John Coltrane
Tenor Sax Solo on
Nutty

About

John Coltrane's tenor sax solo is the opening of 2 solos on this recording, before Thelonious Monk's closing piano statement. Spanning three choruses of the 32-bar AABA form at a medium-up 141 BPM with a swing feel in B♭, the solo runs approximately 2:48. Coltrane leads with three exploratory choruses of tenor saxophone, his rapidly developing harmonic concept tested and refined against the unpredictable contours of Monk's composition. John Coltrane was 30 to 31 years old at the time of this 1957 recording. The tune is typically performed in Bb major and features the angular melodic writing and idiosyncratic harmonic sensibility that define Monk's body of work.

John Coltrane was 30 to 31 years old at the time.