McCoy Tyner - Soliloquy (Blue Note, 1991)

McCoy Tyner, piano

Recorded February 19-21, 1991
Merkin Hall, NYC
Engineer: David Baker

McCoy Tyner is pictured on the album cover of Meet the Jazztet (Argo, 1960), Tyner's first recording date and one of the first jazz albums I ever owned. Soon after, I received John Coltrane's My Favorite Things (Atlantic, 1961) as a Christmas present from my brother, and Tyner was listed as the pianist.

I saw Tyner in person for the first time in July 1965 when Coltrane brought his quartet to Leo's Casino on Cleveland's east side. It was thrilling as a 20-year-old white boy to be sitting close to the stage in a small club. Two years later Coltrane died, saddening me but leaving me thankful to have seen his quartet with Tyner, Elvin Jones, and Jimmy Garrison play live.

About 20 years later I saw Tyner's trio play at the Musician's Exchange in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. Seated at a small table five feet from Al Foster's drum kit, my wife and I were enveloped by the sound of great artists playing a regular gig. I also vividly recall being in line on the staircase leading up to the performance venue while Clint Houston carried his bass up the stairs beside us (a very tight squeeze). 

Tyner's association with Coltrane is celebrated on Soliloquy, and given the stories above, it had to be one of my favorites. The Blue Note label was thriving again; the recording venue was Merkin Hall, known for its superb acoustics; and the engineer was David Baker. What could possibly be better?

The solo program contains 14 tracks, including an alternative take of "Crescent" at the end. None of the tracks exceeds 5 minutes in length, leaving little room for self-indulgent excess. Tyner's penchant for bombast is also held in check, leaving his virtuosity, touch, and phrasing on full display. The selections include 5 originals, 3 Coltrane tunes, 3 standards, and a couple of bebop classics from Bud Powell and Dexter Gordon. 

My personal favorites are "Crescent," "Lonnie's Lament," "After the Rain," and "Effendi." All of these tunes come from Impulse albums of the early 1960s, and all receive reverent treatments. The other selections are excellent, but the Coltrane associations are the most personally meaningful. Although Coltrane never recorded Tyner's "Effendi," it comes from the first of Tyner's Impulse! albums that I owned (Inception, 1962), 

Tyner joined Coltrane's quartet in 1960 at age 21 and played until 1965, generating more than a dozen classic recordings. I recall a comment Tyner made during an interview long ago. The questioner asked him what it was like for him to play in such a famous group (Coltrane's classic quartet). Tyner humbly replied that it was his first regular gig, and without anything to compare it to, he thought that all jazz groups must be like Trane's. 

Tyner's own career as a leader lasted almost 60 years. He died in 2020 at the age of 81. His recorded works all appeared during my 70 years of appreciating and collecting jazz. Soliloquy stands out as a mid-career triumph for Tyner and an important milestone in my personal journey.