A local tradition of revisiting a jazz masterpiece: Rob Dixon and 'A Love Supreme'

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Friday night was the first opportunity I've taken to see and hear Rob Dixon again revisit John Coltrane's epic suite, "A Love Supreme." Of all the recorded landmarks in the saxophonist's prematurely ended career, "A Love Supreme" is the most ambitious and the top seller. Like many saxophonists since Coltrane's time (1926-1967), Dixon has built his apprehension of the music on the master's example of stamina and technical knowledge.

The suite's triumph always carries the surprising element of being a popular long-form composition in a musical genre familiar for more compact pieces. But Coltrane was famous for going long in his solos, extending a given form spontaneously. When he was a member of Miles Davis' group in the 1950s, he gently complained that he didn't know how to end his solos. The trumpeter-bandleader said something like, "You take the horn out of your mouth, John."

Part of what makes the four-movement suite significant is that it thoroughly encompasses Coltrane's religious devotion, centered on God's love, both given and reciprocated. An accompanying free-form poem the composer wrote makes that explicit. But even without words, except for a major theme that imitates the words of the title, "A Love Supreme" consistently carries Coltrane's notion of progress toward a more grounded faith. 

The movement names trace that progress: "Acknowledgement," "Resolution," "Pursuance," and "Psalm." In Friday's second set, I admired the Dixon ensemble's adherence to the style of the December 1964 recording, while each member also made personal his loyalty to the original. The leader's bandmates (also with him tonight in two more "Love Supreme" renditions) are Steve Allee, piano; Jim Anderson, bass, and Richard "Sleepy" Floyd, drums. 

Rob Dixon and quartet honor Coltrane.
To mention  a revealing detail or two: Allee dug into his solo in "Resolution," touching upon McCoy Tyner's manner of chordal inspiration. Thus he helped bring forward that movement's atmosphere of determination and commitment to an enduring spiritual path. In contrast, his playing on "Pursuance," where setting out on a path to true devotion is more the issue, had more single-line phrases and an emphasis on melody. 

Throughout, Allee was touching base with Tyner as loyal sideman to his boss Coltrane and lending his patented flexibility to the account. It's also worth mentioning that Floyd, who commands several styles, poured on what has been called Elvin Jones' "spread rhythm" most notably in "Pursuance," especially in the percussion showcase that introduces it.

But the most important part of the tribute was Dixon's virtuosity and stamina (though he had no trouble knowing when to take the horn out of his mouth!) throughout the suite. The finale "Psalm" incorporated the bluesy memorial piece "Alabama." Bass and drums set up that movement with a "rubato" introduction, Floyd turning to mallets and cymbals. Dixon's patience with setting down the tribute gently and definitively is worth celebrating.

To fill out the set, Dixon welcomed a string quartet to play his arrangements of several Coltrane-associated tunes with the quartet. Violinists Sarah Page and Kara Day, violist Kathy Hershberger, and cellist Yoonhae Swanson gave luster to the expanded settings. Starting with Mongo Santamaria's "Afro Blue," the band then focused on three Coltrane originals: "Lonnie's Lament," "Central Park West," and "Mr. P.C."

Some apparent boosting from the sound booth made the strings gratifyingly more audible and vibrant in "Central Park West" and "Mr. P.C."  The last-named tune was especially exciting in two episodes with the string quartet executing rapid figuration in the same tempo. There was also a piquant Floyd solo. 

It's no surprise that the two evenings have sold well in advance. The local tradition created by Dixon has been well applied to honor a jazz milestone.

[Photo montage by Rob Ambrose]

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