A Love Supreme

A LOVE SUPREME A LOVE SUPREME A LOVE SUPREME A LOVE SUPREME A LOVE SUPREME A LOVE SUPREME A LOVE SUPREME A LOVE SUPREME A LOVE SUPREME A LOVE SUPREME A LOVE SUPREME A LOVE SUPREME A LOVE SUPREME A LOVE SUPREME A LOVE SUPREME A LOVE SUPREME

”If God had an ipod I would be on his playlist” - John Coltrane, 1965

this might be a technical masterpiece but let's be real, jazz is annoying

The more I listen to jazz from being exposed via this site, the more I'm realizing that I just don't really like jazz. I can appreciate the musicianship, but it's just not something I'd choose to listen to.

What can be said about this album that hasnt already been said? Its absolutley incredible. Im not a jazz expert, and have only listened to about 4 dozen jazz albums, so I dont understand the music theory of it all, I just know that its an incredible experience to listen to this.

Takes several listens to really get, especially for those not used to jazz. First track gets improvised, demonstrating Coltrane's insane talent as a sax player. Love the "A Love Supreme" underlying the entire track, starting off the song clearly then stepping out of the shadows via Coltrane's vocals at the end. Second track starts taking an intense turn. This becomes a very powerful album, with Coltrane's attempt to play as though God was speaking through their instruments. It gets crazy from time to time, invoking several instances of emotion and power, like the drum solo in the first part and near the end of Pursuance. In fact, the last track Psalm is entirely a consistent preach which goes along to written lyrics spoken through sax. I wish I could explain the theory behind this work and what makes this "modal jazz," but I'll save that for another few years (hopefully). For now, I find this to be an amazing piece of art with wonderful diversity that demonstrate both immense talent and powerful messages that convey deep emotion to the listener.

Thank god that was short, I couldn't handle much more. Occasionally that was a good bit but then it would be overthrown by someone who fell on the piano or pushed over a bass.

One of the most important records ever made, John Coltrane's A Love Supreme was his pinnacle studio outing, that at once compiled all of the innovations from his past, spoke to the current of deep spirituality that liberated him from addictions to drugs and alcohol, and glimpsed at the future innovations of his final two and a half years.

Jazz is a lot like England's "golden generation" of footballers. On paper, there's a lot of superstars but in practice, each player seems to be out of sync with each other and playing to their own tune.

I like some jazz and I like some jazz less. This is the type where 3 or 4 musicians appear to get together and do their own thing without any interest or care what the others are doing. Personally I'd rather listen to an orchestra tuning up.

It’s Coltrane at his best, in what world was I not going to give this album 5 stars? There have been so many positive reviews written about this album that I’m not sure how much else so have to say but it really is that good. Everybody plays so well together and the solos are perfect. My criteria for a 10 is basically that I don’t think the album could be any better and this album certainly fits that description. Favorite songs: Yes Least favorite songs: No 10/10

Famous sax player Joshua Redman said 'A Love Supreme is the first jazz album I ever heard, and I really hope it is the last I ever hear.' This is the best piece of jazz music that will ever exist.

01) A Love Supreme, pt 1. - Acknowledgement - 3,0 02) A Love Supreme, pt. 2 - Resolution - 2,0 03) A Love Supreme, pt. 3. - Pursuance - 2,0 04) A Love Supreme, pt. 4. - Psalm 3,0 TOTAL: 2,50 (25/100) God I hate jazz! It's like my left ear is fighting with my right one. Every instrument plays it's own tune. I know this is worthy album, but it's a big no for me.

An absolute monolith. Gnomic on first hearing, enlightening after multiple.

A one-time contender for my favourite jazz album, I've cooled on this over the last couple of years. Not that I think it's anything resembling bad. Frequently funky, surprising and exciting, the closest I can get to laying my finger on the root of my reservations is that those qualities are rarely co-present and that seems like part of the design, which also seems to be deliberately challenging and as a result stops me from getting transported the way Coltrane is. Except when he chants "A love supreme". Despite its simplicity--probably because of it--that always hits me as the most transcendent moment.

John Coltrane, already well-establish as a one of jazz's greats, wanted to go in a different direction after his last album. Leaning more into avant-garde jazz, Coltrane blended elements of faith and religion to create what is effectively a new subgenre of jazz: Spiritual Jazz. More spiritual in form than in substance, A Love Supreme is a piece that honor's Coltrane's relationship with God. It is reflective, passionate, and amazing in it's music. Not only that, but this record would mark a move into free jazz, for both Coltrane and Impulse! Records. Context aside, this is a beautiful jazz record. It's a little weird, but makes up for it in spades with expert use of dynamics and improvisation that only seasoned jazz musicians could follow through on. Excellence had never sounded so good. God bless.

Jazz. Raw, unapologetic, beautiful, soulful, all of those other words that have certainly been said about it over the years, and more. This album is great, and definitely deserves a high spot on this list.

This was a really crisp and musical album. I'm not very well-versed in jazz, but the riffs and solos in the songs were fun and bouncy, all while blending into the chord progressions really beautifully. I hadn't listened to Coltrane before, even though I'd heard his name, so it was a really cool piece of music history to listen to him. I also took the opportunity to read about his life and career and it's so clear that he lived and breathed jazz and his passion for music was the reason his work was so groundbreaking.

No. 54/1001 Acknowledgement 3/5 Resolution 4/5 Pursuance 3/5 Psalm 4/5 Average: 3,5 Jazz is not my favorite genre. But I can appreciate the incredible musicianship on display here.

4 guys got on stage and just played their own shit for half an hour. If anxiety had a musical sound, it would be this. I'll give it a 1 star bump because of the technical musicianship of the band members and the undeniable influence he had.

I’m trying. Truly. I’m trying to understand jazz and appreciate it. I know that John Coltrane is a brilliant musician and rightfully revered. But I simply don’t “get” this type of jazz. To me, it just sounds like a cacophony of disparate musicians, and I struggle to find anything resembling a melody to grab on to.

Powerful and intricate, I could listen to this 100 times and continue to glean something different each time.

I have a hard time with a lot of jazz albums, but this one just owns it from start to finish. Everything about this album is excellent - from the rhythms to the sound of the recording and of course the songs themselves. I understand why this is a classic.

Not only a spectacular jazz album, A Love Supreme is a beautiful expression of the relationship between man and God. Coltrane’s saxophone wails and sobs like a sinner yearning to be cleansed.

From the first sound of the gong you are aware that you’re about to witness greatness. Jones’ cymbal washing and later use of timpani is breathtaking, but it is nonetheless Coltrane that stands out as the main character in what can easily be described as his magnum opus. Another milestone by Coltrane that still stands tall almost 60 years later.

Another groundbreaking album and modal jazz classic. This album in four movement takes a more avant garde approach to the form with its experimental rhythms and improvisation. Though less melodic than his work on Kind of Blue, this album is very listenable and has a lot to offer the casual jazz listener. This is one of those albums that rewards multiple listens.

Spiritual. If you're in the right frame of mind, hard to describe it as anything else.

Rare among jazz albums in that I feel like I genuinely get it, I think it's a masterpiece. This might not be considered a ringing endorsement given my general ignorance, but I'll stand by it.

Wow. I've never listened to this, but have always wanted to. What a masterpiece. It is such a beautiful expression of humanity. Always surprising, but in a way that keeps you in the piece. This could be listened to both in the background of a coffee shop and on head phones in the dark. Gorgeous.

Amazing album, fantastic playing, great sound. Still amused by how underwhelmed the singing is after such sparkling music. They sound like they're high schoolers being made to recite something. But hey, it's honest, it's pure, it's amazing.

Monumental. From a simple theme grows jazz played with a sense of spiritual purpose, instilled with passion, intent, and real feeling. You won't find dance hits here, but careful listening will reward those willing to do so.

Oh yes. This is sitting in a smoky bar, drinking a whiskey, and watching the band wail onstage. I am about this life.

I had heard this album a few times and, though I was a fan of parts 1 & 4, I found part 3, with its squonky bits and 2 drum solos a little much. However, on re-listen I like the way that the drums set up an awesome McCoy Tyner solo and in general, I love Elvin Jones’ loose and impromptu playing throughout. I’ve had other Coltrane albums on high rotation over the years but I’m glad that 1001 forced me to listen again this one again, with greater concentration. He takes post-bop jazz and makes it feel spiritual. It's a shame he died a couple of years later.

Gilt als Meisterwerk, nicht wegzudenken aus dem Kanon, gottgleich die Verehrung. Tue mich aber seit jeher schwer mit dieser Aufnahme (der Blue Train fährt cooler). An manchen Tagen hat “A Love Supreme“ die Kraft, graue Wolken vor den schmutzigen Fenster hinfort zu blasen. An anderen stellt sich eher ein Gefühl des Aushaltens ein. Das meist permanent hohe Tempo zwingt zum konzentrierten Hinhören, eine Aufgabe, für die es manchmal eine Kraft und Kontemplation braucht, die man aufzubringen nicht immer vermag. Musik als Rechenaufgabe oder Rätsel - faszinierend und (über)fordernd zugleich. Aber im guten Moment das magisch unbeschreibliche Begreifen ohne je eine Note zu kennen. Ehrlich diffuse Gefühle; selten verrückt, wie die Platte je nach subjektiver Empfindung morpht. Aber ein Sturm ist kein Buchhalter, sondern bläst und tobt unverzeihlich, wo und wie er will. Krasse 4.5

Schon oft gehört - aber wohl nie oft genug. Tatsächlich gibt es jedes Mal was neues zu entdecken auf dieser Reise, die noch so harmonisch und konzentriert beginnt, um dann immer stärker am Geschmack der Freiheit zu schnuppern und die Frage zu suchen deren Antwort 42 lautet, sich selbst in der Gleichung auflösen will und schließlich eins wird mit der kosmischen Existenz.

Already listened to it but I will continue to listen to it many, many times

I was working while listening to this, and unlike Black Saint, I wasn't distracted by any obnoxious muted horns, so I'd say I liked this very much. I also love using commas, apparently. 5 stars babeeeeee

This is is, this is the one. This and Kind of Blue. If you had to pick two jazz albums to take with you before jazz disappeared, it’d probably be one of those. It’s truly an achievement in sound, playing, recording, all of it. It’s no wonder this is cited in so many lists. Favorite song: all Least favorite: none

One of the most well-known Jazz records for a reason. It's not my first listen, and it won't be my last. I have not listened to a lot of John Coltrane, but this is a great album.

Grew on me a ton second listen, Psalm is so beautiful

She coltrane on my john.

Love these style records. I’ve been playing more jazz in general but never sit down and throw on a full record. I think after I finish this full list I might find a best of jazz list as my next project.

As a saxophonist, it almost feels criminal not to give Coltrane 5/5, but even though I am amazed by the techniques and improvisation that I could not dream if doing, Coltrane's style of jazz has never been my favourite. Still 4/5 because I can hear the influence of Coltrane through much other jazz that I do enjoy very much

A beautiful masterpiece. Coltrane's expression in this album is conveyed from every complex section to the most subtle of ditties. Pt. III - Pursuance is a spiritual journey. Jazz is not my forte or most expansive genre, but it doesn't take a trained ear to know Coltrane's magnus opus is musical genius.

Peppy yet mollifying.

I enjoy jazz when accompanied by great food, or good conversations with wonderful friends. I also use it sometimes at work but not typically as my focal point of attention. I enjoyed this album, my least favorite being in part I when they keep vocalizing “a love supreme” and I was hoping this wasn’t a trend to continue. Luckily it wasn’t, I loved part II but I think part III was my favorite with how it started with the drums and had all these sections building.

So much jazz recently! I keep prefacing these reviews with "I'm not the biggest jazz fan. But I can appreciate it." This album is no different. Yeah, I mean, it was pretty good. It's just kind of background music for me at this point. Pleasant but not super engaging. Nothing Earth shattering for me. I feel like I need to listen to it again to process it more, but to be honest I just don't really want to. It feels like blasphemy rating Coltrane 2/5 because the man is a legend and obviously super talented, but it's just not my bag, baby.

I get it, this is classic John Coltrane, supremely sophisticated syncopation, rampant rattling rhythms. It's subversive to the wholesome big bad era that preceded. The jazz aficionados are lined up, looking down their noses, obliging me to rate this a 5. To me this is just jazzy, in the pejorative sense. It's like having an annoying squeaking sound in the car you try to root out and can't find, then you try to ignore it, but it wears out your subconscious mind. It's like cacophonous, chaotic traffic in Kathmandu. I do love horror-infused music, like Skinny Puppy, so maybe I should listen again and reframe it as intentionally terrorizing droning.

I'm not super versed into jazz. I'm a barely casual enjoyer of the popular stuff. I like other Coltrane albums but this feels super weird and erratic for me. With runs going on for a long time to weird places, hitting accidentals that throw my ears off. Everything is purposeful in his album but the language he is speaking in, I'm not fluent in.

Couldn't finish. Too much anxiety

Sorry Jazz, you are just not my thing. It’s not you, it’s me.

I am still trying to get more into jazz. This was an okay listen, and it wasn't necessarily difficult to get through but I'm not sure if I enjoyed it. Still, I appreciate the talent here.

I played tenor sax in high school jazz band. Coltrane is THE guy.

Do I even need to say anything?

I’ve listened to this album many times, an absolute classic and am always happy to revisit

Very nice.

Enjoyed it

Magnífico

Solid, love me some jazz

i also liked this one as a fan of jazz. no real standouts but all were super chill. enough said. pretty perfect. 5/5.

Sounds great, wish it was longer

Easy 5/5. Absolutely legendary jazz album from an absolute jazz legend. This is truly one of the greatest albums ever made, from start to finish.

Coltrane fuses two nascent branches of the blooming jazz family tree in the early 60s, elevating the playful, spaced-out cosmic spirituality and afro-futurism of Sun Ra, and imbuing it with the unapologetically chaotic, avant garde free jazz of both Ornette Coleman and Eric Dolphy, bringing a level of seriousness, sophistication, and technical mastery to a genre he nearly single-handedly pioneered with this release: spiritual jazz. This is, without a doubt, one of the most important and impressive records ever created. Coltrane's quartet during this era had no small part in the excellence on display here. McCoy Tyner, Jimmy Garrison, and Elvin Jones were already virtuoso's on their respective instruments, and Coltrane enlisted Rudy Van Gelder to record and engineer this record at his studio — Gelder being the most prolific, important recording engineer in jazz history was able to capture the raw, powerful nature of the quartet with his precise, spacious production techniques, cementing the final recording as a true masterpiece.

Simply put, one of the best Jazz albums of all time. It doesn't take much to hear why either. The sonic intensity of the playing on this album is mesmerizing, and the intro "acknowledgment" sums this theme up of a burning intense love perfectly. Sporadic/unpredictable doesn't even cut the grass, it's more like thermonuclear level jazz playing. The tightness, the ferocity, spiritual jazz is an indescribable medium. Coltrane is a literal canonized saint because to some, works like this prove he was able to work in tandem with the divine. Master storyteller without saying a word, and one that stretches far beyond language at that. Merely felt. An album about love, heat, reconciliation and possibly in that carries a grand tone of redemption and triumph. Brutally perfect album. Even for 65, it sounds older and as ephemeral as time itself. Coltrane forever.

A masterpiece. All components are perfect but the drums are such a delight to hear. Parts three and four are heavenly.

Spiritual jazz masterpiece

Amazing great WOW

Amazing. One of the most beautiful, transcendent albums ever recorded. Incredible soloing on all instruments obviously, but stunning comping all the way through as well. Santana says when he enters a new hotel room on tour he plays this album to cleanse the energy, I totally get it.

One of the greats

I mean, there's a reason why I have a son named Coltrane. 5/5

coffee

A pleasure to revisit this superb recording. An absolute gem!

Amazing. Known this one for a while. Tremendous long form jazz.

The absolute best

A suitably weighty choice for album number 500.

Incredible

Sublime.

Thrilling masterpiece.

Classic Coltrane! Superb.

Beautiful and brilliant. Coltrane usually plays too many notes for my liking, but he's in great form here. This album is sublime.

The man

How beautifully they collectively sense each other out and give each other space lmao Marco XD

Excellent jazz album. Thoroughly enjoyable to listen to.

A unique piece of music that goes beyond jazz. Coltrane may be the most brilliant player of all time but his composing skills are what makes him a music genius. I feel like one needs to find the right place and time to listen to this masterpiece, give it their full attention and let the music cleanse their soul.

Just great

Incredible album! I love the intention and message behind the recording process.

I love it!

A great album I’m familiar with. The piano work on this album is excellent.

Beautiful, made me want to listen to more jazz.

This is a perfect album. It is daunting. Do not listen to with screaming kids - it will make it worse.

I was disappointed that it ended so quickly. I enjoyed it so much that I had to listen to it a second time! I like that this recording is angular but doesn't go too far out like some of his later recordings. A true jazz classic.

Esse disco tem gosto de uísque 5/5

Even people who don't like jazz would give this 5 stars.

Very good.

Undeniable. Such a beautiful record.

A spiritual experience from beginning to end, John Coltrane’s masterpiece.

I love jazz in most of its forms, especially experimental, so I'm biased. Jazz is storytelling in its most primal elements. This is what I heard from Coltrane. There is this air of the instruments fluttering around the opening track Acknowledgement like a bird in the fresh morning. Slowly, flower heads unfurl, motifs emerge that ground the listener in the music and allow them to see the direction and purpose behind the seemingly random instrumental flight. Then just when you're starting to Get It, See It, out comes Coltrane with "A Love Supreme" - and could it be any more obvious where these melodies are going? Just after the realization hits, the joyful chaos is guided to rest by a graceful bassline, and the listener is left basking in the emotional experience, lingering in a new desire for flight. Once you have Acknowledged your life's new pull, you can dive into the journey towards the heart of the issue in Resolution. Along the journey you face discomfort and fear, but also new relationships, both within and without yourself. You change, you grow, out of the conflict and into assuredness. The second track feels much more like safety of being underground at nighttime. You fall asleep in this close dark space, rid of any anxieties of the future. Your waking is abrupt, urgent with the energy of Pursuance percussion. You are immediately hot on the trail, bounding out of your den with renewed energy and scampering nimbly through the landscape. At first it is imperceptible, but gradually you notice you've been running uphill, and by the time you become aware, you're at a wondrous elevation. It's too late to turn back - you're out of breath, you've come this far already, and you push on through your second and third wind. The air is getting thinner. Your movements are getting less and less controlled. With a final breathless push, you shift an entire mountain and emerge panting onto the rocky peak plateau, with the entire world stretching around you as far as you can see. As the blood returns to your brain and the sun re-turns towards the horizon, the knowledge of how far you have travelled starts to hit you. Was the sun over your shoulder when you sprinted away from last night's shelter? Can you find your way back? It feels so different up here, exposed, raw. And now, feet and lungs aching, your breath forms the shape of a Psalm as you realize you are not alone. When your eyes first opened to acknowledgement, when you gained strength in resolution, when you sprinted through pursuit, you were never alone. Your voice cries out with the saxophone, trying to make sense of this Being you've witnessed, why your heart has been so closed to Their Presence this entire time. With you is the guide you've been aching for. It doesn't matter which way you turn down the mountain to continue life's neverending flow - you walk every cardinal direction with blessed feet. The open sky, once so tender and bare, forever now folds around you like a cloak. THIS is the type of music you should listen to before you die.

Exploration. Fusion before it was a thing. Quality stuff.

An album you can get lost in. Just a beautiful piece of music.

John Coltrane's passion for all spirituality was one that most churchgoers and meditators strive to reach. devotion to a higher power is tricky for me, same as devotion to anyone, but the passion and pure love Coltrane puts in his performance here can be felt no matter how much of a heathen i am. even that variation on those four simple notes from the beginning feels so careful and attentive in each go around on the third part. i used to hear that knights spent a night in a chapel praying non-stop to God to show piety and be worthy of serving the Lord. i feel like this is the musical version of that act.