Ornette Coleman Genesis Of Genius: The Contemporary Albums 180g 2LP Box Set

TAS Rated 5/5 Music, 4.5/5 Sonics in the July/August 2022 Issue of The Absolute Sound!

Containing newly remastered audio, Genesis Of Genius: The Contemporary Albums combines legendary Jazz saxophonist Ornette Coleman's albums for Lester Koenig's Contemporary Records.

This deluxe box set features Coleman's first albums as a bandleader, Something Else!!!! and Tomorrow Is The Question!. Both albums were originally recorded by legendary engineer Roy DuNann and have been newly mastered by Bernie Grundman, whom DuNann was a mentor for. Also included is a 32-page booklet with photos and extensive new liner notes by GRAMMY® Award-winning music historian Ashley Kahn.

Listening to the first two albums saxophonist Ornette Coleman released under his own name today, it can be a little challenging to surmise exactly what about this then-young player made his peers in the late '50s lose their minds. But his approach to melody and structure upset the status quo so much that, as legend has it, Max Roach socked Coleman in the mouth after hearing him play. Jazz, and Ornette, have gone to far more challenging places since Contemporary Records released these records but their initial appearance sent a small shockwave through the musical community that modern players are still feeling the aftershocks of. This lovingly constructed set offers a chance to hear just how important these albums were and still are. Bernie Grundman used the original analog tapes for these sharp new pressings of both Something Else!!!! and Tomorrow Is The Question, and Craft Recordings packaged them in a handsome blue box with a booklet, featuring masterful liner notes from Ashley Kahn, tucked inside.

These eye-popping recordings helped usher in the avant-garde, laying the groundwork for his formidable body of work while challenging the status quo. On classics like 'Invisible' and 'The Blessing' from Something Else!, Coleman and trumpeter Don Cherry demonstrate a telepathic connection while individually improvising in bold and audacious ways that went outside the parameters of be-bop. And while tunes like the buoyant swinger 'Jayne' and uptempo burners like 'Chippie' and 'Alpha' may sound relatively tame compared to what Coleman would later get into, their solos remain proudly unorthodox. Tomorrow Is the Question! is the more uncompromising of the two albums, as evidenced by futuristic numbers like 'Mind and Time,' the tempo-shifting 'Lorraine,' frantically darting 'Endless,' and pulsating 'Rejoicing.' The bluesy 'Turnaround' remains a jamming classic. Newly mastered by Bernie Grundman, these two albums have a pristine sound that will thrill audiophiles.