Cannonball Adderley Quintet In Chicago (feat. John Coltrane)

In February 1959, Miles Davis' late-'50s sextet visited Chicago for an engagement at a club called the Sutherland Lounge. While they were in the Windy City, Davis sidemen Cannonball Adderley (alto sax), John Coltrane (tenor sax), Wynton Kelly (piano), Paul Chambers (bass), and Jimmy Cobb (drums) recorded this excellent session without the innovative trumpeter. It would be a mistake to think of The Cannonball Adderley Quintet in Chicago as a Miles Davis session without Miles Davis — nothing from Davis' repertoire is performed, and Adderley is in the driver's seat. However, you could say that Coltrane proves to be a most valuable co-pilot. In 1960, modal post-bop became Coltrane's primary direction, but in 1959 he was still playing hard bop — and the chordal approach serves the quintet well on a sweaty version of "Limehouse Blues" as well as pieces by Coltrane ("The Sleeper," "Grand Central") and Adderley ("Wabash"). Coltrane lays out on the ballad "Stars Fell on Alabama," while "You're a Weaver of Dreams" finds Adderley taking a break and letting Coltrane be the only horn player. Originally a vinyl LP, The Cannonball Adderley Quintet in Chicago was reissued on CD in 1999 with informative new liner notes by writer Carl Woideck.