Music History Events: Jazz albums recorded May 4

Art Blakey - The Jazz Messengers (1956)

The Jazz Messengers is the first studio album by the Jazz Messengers, released in 1956 by Columbia Records. It was their fourth overall album (after the two At the Cafe Bohemia live albums and the 1956 compilation), and also their last recording to feature the group's co-founder, Horace Silver, on piano.

In 1968, Columbia reissued the LP in their Jazz Odyssey Series with a new cover under the title Art Blakey with the Original Jazz Messengers. In 1997 the album was digitally remastered and released on CD, again with its original title and cover, featuring all the tracks from the original LP along with five additional tracks from the same recording sessions. These were previously released only on foreign imports.

A1 Infra-Rae 0:00 A2 Nica's Dream 6:55 A3 It's You Or No One 18:44 B1 Ecaroh 24:20 B2 Carol's Interlude 30:21 B3 The End Of A Love Affair 35:57 B4 Hank's Symphony 42:39

Track listing

This is the track listing for the current Columbia CD release. Tracks 1−7 are from the original LP and in the same order (Columbia CL 897, 1956). The adjacent tracks 8−10 and 12 were first released on Originally (Columbia FC 38036, 1982). Track 11 was previously unreleased.

"Infra-Rae" (Hank Mobley) - 6:57
"Nica's Dream" (Horace Silver) - 11:51
"It's You or No One" (Sammy Cahn, Jule Styne) - 5:36
"Ecaroh" (Silver) - 6:02
"Carol's Interlude" (Mobley) - 5:36
"The End of a Love Affair" (E.C. Redding) - 6:43
"Hank's Symphony" (Mobley) - 4:37
"Weird-O" (Mobley) - 7:06
"Ill Wind" (Harold Arlen, Ted Koehler) - 2:52
"Late Show" (Mobley) - 7:09
"Deciphering the Message" (Mobley) - 6:29
"Carol's Interlude (alternate take)" (Mobley) - 6:13

Personnel

Art Blakey, drums
Donald Byrd, trumpet
Hank Mobley, tenor saxophone
Horace Silver, piano
Doug Watkins, bass

John Coltrane - Giant Steps (1959)

Giant Steps is a studio album by the jazz musician John Coltrane. It was released in February 1960 through Atlantic Records. This was Coltrane's first album as leader for the label, with which he had signed a new contract the previous year. The record is regarded as one of the most influential jazz albums of all time. Many of its tracks have become practice templates for jazz saxophonists. In 2004, it was one of fifty recordings chosen that year by the Library of Congress to be added to the National Recording Registry. It attained gold record status in 2018, having sold 500,000 copies.

Two tracks, "Naima" and "Syeeda's Song Flute", are respectively named after Coltrane's wife at the time and her daughter, whom he adopted. A third, "Mr. P.C.", takes its name from the initials of bassist Paul Chambers, who played on the album. A fourth, "Cousin Mary", is named in honor of Mary Lyerly, Coltrane's younger cousin.

Track listing:
Side one

1. "Giant Steps" May 5, 1959 4:43
2. "Cousin Mary" May 5, 1959 5:45
3. "Countdown" May 4, 1959 2:21
4. "Spiral" May 4, 1959 5:56
   Side two
5. "Syeeda's Song Flute" May 5, 1959 7:00
6. "Naima" December 2, 1959 4:21
7. "Mr. P.C." May 5, 1959 6:57
   1987 CD reissue bonus tracksNo. Title Date recorded Length
8. "Giant Steps" (alternate version 1) March 26, 1959 3:41
9. "Naima" (alternate version 1) March 26, 1959 4:27
10. "Cousin Mary" (alternate take) May 5, 1959 5:54
11. "Countdown" (alternate take) May 4, 1959 4:33
12. "Syeeda's Song Flute" (alternate take) May 5, 1959 7:02
    1998 CD reissue additional bonus tracksNo. Title Date recorded Length
13. "Giant Steps" (alternate version 2) March 26, 1959 3:32
14. "Naima" (alternate version 2) March 26, 1959 3:37
15. "Giant Steps" (alternate take) May 5, 1959 5:00

Personnel:

John Coltrane – tenor saxophone
Cedar Walton – piano
Paul Chambers – bass
Lex Humphries – drums

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