Blew by 'Trane, alright...
Blue Train is John Coltrane's second solo album, released in 1958 on Blue Note Records. Widely regarded as one of his greatest albums, it is most famous for the title track.
Tracklist
Side One- "Blue Train" (10:43)
- "Moment's Notice" (9:10)
Side Two
- "Locomotion" (7:14)
- "I'm Old Fashioned" (7:58)
- "Lazy Bird" (7:00)
The 1997 CD reissue added two bonus tracks: "Blue Train" (9:58) and "Lazy Bird" (7:12).
Personnel
- John Coltrane: tenor saxophone
- Lee Morgan: trumpet
- Curtis Fuller: trombone
- Kenny Drew: piano
- Paul Chambers: bass
- Philly Joe Jones: drums
Blue Tropes:
- Colour-Coded Emotions: The album cover is blue, as is the title and title track. Coltrane is shown contemplating, suggesting he's feeling blue.
- Continuity Nod: "Locomotion" makes the reader think of a locomotive, continuing the train imagery.
- Cool Train: One way to describe "Blue Train".
- Cover Version: "I'm Old Fashioned", a cover of a 1942 song by Jerome Kern and Johnny Mercer.
- Deliberately Monochrome: The cover is in black and white, though coloured blue.
- Epic Rocking: Every song qualifies; the shortest song on the album is 7 minutes long.
- Face on the Cover: Coltrane's face in close-up, pondering.
- Good Is Old-Fashioned: "I'm Old-Fashioned".
- Lazy Bum: "Lazy Bird".
- Longest Song Goes First: The album opens with the 10:43 Title Track, the only song on the record to surpass ten minutes.
- Pun-Based Title:
- The album title is a pun on his own last name. Coltrane was nicknamed "'Trane" by some of his colleagues.
- "Lazy Bird'"; a pun on the Tadd Dameron track "Lady Bird"
- Record Producer: Alfred Lion.
- Title Track: "Blue Train".
- Train Song: "Blue Train".
