Search - Sonny Fortune :: In Spirit of John Coltrane

Another great Sonny Fortune performance!

12/19/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you haven't been listening to Sonny Fortune's own releases since the first on the old A&M Horizon label, you have missed one of the better post-bop alto players of the day. Sonny's work shows a love of both Cannonball and Coltrane, as his bright tone on alto merges with the keening wail of Trane to shadow his luminescent playing with a profound sense of hope. Fortune is a very powerful player, as his deft handling of the tenor on this recording emphasizes. His tenor playing is resonant of Trane, but with his own sense of space and discipline. The soprano playing on this album is also terrific, and the trio of John Hicks(one of the greats!), Santi Debriano, and Ronnie Burrage play brilliantly with Fortune. Try to find the Bluenote release "From Now On" also, especially for the tracks with Joe Lovano and Eddie Henderson."

Inspirational work

Tyler Smith | Denver, CO United States | 01/30/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I consider Fortune to be one of the three greatest living jazz saxophonists (along with Joe Henderson and John Handy). I therefore was confident that this tribute to the music of John Coltrane would be a terrific piece of work. I was not disappointed.The title tells it all. "In the Spirit" is not an attempt to ape Coltrane's music. It is an effort to capture the passion and lyricism that drove Coltrane's unending quest for new ways to play music. In this effort, Fortune succeeds brilliantly.In the first place, he has the musical chops to bring it off. Any Coltrane fan knows that even aspiring to emulate the power of Trane's playing is a task not to be undertaken lightly. But on "For John," Fortune, along with ex-Coltrane colleagues Reggie Workman and Rashied Ali, tears through a whirlwind tenor attack that is indeed a memorable offering to the great saxophonist.The seriousness of Fortune's tribute is also evident on "In the Spirit," which taps into the lyricism and spirituality of the classic Coltrane quartet. Fortune plays a figure that reminds me of a fragment from Coltrane's great composition "Lonnie's Lament," and he then fashions a passionate and absorbing solo, aided by the sensitive piano backing of John Hicks.Seven of the nine tunes were written by Fortune himself, helping to stamp the release as his own. The two Coltrane originals, "Africa," from Coltrane's record with small orchestra, "Africa Brass," and "Ole," from the Atlantic album of the same name, are also well done. "Ole" features a percussion-heavy backing that gives the tune a different flavor from the minor-key, Eastern-sounding original. The only very minor disappointment on this great CD is that Fortune does not play soprano sax, an instrument on which he excels. I'd have loved to hear him take on "Ole" on soprano, as Coltrane did. This tiny quibble aside, I recommend this CD in the strongest possible terms. Fortune's albums are ridiculously hard to come by, and if you love Coltrane's music, and would like to hear it beautifully rendered by a musician of the highest order, you should pick this up pronto."