Four for Trane, released in 1964 on Impulse! Records, was saxophonist Archie Shepp’s first major studio statement and remains one of his most influential albums. Co-produced by John Coltrane and recorded at Rudy Van Gelder’s Englewood Cliffs studio, the set presents Shepp performing four Coltrane compositions — ‘Naima’, ‘Mr. Syms’, ‘Syeeda’s Song Flute’, and ‘Cousin Mary’ — alongside Shepp’s own ‘Rufus’. Rather than offering faithful renditions, Shepp and arranger Roswell Rudd reimagine Coltrane’s material with bold ensemble voicings, fluctuating time signatures, and unfettered improvisation. The result is an album that honours Coltrane’s vision while reframing it through the lens of the emerging avant-garde.
The quintet — Shepp on tenor saxophone, Rudd on trombone, Alan Shorter on flugelhorn, Reggie Workman on bass, and Charles Moffett on drums — bridges the intensity of free jazz with the formal rigor of post-bop. Released at a pivotal moment in Shepp’s artistic development, Four for Trane signalled his arrival as a vital and progressive voice within the new wave of 1960s jazz.
The Verve Vault series is always mastered from analog tapes and pressed on 180g vinyl at Optimal.
