Impressions

Impressions is a 1963 album of both live and studio recordings by jazz musician John Coltrane. Tracks 1 and 3 were recorded live at the Village Vanguard in November 1961, while tracks 2 and 4 were recorded at Van Gelder Studio, respectively on September 18, 1962 and April 29, 1963. Track 5, "Dear Old Stockholm" did not appear on the original release, but appears on later reissues. The album was originally released in 1963 on the Impulse! label. The recording features the "classic quartet" of John Coltrane: McCoy Tyner, Jimmy Garrison, and Elvin Jones; they are joined by Eric Dolphy and Reggie Workman on the live tracks. Dolphy plays a memorable solo on the long modal workout "India", but lays out on all but the coda of "Impressions". Workman is at hand only on "India", to join Garrison in approximating the sound of an African drum choir. Throughout, Tyner's presence is unusually muted; he takes his only solo on the bonus track, "Dear Old Stockholm", is barely audible on the two Village Vanguard tracks, and lays out entirely on "Up 'Gainst the Wall". Also, drummer Roy Haynes—as he sometimes did for Coltrane's group during this era—replaces Elvin Jones on "After the Rain" and "Dear Old Stockholm". Jones and Garrison are also uncharacteristically low-key. All told, and even more so than on his other albums, the focus on this LP is on Coltrane. The title track is notable for featuring nearly fifteen minutes of Coltrane's soloing.