Stellar Regions

Stellar Regions is a posthumous release by John Coltrane, discovered in 1994 by the artist's wife, Alice Coltrane, who plays the piano on the session. Alice Coltrane is also responsible for the titles of the eight numbers featured on the album, and the record itself can be considered a lost-tapes album, since it was not found for nearly three decades. The material on the album is not entirely previously unreleased: the same take of "Offering" was first issued on Coltrane's final studio album, Expression. Also, the track entitled "Stellar Regions" on this album is an early version of "Venus", first released in 1974 on the sax-drums duo album, Interstellar Space. Stellar Regions was recorded the week prior to the session that gave rise to that album, and features many similar note choices and runs; indeed, the "Venus" solo is also presaged here by portions of "Offering" and "Sun Star". The former song and also "Tranesonic" anticipate the fascination with polyrhythm and spare, duo arrangements that would dominate the Interstellar Space sessions. This is one of Coltrane's most accessible later albums: the numbers are brief and distinctly structured.