Artist:John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman
Song:My One And Only Love
Album:The House That Trane Built:The Impulse Records Story
Of course this is from the 4CD box set chronicling the history of Impulse Records. This 1963 recording was a comeback for jazz vocalist Johnny Hartman. He was born July 3, 1923 in Chicago. In his early days he was compared with Billy Eckstine. After performing in the Army, he studied music in college and was part of bands led by Earl Hines and then Dizzy Gillespie. He recorded a couple of albums in 1956 for Bethlehem Records with trumpeter Howard McGhee but then he disappeared for a few years. The speculation was that there was a backlash against black crooners like Hartman & Eckstine by white audiences. I don't know if that's true. In 1963, Hartman became the only vocalist to ever sing with the classic John Coltrane quartet of McCoy Tyner on piano, Jimmy Garrison on bass and Elvin Jones on drums. It's a beautiful album but it's only 30 minutes long. Hartman continued to record for Impulse. He continued to tour and record occasionally and was nominated for a Grammy for his 1980 album Once In Every Life. Johnny Hartman died on Sept. 15, 1983 at age 60. Johnny Hartman has been overlooked over the years and this recording with Coltrane is worth getting. Here's Johnny Hartman performing on TV in the 70s.
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