George Coleman's "The Quartet"

[Hardbopjazz]

I dig everything session Big George has put out in his long career. I am excited about his new one coming out in September. On Amazon you can sample 30 seconds of the first track.

[sonnymax]

Please tell me you have this one.

[Hardbopjazz]

9 hours ago, sonnymax said:

Please tell me you have this one.

Yes I do.  

[Kevin Bresnahan]

Does anybody know why George led so few leader dates throughout his career? It just seems weird to me that such a great player, with sideman dates going back to his appearance on Lee Morgan's 1957 Blue Note recording "City Lights", has so few dates as a leader. His first date as a leader was in 1979 , "Amsterdam After Dark". Did George just not want to take on any leader dates?

[erwbol]

11 hours ago, sonnymax said:

Please tell me you have this one.

On how many of the tracks does George play tenor? There is a single YouTube clip available, The Lamp Is Low, and that's about enough soprano for me.

I currently have the Dutch Timeless remaster of Amsterdam After Dark, and At Yoshi's.

12 hours ago, Hardbopjazz said:

I dig everything session Big George has put out in his long career. I am excited about his new one coming out in September. On Amazon you can sample 30 seconds of the first track.

Actually, you can sample 30 seconds of every track.

Edited August 20, 2019 by erwbol

[EKE BBB]

1 hour ago, bresna said:

Does anybody know why George led so few leader dates throughout his career? It just seems weird to me that such a great player, with sideman dates going back to his appearance on Lee Morgan's 1957 Blue Note recording "City Lights", has so few dates as a leader. His first date as a leader was in 1979 , "Amsterdam After Dark". Did George just not want to take on any leader dates?

To my knowledge, he has at least two previous leader dates, from 1977:

- the duo disc with Tete Montoliu (Timeless (Du) SJP 110, (US) TI 312 - George Coleman/Tete Montoliu Duo - Meditation, reissued as Timeless (Du) CD SJP 110 - George Coleman, Tete Montoliu - Dynamic Duo)

- and Catalyst (J) KUX-73-CT   George Coleman The Octet - Revival, reissued as Vee-Jay (J) 30YD-7015   George Coleman The Octet - Big George, 

[HutchFan]

43 minutes ago, EKE BBB said:

To my knowledge, he has at least two previous leader dates, from 1977:

- the duo disc with Tete Montoliu (Timeless (Du) SJP 110, (US) TI 312 - George Coleman/Tete Montoliu Duo - Meditation, reissued as Timeless (Du) CD SJP 110 - George Coleman, Tete Montoliu - Dynamic Duo)

- and Catalyst (J) KUX-73-CT   George Coleman The Octet - Revival, reissued as Vee-Jay (J) 30YD-7015   George Coleman The Octet - Big George, 

Both are superb too!  As is Amsterdam After Dark!  

[Peter Friedman]

This 2016 George Coleman CD is a good one.

[Kevin Bresnahan]

2 hours ago, EKE BBB said:

To my knowledge, he has at least two previous leader dates, from 1977:

- the duo disc with Tete Montoliu (Timeless (Du) SJP 110, (US) TI 312 - George Coleman/Tete Montoliu Duo - Meditation, reissued as Timeless (Du) CD SJP 110 - George Coleman, Tete Montoliu - Dynamic Duo)

- and Catalyst (J) KUX-73-CT   George Coleman The Octet - Revival, reissued as Vee-Jay (J) 30YD-7015   George Coleman The Octet - Big George, 

That's still 20 years from his recording debut and on smaller European labels as well. I suppose it could just have been a sign of the times but it seems weird to me that he didn't get any dates after his time with Miles in 63/64 followed up by his work on Hancock's "Maiden Voyage". I would've thought that got him some attention.

[JSngry]

I think he chose to "just" stay in New York and play. Whatever life circumstances allowed him to do that, hey, good for him!

[Hardbopjazz]

22 hours ago, Peter Friedman said:

This 2016 George Coleman CD is a good one.

This one is very good. 

On 8/20/2019 at 7:47 AM, bresna said:

Does anybody know why George led so few leader dates throughout his career? It just seems weird to me that such a great player, with sideman dates going back to his appearance on Lee Morgan's 1957 Blue Note recording "City Lights", has so few dates as a leader. His first date as a leader was in 1979 , "Amsterdam After Dark". Did George just not want to take on any leader dates?

He did once say no one came a calling. He also has many students, and not only for the saxophone. Every time he plays a week in NYC he invites some of his students up on stage.   

Edited August 21, 2019 by Hardbopjazz

[ornette]

I Could Write A Book (Telarc) and My Horns Of Plenty (Birdology) are also very good.

[Hardbopjazz]

I got my copy today. I am enjoying this. Listened to the CD twice. Harold Mabern's final recording. George and Harold played well together. 60 years of playing together. 

[Robert Middleton]

Coleman also played on five of Chet Baker's albums for Prestige in the mid-60s. They kinda paralleled Miles' Cookin', Steamin', Relaxin', and Workin' of about 10 years earlier. They were held in a marathon session on August 23, 25 & 29, 1965, also like Miles did for his final Prestige albums. 

They were condensed into 3 albums sometimes later. Lonely Star, On a MIsty Night and Stairway to the Stars. Good playing from both Chet and George. 

[Larry Kart]

Just bought the  three CDs you mention. IIRC the old Prestige LPs had good sound, may even have been engineered by RVG, but the CDs that repackage those Prestige dates sound terrible. Wish someone had warned me before I dropped some $50 down the Amazon rabbit hole.

[Michael Weiss]

George told me yesterday that Bill Grauer expressed interest in recording him, for Riverside I presume, but obviously nothing ever came of it. I'll have to ask him what happened. We'll be up at Smoke next week, October 17-20.

[jazzcorner]

Mentioning George Coleman  (in the Hilton Ruiz thread) reminds me of a concert we had in our private jazzclub in Koblenz, Germany with the George Coleman Octet on Dec. 02, 1981

George Coleman (ts & Leader) / Sal Nistico (ts) / Danny Moore (tp) / Mario Rivera (bs) / Bobby Watson (as) / Harold Mabern (p) / Clint Houston (b) / Billy Higgisns (dr)

Here is the only LP I have fom the GC Octet with slighly different  band members:

Affinity  AFF 178 (reissue of original Catalyst LP)

Fotos from the Koblenz concert will follow

[soulpope]

Btw .... :

[jazzcorner]

11 hours ago, soulpope said:

Btw .... :

Thanks for that.  Have to look it up. Hilton Ruiz on bord is great.

Here you can find more on a list of his recordings

https://www.discogs.com/de/artist/253367-George-Coleman

Edited December 7, 2019 by jazzcorner
text added

[jazzcorner]

A snapshot "in action" on Nov.02, 1981 at Jazzclub Koblenz

[Hardbopjazz]

Nice photo.  

[Д.Д.]

This does not look like Coleman. 

[HutchFan]

15 minutes ago, Д.Д. said:

This does not look like Coleman. 

I thought the same.

[sonnymax]

No, that's not Big George in the photo. Physical differences aside, Coleman sported a mustache and big sideburns, not a goatee. Looks more like Chico Freeman or Dewey Redman to me.

[Jim Duckworth]

Has anyone heard Keno Duke's Sense of Values or Crest of the Wave?  Outstanding records from the Golden Age of Jazz-the 1970's-that feature Harold Mabern and Frank Strozier.  These records had a major impact on me back in the day.