Mad 6

Mad 6
Studio album by
Ravi Coltrane
Released2002
LabelEighty-Eights/Columbia[1]
ProducerYasohachi Itoh
Ravi Coltrane chronology
From the Round Box
(2000) 		Mad 6
(2002) 		In Flux
(2005)

Mad 6 is an album by the American musician Ravi Coltrane, released in 2002.[2][3] Coltrane supported the album by playing the 2003 Satchmo SummerFest.[4]

Production

Produced by Yasohachi Itoh, the album was recorded over two days in May 2002 in New York City.[5][6][7] Coltrane wrote four of the album's tracks.[8] He split the album between two sets of musicians.[9] The drummer Steve Hass is the only quartet member who played on every Mad 6 track; Darryl Hall played bass and George Colligan played piano on some tracks.[10][11][12] "26-2" and "Fifth House" are covers of songs by Coltrane's father.[13] "Ask Me Now" is a cover of the Thelonious Monk song.[14] Other songs are by Jimmy Heath and Charles Mingus.[15]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[16]
Birmingham Post[12]
DownBeat[17]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings[18]
Uncut[6]

JazzTimes called the album "a taut and satisfying outing in the progressive-mainstream vein ... Coltrane's ensemble delivers one forward-thrusting performance after another."[19] The Independent deemed Coltrane "polished, sophisticated, and ever so slightly bland."[20]

The Globe and Mail labeled Coltrane's saxophone solos "smart and stylish at every turn"; the paper later listed Mad 6 among the best albums of 2003.[21][22] The Hartford Courant considered Coltrane "a solid, expressive player, whether he's digging into original compositions or building on harmonic structures."[23] The Guardian stated that Hass added "a post-techno intensity to every beat."[24]

AllMusic wrote that "the tense, brisk arrangement of ''Round Midnight' suggests the hustle and bustle of Manhattan nightlife at that hour, with a tense rhythm behind his furious soprano sax."[16]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."26-2" 
2."Ginger Bread Boy" 
3."Avignon" 
4."The Mad 6" 
5."Self Portrait in Three Colors" 
6."Between Lines" 
7."'Round Midnight" 
8."The Return of Olymbus" 
9."Ask Me Now" 
10."Fifth House" 

References

  1. ^ "Ravi Coltrane". NPR.
  2. ^ "Ravi Coltrane Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic.
  3. ^ Giddins, Gary (August 27, 2004). "Weather Bird: Jazz at the Dawn of Its Second Century". Oxford University Press – via Google Books.
  4. ^ "SATCHMO SUMMERFEST". LAGNIAPPE. The Times-Picayune. August 1, 2003. p. 24.
  5. ^ Graybow, Steven (Apr 19, 2003). "Jazz notes". Billboard. 115 (16): 13.
  6. ^ a b "Ravi Coltrane - Mad 6". Uncut. May 31, 2003.
  7. ^ Weideman, Paul (4 Apr 2003). "RAVI COLTRANE SPEAKS WITH A VOICE OF HIS OWN". The Santa Fe New Mexican. p. P24.
  8. ^ "Jazz scion makes his own way". Albuquerque Journal. 4 Apr 2003. p. 18.
  9. ^ Crowder, Marcus (July 27, 2003). "Recent releases". The Sacramento Bee. p. TK11.
  10. ^ Donahue, Mark (18 Apr 2003). "Ravi Coltrane 'Mad 6'". Time Out!. Daily Herald. Arlington Heights. Associated Press. p. 9.
  11. ^ "My favourite number? It's Eighty-Eight's". Winnipeg Free Press. 5 May 2003.
  12. ^ a b Bacon, Peter (7 June 2003). "Ravi Coltrane – Mad 6". Birmingham Post. p. 52.
  13. ^ Varga, George (April 11, 2003). "Coltrane's son makes his own sweet music". The San Diego Union-Tribune. p. E5.
  14. ^ Simon, Jeff (May 2, 2003). "Jazz". The Buffalo News. p. G12.
  15. ^ Cordle, Owen (June 8, 2003). "On The Record – Jazz". The News & Observer. p. G2.
  16. ^ a b "Ravi Coltrane - Mad 6 Album Reviews, Songs & More | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.
  17. ^ Ephland, John (Nov 2003). "Mad 6". DownBeat. 70 (11): 68.
  18. ^ The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin Books Ltd. 2008. p. 293.
  19. ^ Chinen, Nate. "Ravi Coltrane: Mad 6". JazzTimes.
  20. ^ Byrnes, Sholto (20 Apr 2003). "Ravi Coltrane Mad 6". Features. The Independent. p. 15.
  21. ^ Miller, Mark (8 May 2003). "JAZZ". The Globe and Mail. p. R3.
  22. ^ Miller, Mark (6 Dec 2003). "It's a wrap!". The Globe and Mail. p. R1.
  23. ^ McNally, Owen (29 May 2003). "MAD SIX Ravi Coltrane". Calendar. Hartford Courant. p. 6.
  24. ^ Walters, John L. (4 July 2003). "And what about Ravi Coltrane's Mad 6...". Guardian Friday Pages. The Guardian. p. 21.