JOHN COLTRANE, Ascension (Edition I & II) (Verve Vault) (Verve ; A-95, Europe 2026 Reissue, Gatefold) 2xLP NEW/NEW

2xLP - NEW/NEW - JOHN COLTRANE, Ascension (Edition I & II) (Verve Vault) (Verve ; A-95, Europe 2026 Reissue, Gatefold), , Ascension, released in 1966 on Impulse! Records, stands as one of John Coltrane s most radical and influential works. Subtitled Edition I & II to reflect the two complete takes recorded at the session and presented together on LP for the first time the piece is a nearly 40-minute large-ensemble performance marking Coltrane s decisive embrace of the avant-garde. Recorded on June 28, 1965, at Rudy Van Gelder s Englewood Cliffs studio and produced by Bob Thiele, the session assembled an expanded ensemble of eleven musicians. Alongside Coltrane s tenor saxophone are trumpeters Freddie Hubbard and Dewey Johnson; saxophonists Pharoah Sanders, Marion Brown, John Tchicai, and Archie Shepp; pianist McCoy Tyner; bassists Art Davis and Jimmy Garrison; and drummer Elvin Jones. The music alternates between densely textured collective improvisation and extended solo statements, conjuring a hurricane of violent, searching sound. Initially controversial for its intensity and freedom, Ascension has since come to be recognized as a landmark of modern jazz and a defining statement of the emerging free-jazz movement. Presenting both takes together highlights the organic, ever-changing character of the performance and affirms its enduring place in Coltrane s artistic legacy. - 2556027S *** In Stock In Our Shoreditch Shop ***