Another Legend Gone... RIP: McCoy Tyner

McCoy Tyner was probably one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time. He was also the last surviving member of the "John Coltrane Quartet" that influenced and continue to do so a lot of musicians until today.

He was born in Philadelphia in 1938. He started to play the piano at the age of 13 and in just two years he became an accomplished player. In 1959, Tyner joined trumpeter Art Farmer and saxophonist Benny Golson in a group they called The Jazztet; he appeared on its first album, released the following year.

That same year, 1960, Tyner played on Coltrane's album "My Favorite Things"; his tolling, meditative chords on the title track, a popular song borrowed from the hit Broadway musical The Sound of Music, were a key part of its allure.

Consequently, he joined the renowned quartet of John Coltrane and made very significant contributions to the band whose other members were Elvin Jones and Jimmy Garrison. The band worked hard between 1960 and 1965 heavily touring and making historic recordings such as  "Live! at the Village Vanguard", "Ballads", "Live at Birdland", "Crescent" and "A Love Supreme".

John Coltrane Quartet

His involvement with Coltrane came to an end in 1965. Coltrane's music was becoming much more atonal and free; he had also augmented his quartet with percussion players who threatened to drown out both Tyner and Jones: "I didn't see myself making any contribution to that music... All I could hear was a lot of noise. I didn't have any feeling for the music, and when I don't have feelings, I don't play". 

After leaving Coltrane's group, Tyner produced a series of post-bop albums released by Blue Note from 1967 to 1970. These included "The Real McCoy" (1967), "Tender Moments" (1967), "Time for Tyner" (1968), "Expansions" (1968) and "Extensions" (1970). He signed with Milestone and recorded "Sahara" (1972), "Enlightenment" (1973), and "Fly with the Wind" (1976), which included flautist Hubert Laws, drummer Billy Cobham, and a string orchestra.

Here is a video of the John Coltrane Quartet playing Impressions;

McCoy Tyner's powerful, propulsive style of piano playing was an integral part of the John Coltrane Quartet in the early 1960s and influenced countless musicians that followed him. His rich chord clusters continue to be copied by many young jazz pianists. His attack style and harmonic inventions continue to inspire many famous jazz musicians even today.

Here is a more recent video of the McCoy Tyner Trio, recorded live playing Monk's Dream;

RIP great master, you will be remembered forever...