John Coltrane - Expression

When he died on July 17, 1967, John Coltrane was in a period of exploration, and while his musical pedigree afforded him a level of jazz authenticity that perennial outsiders such as Albert Ayler, Ornette Coleman, and Cecil Taylor could only dream of, the cathartic, rhythmically turbulent music of 1965-1967 tested the indulgence and endurance of even his staunchest fans. But Coltrane was a creative lightning rod for any number of improvisors, and while a few jazzmen, such as the Art Ensemble of Chicago and Julius Hemphill, followed his spiritual lead, his vertical constructs and open-ended modality also found fruition in the open-ended, electric blues and jazz of groups such as Cream, the Jimi Hendrix Experience, the Mahavishnu Orchestra, and the many bands of Trane's old mentor Miles Davis. "Ogunde" is an ecstatic, rolling ballad, all white-peaked waves and billowing winds, in the lyric tradition of A Love Supreme. Likewise, on "Offering," the centerpiece of Expression, Trane proceeds from a stirring lyric prelude, through spasmodic rhythmic abstractions, culminating in a jubilant, wailing dialogue with the droning, pulsating percussion of Rashied Ali. --Chip Stern Amazon.com

(3.5 stars) Sounds like it's from another world....

Now this is an unexpected change of pace. It's calm. It's restrained. It's eerie. It's completely unlike most the rest of Coltrane's other works, since it's free jazz that defies the stereotypical loud honking and clattering. The tunes rise and fall like waves, or maybe the tide, with plenty of crescendo and decrescendo and not much by way of traditional structure. In terms of sheer mood this is hard to beat, but it's not one of Trane's better albums: while "To Be" (with Trane doing a surprisingly good job on flute) and "Ogunde" are winners, and the unpredictable song structure makes it hard to really get bored, there's some recycling - such as on "Offering", which nicks the opening solo of "A Love Supreme", and the title track, pretty much a copy of "Offering". This was Coltrane's final studio album - he would tragically die of liver failure later that same year. November 17, 2007

EXPRESSION: still exploring

the album starts off with a beautiful piece called "Ogunde" which is just dripping with otherwordly serenity. it's a splendid opening song with a dark overtone swirling around a slight african melody. it gets a little rough on the next track "To Be" which basically just sounds like Coltrane is trying to figure out how to properly play a flute. it could be almost described as "psychadelic jazz" with a ghostly off key vibe that really doesn't make an impact. it's an interesting historical audio piece, but not essential. the remaining three tracks are quite stellar and offer a fascinating glimpse into the sounds that Coltrane was exploring in the later years of his life. there is a unmistakeable peace to these recordings that showcase John's gentle side in his quest for spiritual sound. a great collection of wonderful songs, but Expression is probably only recommended for the experienced Coltrane listener. September 21, 2005

You're missing something if you haven't heard this yet.

I'm not a fan of any one particular genre of music (i.e., jazz). But I do appreciate meaningful music. This music has meaning that words cannot describe and expresses it well. According to the liner notes, Coltrane came up with the name of the album three days before he died of what appears to have been a lifelong desire to convey the depths of his soul. Experience it. June 21, 2003

Wonderful and tragic

This was Coltrane's last album, and while it is a truly incredible album, it leaves me with a sense of longing and frustration. Expression deviates quite a bit from his other albums of 1965-67, and seems to be pointing the way to a new road Coltrane was going to take had he not died at 40.

What makes this so frustrating is that the journey he would have taken would have been amazing. The opening track of this album, Ogunde, is a sweeping, rolling ballad that flows with a sense of freedom and majesty that I simply don't hear in his earlier works (though I know others who do). In some ways, this album seems like a logical continuation of his Classic Quartet stuff. However, the rhythms are far freer, and the tonal center is less defined (Alice Coltrane sounds less tied to modality than Tyner). The result is this massive sound that moves along on a more intuitive level, rather than on a logical, metric one (not to say that his music was rigid).

Adding to all this is an excursion by Coltrane into the flute. Here I'm a little ambivalent. His flute playing is not even remotely at the level of his work on tenor or soprano. However, I feel that we hear the foundation of what was to come, and I'm fully prepared to believe that his flute technique would have developed and progressed quickly.

It's amazing that in 1967 after all of his experiments, Coltrane was able to discover yet another avenue to explore in his own playing. This album is a testament to that, and is a must for Coltrane fans. June 19, 2003

IMPULSE, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?

OK, the music may be wonderful, a spiritual experience and all that, but what my fellow rewiers have forgotten to warn potential buyers about is the fact that this album needs to be remastered as soon as possible - one need only listen to the version of 'offering' released on 'stellar regions' to understand what i'm talking about. In other words: if you are into Rashid Ali's drumming, definetely do not buy this one, for he's the one to suffer most with the poor quality of the sound - his cymbals are hardly audible and, in a general sense, it's as if he were doing some 'percussion' sounds, instead of really thrashing his kit off.

End result: COLTRANE AND BAND 5 STARS - IMPULSE 2 STARS = 3 STARS May 9, 2003

More reviews at Amazon.com ...