The story is well known. In early 1957, John Coltrane was expelled from
Miles Davis's band because of his heroin addiction. It gets the saxophonist thinking. He leaves for his childhood home in Philadelphia where he is locked up for a few weeks to get clean. A reborn Coltrane returns to New York where, until his death 10 years later, he begins a disciplined and spiritual musical journey. Blue Train,
… recorded in September 1957 and released in early 1958, is the primary fruit of this and his first major album. It is the only album he recorded for Blue Note, with a fantastic occasional band that included Miles Davis' rhythm section and young trumpeter Lee Morgan. Still deeply rooted in hard bop, Blue Train sounds as fresh and inspired as ever 65 years later. The extra CD of discarded takes adds little, but Blue Train remains an essential foundation of the influential and indelible oeuvre Coltrane built during the far too short time left to him. (MR)more
