The Carnegie Hall Concert

by Alice Coltrane

Overview

The Carnegie Hall Concert in February 1971 was a benefit show for the Integral Yoga Institute, founded by Alice Coltrane's guru Swami Satchidananda. She credited him with her redemption from the grief and emotional trauma she suffered after her husband's passing, while she was trying to support herself and four young children. Coltrane, then 33, plays both piano and harp here. She is backed by a double quartet, with saxophonists Pharoah Sanders and Archie Shepp, bassists Jimmy Garrison and Cecil McBee, drummers Ed Blackwell and Clifford Jarvis, Tulsi Sen Gupta on tamboura, and Kumar Kramer on harmonium (the latter appear unmiked on the first two cuts only). Coltrane performed the middle slot in a triple bill with Laura Nyro and the Rascals. A week before the concert, she released her fourth and most popular album, Journey in Satchidananda, with a lineup that included Sanders, McBee, and Tulsi. The concert was recorded by Impulse A&R head man Ed Michel, who supervised the recordings and lobbied to release them. Impulse demurred, and placed the tapes in the vault, where they were eventually lost. This recording is taken from Michel's reference spare. There are four extended performances here, beginning with "Journey in Satchidananda." The tamboura and harmonium drones can still be heard ambiently through the other microphones. Whispering cymbals introduce the opener, as tamboura, harmonium (functioning almost like a reed organ), and basses, playing single notes, echo one another as in a raga before the drums enter. McBee states the theme before Coltrane's rippling, cascading harp enters, adding expanded harmony, lush texture, and spiritual drama. Sanders' flute joins in at six minutes, as does a restrained Shepp. The circular vamp gets built up and ratcheted down by all the bandmembers as it conjures spiritual bliss in setting up "Shiva-Loka." The song commences with an arco bassline, harp chords, and plectrum arpeggios. The drummers begin at two minutes as bells and other percussion instruments whisper in and out. Sanders' soprano sax slots between the harp and bass vamps in a bluesy, modal solo. Percussion, harp, and occasional bursts from Shepp maintain its circularity; despite its muscle, it's actually contemplative. Disc two is comprised of two John Coltrane compositions: The title track from 1961's Africa/Brass and "Leo" from 1966's Infinity. Alice plays piano on both. She guides the band in leaving the meditative atmospherics of the previous jams to get exploratory via modal free jazz. Sanders' and Shepp's tenors engage with Coltrane in knotty, resonant interplay as the drummers ferociously crash and clatter around them. "Leo," by contrast, is as intense and outside as its studio version, perhaps more so. Its highlights include Coltrane's fiery piano solo encountering spiritual jazz, bebop, and the modal blues. The squalling saxophonists make room for the drummers, who wonderfully match their squalling intensity. All told, the concert's pace, textures, explosive drama, virtuosity, and limitless creativity are unmatched. The Carnegie Hall Concert package includes an excellent, insightful liner essay by Lauren Du Graf and a reminiscence by Michel. This is an essential entry in Coltrane's catalog and a remarkable kick-off to Impulse's "Year of Alice." ~ Thom Jurek

Product Details

Release Date:	03/22/2024
Label:	Impulse!
UPC:	0602458828696
Rank:	1889

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Alice Coltrane   Primary Artist