Coleman Hawkins

Coleman Hawkins with the Red Garland Trio (Prestige/Swingville 2001) is the only existing recording of Hawkins and Garland together. Hawkins is considered as the “father” of the tenor saxophone in jazz. Although there were already competent saxophonists prior to Hawk, he was the first jazz saxophonist to achieve greatness. The album presented here was one of many made by Hawk in the late 1950s, a renaissance period in his career. A musician from the modern school, pianist Red Garland became famous in 1955 when he joined the Miles Davis Quintet that also featured John Coltrane, Philly Joe Jones and Paul Chambers. The album consists of two standards, “It’s a Blue World” and “I Want to Be Loved,” two original blues, “Bean’s Blues” and “Blues for Ron,” and a tune credited to Red Garland, “Red Beans,” which is based on the changes of “Softly, Like a Morning Sunrise” (by Sigmund Romberg and Oscar Hammerstein II). The complete LP At Ease with Coleman Hawkins (Moodsville MV7), also in a quartet format, has been added here as a bonus.