"Giant Steps”, Take 3: John Coltrane, tenor saxophone; Cedar Walton, piano; Paul Chambers, bass; Lex Humphries, drums; April 1, 1959 In honor of Lex Humphries, born this day in 1936. As great (and classic) as the well-known version with pianist Tommy Flanagan and drummer Art Taylor is, I prefer the slower and somewhat more relaxed versions with Lex Humphries on drums and Cedar Walton on piano. (For the record, ALL those cats were some BMFs.) Artists don’t record take after take, finally deciding on the master take to be released - only to have ALL of the takes come out at a later date (likely, after your dead), exposing all your mistakes. We don’t present recordings as finished products, edited, mixed, and mastered, and then later on say, “Here, check out what these other unsuccessful attempts sounded like.” Alas, the label owns the master recordings, they can do pretty much what they damn well please. Stlil and all, "alternate takes” provide crucial insight to artists and their process. Particularly enlightening are the subtle variances from take-to-take, like the musical request he makes of Cedar Walton, which can be heard during studio chatter between takes, ultimately manifested in the succeeding takes. I remember when the absurdly-titled “The Heavyweight Champion” emerged back in 1995, the Jazz scene was elated at the anticipation of the arrival of more Trane. (I know I can never get enough.) It’s quite reasonable to believe that he never intended for these previously unreleased studio performances to see the light of day, but I can’t help feel a sense of completion that they were unearthed. The layperson might think that TEN takes of “Giant Steps” is nine too many, but few Jazz musicians share that point of view. I mean, c’mon…it’s John Coltrane. #JohnColtrane #GiantSteps #AlternateTakes #LexHumphries #JazzDrums #JazzDrummer #AugustBirthdays #Cedar Walton #PaulChambers #ClassicJazz #1960sJazz #60sJazz https://www.instagram.com/p/B1eDWmmgYPx/?igshid=k9xs652nva9m
