overlooked and undervalued musician?' Well, the short version is, I sort of spontaneously blurted out last week that I would.

Unpopular Music - September 26, 2015 by Unpopularfred on Mixcloud

Actually that's the long version too.

I did try to avoid the obvious. I went with one track from his time with Thelonious Monk, one from his last recording session, one from the so-called "classic quartet" era (one of the greatest groups in jazz history) but not really doing their "classic quartet thing" here since Roy Haynes is sitting in for Elvin Jones, and one from the 1950's Miles Davis group (also, one of the greatest groups in jazz history, with or without the addition of Cannonball Adderley, and with whichever pianist or drummer was in the band at the time).

It's amazing to consider how much Coltrane accomplished and evolved throughout a career that was really only around fifteen years long. Sad when you think about how he died just a couple of months short of his 41st birthday. Coltrane was born only four years before Ornette Coleman and Sonny Rollins, both of whom lived to at least 85 while remaining active and creative. Imagine a healthy Coltrane living at least through the end of the 20th Century. Electric Coltrane? An 1980's Marsalis era neo-classical phase? Further explorations of African sounds, new and traditional? Sitting in with the Grateful Dead? The possibilities are endless, yet remain only such. But, I guess the briefness of this intensity is part of what makes it so special.

September 23rd is also the birthday of an strangely large number of musicians, we covered that topic more fully last year, but we do have a track from Ray Charles from one of his more jazzier dates (sorry, Bruce fans).

Last week, I also mentioned a Coltrane poem by my Boston Free Radio colleague Alan Patterson, and you can find it here.

I've also been playing a lot of long pieces lately, and there are back-to-back fifteen minute tracks today. I swear it's not out of laziness, but I have gotten around to thinking up a better excuse.

artist	song	album	comments	label / date
Esa-Pekka Salonen / Philharmonia Orchestra	Car Horn Prelude	Le Grand Macabre	special guest 1st part of theme music by György Ligeti	Sony Classical 1998
Naked City	Inside Straight	Naked City	2nd part of theme	Nonesuch 1989
Joe Lovano Wind Ensemble	Worlds	Worlds	Joe Lovano (ts) Bill Frisell (g) Tim Hagans (trp) Gary Valente (tbn) Judi Silvano (voc) Henry Texier (b) Paul Motian (d) recorded live at the Amiens International Jazz Festival in France	Label Bleu 1989
Ran Blake	You are my sunshine	Ghost Tones	Ran Blake (p) Dave "Knife" Fabris (pdl stl g) Rachel Massey (vln) song by Charles Mitchell and Jimmie Davis	A-Side 2010
Andrew Hill	Ball Square	Dusk	Andrew Hill (p) Marty Ehrlich (as) Greg Tardy (ts) Ron Horton (trp) Scott Colley (b) Billy Drummond (d)	Arabesque 1999
Spaceheads	Trip To The Moon	Trip To The Moon EP	music behind DJ	Electric Brass 2014
Thelonious Monk Quartet w/ John Coltrane	Nutty	At Carnegie Hall	Thelonious Monk (p) John Coltrane (ts) Ahmed Abdul-Malik (b) Shadow Wilson (d)	Blue Note 1957
John Coltrane	Offering	Expression	John Coltrane (ts) Alice Coltrane (p) Jimmy Garrison (b) Rashid Ali (d) Coltrane's last studio date	Impulse! 1967
John Coltrane	I want to talk about you	Selflessness	John Coltrane (ts) McCoy Tyner (p) Jimmy Garrison (b) Roy Haynes (d) song by Billy Eckstine Live at the 1963 Newport Jazz Festival	Impulse! 1963
Miles Davis	Oleo	Relaxin' with the Miles Davis Quintet	Miles Davis (trp) John Coltrane (ts); William "Red" Garland (p); Paul Chambers (b); Philly Joe Jones (d) tune by Sonny Rollins	Prestige 1956
Wayne Horvitz	This New Generation	This New Generation	music behind DJ	Nonesuch 1985
Jay Rozen	Stay Fresh Baggies 4	Naked Singularity - Killer Tuba Songs, Vol. 2	Jay Rozen (tba) Dan Plonsey (as, composer) Tom Yoder (tbn)	Composers Concordance 2015
Birdsongs of the Mesozoic	Sound Valentine	Dawn of the Cycads	music behind DJ	Cunieform 1983
Tanya Tagaq	Howl	Animism	Tanya Tagaq (voc) Michael Red (vln, elec) Jean Martin (prc)	Six Shooter Records 2014
Roomful of Teeth	Render	Render	music by Brad Wells	New Amsterdam 2015
The New York Art Quartet	Rosmosis	The New York Art Quartet	Roswell Rudd (tbn, composer) John Tchicai (ts) Lewis Worrell (b) Milford Graves (d, prc)	ESP 1964
Marty Ehrlich Large Ensemble	M Variations (Melody for Madeleine)	A Trumpet in the Morning	Andy Laster (as) Robert DeBellis (as, ss, clt) Jason Robinson (ts) Adam Kolker ts, b clt) Lisa Parrott (bs, b clt) E.J. Allen, Ron Horton, James Zollar, Miki Hirose (trp) John Clark (hrn) Ray Anderson, Michael Dessen, Curtis Fowlkes (tbn) Uri Caine (p) Warren Smith (vbs, prc) Jerome Harris (g) Drew Gress (b) Matt Wilson (d)	New World Records 2012
Esa-Pekka Salonen / Philharmonia Orchestra	Second Car Horn Prelude	Le Grand Macabre	music by György Ligeti	Sony Classical 1998
Ray Charles & Milt Jackson	Cosmic Ray	Soul Brothers / Soul Meeting	Ray Charles (p) Billy Mitchell (ts) Milt Jackson (vbs) Skeeter Best (g) Oscar Pettiford (b) Connie Kay (d)	Atlantic 1957
Shelly Manne	Out on a Limb	Daktari	music behind DJ	Atlantic 1967
Señor Coconut y Su Conjunto	Showroom Dummies	El Baile Alemán	Jorge González (voc) Lisa Carbon (voc) Atom Heart (keys) Argenis Brito (voc) Ricardito Tambo (shaker, MIDI) music by Ralf Hütter, arr. Uwe Schmidt	Emperor Norton 2000