They say it’s rare to purchase a CD and actually like every track. Well, I scored when I found “The Very Best of John Coltrane.” As a saxophone player, I was sold after listening to the first seconds of the demo in the store. I let out an enthusiastic “Yeah!” then looked up to see a few people staring at me. I didn’t care, I was in heaven.

Even though I already knew Coltrane’s stuff, and have always loved it, this collection is beyond amazing. His incredible improv solos fill me with such inspiration. I started jamming as soon as I got home. This CD starts strong with one of Coltrane’s most famous hits, “Giant Steps.” Once I figured out the melody, I couldn’t stop playing it.

The rest of the CD has standards such as “Like Sonny,” “My Favorite Things,” “Summertime” and many more. Coltrane is a beast! Switching off between tenor and soprano, this cat can play! I’m not a huge fan of slow songs, but the third track flows perfectly. Trane picks you right back up with “Like Sonny,” an upbeat, hard bop tune that always makes me smile and think of my other favorite saxophonist, Sonny Rollins.

And “My Favorite Things” - wow! This 16-minute rendition has him on the mellow soprano, blowin’ away in-between the repeating melody which is greatly jazzed up as Trane plays around with the rhythm, adding some twirls, trills and thrills.

The CD is full of this stuff: his perfect sound, famous solos and standards make it worth learning how to play yourself, if you don’t already.