[SACD-R][OF] The Red Garland Quintet - All Mornin’ Long - 1958/2012 (Hard Bop)

Though I regularly encounter Coltrane fans who worship his “spiritual” phase after he cleaned up, from 1960 onward, I much prefer his earlier, less introspective joyous playing in these 50s blowing sessions, as exemplified by this 1957 session for Prestige. That’s me taken off the Jazz Bohemians Christmas Party invitation list. The black beret has moth-holes in it anyway.
Garland keeps the wheels on the trolley with Art Taylor & George Joyner, while Byrd & Coltrane offer up extended solos, with the classic standard Gershwin tune occasionally showing through amidst the permanently inventive flow of notes. That’s half the fun with standards – checking how long it is before the soloists take off in his own direction, & any sly references to the tune during extended improvisations.
AllMusic:
On November 15, 1957, a quintet headed by pianist Red Garland recorded enough material for 2 records. This CD reissue (whose companion is Soul Junction) has a 20-minute version of “All Mornin’ Long,” along with briefer renditions of “They Can’t Take That Away from Me” (a mere 10 minutes) & Tadd Dameron’s “Our Delight.” More important than the material is that, in addition to Garland, the main soloists are John Coltrane & trumpeter Donald Byrd. Byrd was on his way to getting his sound together, while Trane, very much in his sheets-of-sound period, was already blazing a new path for jazz to follow. An excellent & often quite colorful jam session-flavoured hard bop set.