Giant Steps is a studio album by jazz musician John Coltrane. It was released in February 1960 through Atlantic Records.[1][2][3] This was Coltrane's first album as leader for the label, with which he had signed a new contract the previous year. The record is regarded as one of the most influential jazz albums of all time. Many of its tracks have become practice templates for jazz saxophonists.[5][6] In 2004, it was one of fifty recordings chosen that year by the Library of Congress to be added to the National Recording Registry. It attained gold record status in 2018, having sold 500,000 copies.[7]
Two tracks, "Naima" and "Syeeda's Song Flute", are respectively named after Coltrane's wife at the time and her daughter, whom he adopted. A third, "Mr. P.C.", takes its name from the initials of bassist Paul Chambers, who played on the album. A fourth, "Cousin Mary", is named in honor of Mary Lyerly, Coltrane's younger cousin.
Background
In 1959,
record contract for Coltrane with Atlantic, the terms of which included a $7,000 annual guarantee (equivalent to $73,164 in 2023).[8] Initial sessions for this album, the second recording date for Coltrane under his new contract after a January 15 date led by Milt Jackson, took place on March 26, 1959.[9] Coltrane was dissatisfied with the results of this session with Cedar Walton and Lex Humphries, and hence they were not used for the album,[10] but appeared on subsequent compilations and reissues. Principal recording for the album took place on May 4 and 5, two weeks after Coltrane had participated in the final session for Kind of Blue.[11] The track "Naima" was recorded on December 2 with Coltrane's bandmates, the rhythm section from the Miles Davis Quintet, who would provide the backing for most of his next album, Coltrane Jazz.[12]
Coltrane's improvisation exemplifies the melodic phrasing that came to be known as
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, a lifetime jazz lover, titled his autobiography Giant Steps both as a play on his 7'2" height and in tribute to the Coltrane album.
Track listing
Side one
No.
Title
Date recorded
Length
1.
"
Countdown
"
May 4, 1959
2:21
4.
"Spiral"
May 4, 1959
5:56
Side two
No.
Title
Date recorded
Length
5.
"Syeeda's Song Flute"
May 5, 1959
7:00
6.
"
Mr. P.C.
"
May 5, 1959
6:57
1987 CD reissue bonus tracks
No.
Title
Date recorded
Length
8.
"Giant Steps" (alternate version 1)
March 26, 1959
3:41
9.
"Naima" (alternate version 1)
March 26, 1959
4:27
10.
"Cousin Mary" (alternate take)
May 5, 1959
5:54
11.
"Countdown" (alternate take)
May 4, 1959
4:33
12.
"Syeeda's Song Flute" (alternate take)
May 5, 1959
7:02
1998 CD reissue additional bonus tracks
No.
Title
Date recorded
Length
13.
"Giant Steps" (alternate version 2)
March 26, 1959
3:32
14.
"Naima" (alternate version 2)
March 26, 1959
3:37
15.
"Giant Steps" (alternate take)
May 5, 1959
5:00
Personnel
Thursday, March 26, 1959 (Tracks 8, 9, 13, 14)[28]