Available Now on impulse! Records:
A Love Supreme: The Complete Masters from
impulse!/Verve Celebrates 50th Anniversary
of John Coltrane's Magnum Opus
Every Take & Overdub from Two Sessions of
Landmark Album Offered in Two and Three-CD Editions
Most Accurate Picture of the Making of the Iconic Recording
"'A Love Supreme: The Complete Masters' illustrates, John Coltrane was,
and remains, a gift, one that not only keeps on giving, but one that's
worth the same ongoing examination, and re-examination..." - Esquire.com
"If you only own the original studio release of John Coltrane's
'A Love Supreme,' then the new three-disk release "A Love Supreme:
The Complete Masters" of the classic album by Coltrane's classic
On December 9th, 1964, John Coltrane and his classic quartet (Elvin Jones, Jimmy Garrison and McCoy Tyner) went into the legendary Van Gelder Studio in New Jersey and recorded A Love Supreme--the
four-part suite that has influenced musicians and reached generations
of fans far beyond the jazz world. Far less known is the fact that
Coltrane, his classic quartet and two additional musicians--the
legendary saxophonist Archie Shepp and second bassist, Dr. Art Davis--returned
to the studio the next day to cut the opening part of the suite again.
Until now, the complete picture of what happened on those two days,
including all takes, overdubs, and even studio chatter, has been
unavailable.
That will change on November 20th when Verve Music Group proudly releases A Love Supreme: The Complete Masters,
to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the release of this seminal
recording. It will include this alternate version, taken from reels from
the personal collection of John Coltrane and originally recorded in
incredible sonic detail by Rudy Van Gelder, along with
revised notes and detailed information on these amazing lost sessions.
This release will kick off a celebration of the 60th anniversary of the
Verve label, which will include myriad catalog releases, digital
exclusives and box sets through the end of 2016. (Verve includes the
catalogs of legendary imprints like Impulse!, Decca, MGM, Blue Thumb and
many more.)
With the availability of long-lost session reels, A Love Supreme: The Complete Masters
brings together all existing recordings and written outlines for the
first time to paint the most comprehensive and accurate picture of the A Love Supreme
story. It reveals how Coltrane's masterpiece came together, from its
initial conception as a nine-piece performance--it turns out the
original plan was for a nine-piece band, including three Latin
percussionists--to how it changed and developed in the studio. While the
2002 edition of A Love Supreme did include some of the music recorded at the second session, The Complete Masters
is the first to feature all six takes of "Acknowledgement," the opening
section of the suite, in their entirety, providing a deeper
understanding and appreciation of how Coltrane would allow music to
mature in the studio. The box also presents takes one and two of the
track "Acknowledgement" from the sextet sessions in stereo for the first
time.
A Love Supreme: The Complete Masters
will be available in two formats: a 2-CD set, including the original
best-selling album, along with unreleased mono "reference" versions of
two tracks, owned by Coltrane himself, and seven unreleased performances
from the two sessions. A 32-page booklet features an extensive essay by
Ashley Kahn, noted producer, instructor and author of A Love Supreme: The Story of John Coltrane's Signature Album,
rare photographs from the sessions and all of Coltrane's surviving
musical sketches and written elements for the groundbreaking, four-part
suite, including the words that would become the poem, "A Love Supreme."
A 3-CD "Super Deluxe Edition" of A Love Supreme: The Complete Masters
adds what is currently the only documented live recording of the album,
a spirited, impromptu performance from the Festival Mondial du Jazz
Antibes in July 1965, which had been previously available on a 2002
edition of the album. This 3-CD set is presented in a larger format that
includes additional information about the live material and a personal
introduction by Carlos Santana.
About Verve Music Group
Verve is Universal Music
Group's American contemporary label with an active artist roster that
includes Andrea Bocelli, Diana Krall, Mark Knopfler, Ledisi, Dirty
Loops, Sarah McLachlan, Yuna and Barry Manilow, to name a few. David
Foster, a 16-time Grammy® Award-winning producer, has served as Verve's
Chairman since 2012. When Verve was founded in 1956, the label made a
name for itself as the home of jazz legends including Ella Fitzgerald,
Bill Evans, Nina Simone, Oscar Peterson, Stan Getz and Billie Holiday.
Verve also controls the catalog of the legendary Impulse! Records,
amongst many others.
