ARKADIA JAZZ ALL-STARS:
Thank You, John!

Liner notes by the producer

As we begin making what we hope will be a small but significant contribution to jazz history, we at Arkadia Jazz feel that it is important to honor the legacy of some of jazz’s greats.   For this project—the first in a series of musical homages—we asked our artists to contribute a song or two derived from or influenced by the Coltrane repertoire.

30 years after his death, John Coltrane sits ensconced in the jazz pantheon, having pioneered a style that remains very much alive on the contemporary scene. His influence and memory are particularly vibrant in the minds and music of Arkadia’s artists.   One of our artists, Benny Golson, is an almost exact contemporary of Trane’s. The two were very good friends growing up together in Philadelphia. Billy Taylor, in his days as the Birdland "House Pianist," played with Trane on numerous occasions. If less personal, David Liebman’s relationship with Trane is perhaps the most intense among the artists appearing on this album.   According to Liebman, it was the sound of Trane playing at Birdland, caught when he was a boy of 15, that inspired him to become a jazz musician. That feeling of awe and fascination which transported the young Liebman, seems also to have moved the young artists in the band Red Time, whose infectious, jazz-flavored hip-hop tribute to Trane serves as a coda for this album.

In this diverse and exciting collection, a talented and variegated collection of musicians—each in his own style and manner—pays tribute to Coltrane, playing tunes Trane wrote and made famous, or playing songs of their own inspired by the master.   From be-bop to hip-hop to bossa nova, all of the artists have benefited from Trane’s music and teaching. Wide in scope and deep in nature, Coltrane’s influence is something for which we will remain in debt for many years to come.   As such, we feel very strongly that it is important from time to time to say…   Thank You, John!

— Bob Karcy, President and Founder, Arkadia Records