This CD reissues what was arguably the finest of the John Coltrane-Pharoah Sanders collaborations. On five diverse but almost consistently intense movements ("The Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost," "Compassion," "Love," "Consequences" and "Serenity"), the two tenor saxophonists, pianist McCoy Tyner, bassist Jimmy Garrison and both Elvin Jones and Rashied Ali on drums create some powerful, dense and emotional music. Unlike some of the live jams of 1966, the passionate performances never ramble on too long and the screams and screeches fit logically into the spiritual themes. This would be the last recording of Coltrane with Tyner and Jones. - Scott Yanow (All Music Guide) ========= from the cover ========== Meditations - John Coltrane I asked John Coltrane to what extent this album was an extension of Ms ineantatory A Love Supreme (originally Impulse AS-77). Both albums obviously focus on Coltrane's religious concerns, I use the word "religious" not in any sectarian sense, but rather in the sense that Coltrane's persistent searching in music is simultaneously a searching1 for meaning in the world and for his place in the world. "Once you become aware of this force for unity in life," said Coltrane, "you can't ever forget it. It becomes part of everything you do. In that respect, this is an extension of A Love Supreme since my conception of that force keeps changing shape. My goal in meditating on this through music, however, remains the same. And that is to uplift people, as much as I can. To inspire them to realize more and more of their capacities for living meaningful lives. Because there certainly is meaning to life." Other than this comment, Coltrane prefers not to be specific about the various sections of the album. He expects that each listener will react in different ways to what he hears. And Coltrane adds that it doesn't matter what particular religion - if any - a listener professes because "I believe in all religions."
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