1959 · Album
Swingville: Coleman Hawkins With the Red Garland Trio
Recorded August 12, 1959 · Swingville · Produced by Unverified — omitted
Hawk Meets the Garland Crew
Hawkins and Garland find a shared groove that feels easy, unforced, and genuinely enjoyable.
Coleman Hawkins was already a legend by 1959 — the man who more or less invented the tenor saxophone as a jazz instrument — but he was also smart enough to keep finding fresh contexts to play in. Coleman Hawkins With the Red Garland Trio (1959) pairs him with pianist Red Garland, whose block-chord style and light touch were closely associated with the Miles Davis groups of the mid-fifties. It's an interesting combination: Hawkins's big, warm, slightly burly tone sitting on top of Garland's clean, rhythmically relaxed piano. The session was recorded on August 12, 1959 and came out on the Swingville label, which was doing solid work putting older swing-era players together with modern rhythm sections.
This is not a reinvention album. Nobody is trying to push jazz anywhere new. What it is, is a well-matched group of musicians playing standards with comfort and confidence. Garland's trio — bass and drums included — gives Hawkins a cushion that swings without getting in his way. Hawkins, for his part, sounds relaxed and in full control, which is worth noting because some of his later recordings could feel a little stiff. Here he sounds like he's enjoying himself.
If you're coming to this expecting the drama of Hawkins's famous 1939 Body and Soul recording, dial back those expectations. This is a late-career date that lands somewhere between pleasant and genuinely good, depending on the track. Fans of Red Garland will find him doing exactly what he does best — comping crisply, soloing cleanly, staying out of the way when needed. For collectors of Swingville sessions or anyone interested in how Hawkins adapted to post-bop rhythm sections, this one is worth your time.
Who's playing
Where next?
More by Coleman Hawkins
Duke Ellington Meets Coleman Hawkins 1963
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The Hawk Flies High 1957
Coleman Hawkins and Confrères
The Hawk Relaxes 1961
The musicians on this record
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