Born in Philadelphia on December 11th, 1938, Alfred McCoy Tyner was a relative latecomer to the piano, only focusing on it around the age of 13. Yet within a few short years, McCoy was one of the most spellbinding players on the scene. At the ripe young age of 21, Tyner took his place at the piano bench with his onetime Philadelphia neighbour, John Coltrane, thus cementing the sound of the Classic Quartet who, in a five-year run would inspire jazz for generations to come. And had he never stepped outside of that group, Tyner’s legacy would have already been assured. 

But even in the midst of the legendary Quartet’s impeccable run, Tyner began to branch out. Cut in the five months separating quintessential works like “Live at the Village Vanguard” and “Coltrane”, Tyner’s debut “Inception” found him in a classic piano trio setting. Still only 23, Tyner already sounds composed beyond his years, accompanied by bassist Art Davis and Coltrane drummer Elvin Jones. He delivered a sparkling set that reveals the light, lyrical, bop-informed touch of his early years on a handful of standards and originals.

Inception (1962, Impulse!)

His second Impulse date, “Today and Tomorrow”, pairs more trio work with an expanded sextet featuring Elvin Jones’ older brother Thad on trumpet and Sun Ra saxophonist John Gilmore in the front line. Fans of Tyner’s driving left hand from the Quartet will appreciate the new context here, with Tyner driving the three horns to new heights. Meanwhile, he proves he’s just as felicitous on a doubletime take of the standard “Autumn Leaves.”

Today and Tomorrow (1964, Impulse!)

Tyner famously left the Quartet at the end of 1965, stating that he could no longer hear himself on the bandstand. Yet he couldn’t quite get out from under the long shadow of his previous group. “I went through a very difficult period in which I had to decide whether I was going to do what I’m doing now, or whether I was going to do something else,” Tyner said to one interviewer. Thankfully, the archival reissue of “Forces of Nature” showed just what Tyner was doing at the time, capturing one night at Slugs’ Saloon in 1966. This live set finds him pushing his modal music further and further out, accompanied by the fiery melodies of tenor saxophonist Joe Henderson, about as formidable a player as there was in the Coltrane era. 

Forces of Nature (rec. 1966, rel. 2024, Blue Note)

The Real McCoy (1967, Blue Note)

When Tyner finally signed to Blue Note in 1967, his first album for the label, “The Real McCoy”, again highlighted the combustible energy between him and Henderson. Buoyed by a lithe rhythm section of Jones and Ron Carter, it’s an unsung gem in the post-bop era, with the eloquent “Contemplation” becoming one of Tyner’s finest compositions. “Tender Moments” followed soon after, with Tyner now helming a nonet that boasted the likes of trumpeter Lee Morgan, trombonist Julian Priester, saxophonists James Spaulding and Bennie Maupin, with Bob Northern on French horn and Howard Johnson on tuba. The album showcased Tyner’s writing exclusively and the arrangements are equally ambitious and thrilling.

Time For Tyner (1969, Blue Note)

“Time for Tyner” captured Tyner in a live setting in 1969, performing at a John Coltrane memorial concert in Raleigh, North Carolina with a quartet featuring vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson. Hearing the vibes harmonise with Tyner’s right hand runs makes for some truly iridescent moments. The first half of the concert features two of Tyner’s expansive modal excursions, while a medley of standards on the second half shows that he still has his roots planted in tradition.

But despite a run of trailblazing Blue Note dates, the label changed hands and the new heads weren’t doing much to promote their artist. A few dates went unreleased at the time, which feels all the more shocking in retrospect when you hear the music captured on these albums, “Extensions” and “Asante”. Their folkloric record covers, one made to look like the cover of National Geographic, the other capturing an ecstatic African dancer, convey the joyous music within.

Extensions (1973, Blue Note) and Asante (1974, Blue Note)

At the age of 18, Tyner had converted to Islam. And while his devotion no doubt informed his playing in the Coltrane Quartet, that spiritual influence only rose to the fore of his compositions in earnest beginning in 1970. “Extensions” was a powerful statement that doubled as an embrace of his African heritage and his Islamic faith, with two quotes from the Holy Quran in the liner notes. Tyner drove his group higher and inspired ever more adventurous solos from reedsmen Wayne Shorter and Gary Bartz. It was a recording date made all the more profound by the presence of Alice Coltrane in his group, adding her shimmering harp arpeggios to these longform improvisations.

With the open-ended pieces of “Asante” recorded seven months later, Tyner pushed into the deepest realms of spiritual jazz, fully embracing the kinds of experimentation that his mentor Coltrane had near the end of his life and that his widow now explored. Tyner began to incorporate folkloric instruments that had previously fallen outside of the classical jazz idiom: koto, wood flutes, African percussion, and dulcimer, utilising them as “a sound-effect, a mood-setter…what I see is a total thing in music,” Tyner said in an interview. Throughout Tyner’s decades-long musical career, you can feel this profound totality in any of his recordings.

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Andy Beta is the author of “Cosmic Music: The Life, Art, and Transcendence of Alice Coltrane”. He is based in New York City.

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_{Header Image: McCoy Tyner, 1970 Photo: Michael Ochs Archives}