Evenings at the Village Gate (CD)

In August of 1961, the John Coltrane Quintet played an engagement at the legendary Village Gate in Greenwich Village, New York. Coltrane’s Classic Quartet was not as fully established as it would soon become and there was a meteoric fifth member of Coltrane’s group those nights – visionary multi-instrumentalist Eric Dolphy.

90 minutes of never-before-heard music from this group were recently discovered at the New York Public Library, offering a glimpse into a powerful musical partnership that ended much too soon.

In addition to some well-known Coltrane material (“My Favorite Things”, “Impressions,” “Greensleeves”), there is a breathtaking feature for Dolphy’s bass clarinet on “When Lights Are Low” and the only known non-studio recording of Coltrane’s composition “Africa,” from the Africa/Brass album.

TRACK LIST

1. My Favorite Things
2. When Lights Are Low
3. Impressions
4. Greensleeves
5. Africa

ARTISTS
John Coltrane, saxophone
Eric Dolphy, flute, alto saxophone and bass clarinet