Coleman Hawkins - Reevaluations: The Impulse Years

A superb two-record retrospective devoted to Coleman Hawkins’ recordings for Impulse!, Reevaluations: The Impulse Years captures the tenor saxophone giant during a fascinating later chapter of his career. Hawkins was one of the foundational figures of the tenor sax in jazz, and these sessions show that his enormous tone, melodic imagination, and improvisational authority remained formidable as jazz moved into the 1960s.

The collection draws from Hawkins’ Impulse! work and surrounds him with an exceptional roster of musicians, including Duke Ellington, Johnny Hodges, Harry Carney, Benny Carter, Phil Woods, Ray Nance, J.J. Johnson, Barry Harris, Hank Jones, Tommy Flanagan, Jimmy Garrison, George Duvivier, and Willie Rodriguez.

Selections include “Out of Nowhere,” “The Midnight Sun Will Never Set,” “Wrapped Tight,” “Samba Para Bean,” “Put On Your Old Grey Bonnet,” “Mood Indigo,” “She’s Fit,” “Don’t Sit Under the Apple Tree,” “Indian Summer,” “O Pato,” “Swingin’ Scotch,” “Slowly,” and “Go Li’l Liza.” Produced for reissue by Ed Michel and Steve Backer, this 1973 Impulse! compilation is an excellent overview of Hawkins’ sophisticated late-period playing.

The two-LP gatefold presentation, extensive liner notes, and dramatic full-page interior portrait make this a particularly attractive Hawkins collection.