Live at Birdland (John Coltrane album)

Scott Yanow's five-star AllMusic review calls the recording "[a]rguably John Coltrane's finest all-around album". Reviewer C. Michael Bailey wrote: "If the listener wishes to hear the master in transition, look no further than Coltrane Live at Birdland." In 2017, Pitchfork ranked the album as the 128th best of the 1960s. The journalist Ben Ratliff wrote of "Alabama": "It is a striking piece of music. If anyone wants to begin to understand how Coltrane could inspire so much awe so quickly, the reason is probably inside 'Alabama'. The incantational tumult he could raise in a long improvisation, the steel-trap knowledge of harmony, the writing—that's all very impressive. But 'Alabama' is also an accurate psychological portrait of a time, a complicated mood that nobody else could render so well." ==Track listing==

All songs written by John Coltrane except as indicated • "Afro Blue" (Mongo Santamaria) – 10:50 • "I Want to Talk About You" (Billy Eckstine) – 8:11 • "The Promise" – 8:10 • "Alabama" – 5:09 • "Your Lady" – 6:39 ;Compact Disc bonus track • "Vilia" (Franz Lehár) – 4:36 "Vilia" is a jazz arrangement of Franz Lehár's "Es lebt' eine Vilja, ein Waldmägdelein" from The Merry Widow. This track was first released on a 1965 compilation by Impulse! ==Personnel==

• John Coltrane – tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone • McCoy Tyner – piano • Jimmy Garrison – double bass • Elvin Jones – drums == References ==