Ornette Coleman's
Twins (first issued on LP in 1971) has been looked at as an afterthought in many respects. A collection of sessions from 1959, 1960, and 1961 with different bands, they are allegedly takes from vinyl LP sessions commercially limited at that time to 40 minutes on vinyl, and not initially released until many years later. Connoisseurs consider this one of his better recordings in that it offers an overview of what
Coleman was thinking in those pivotal years of the free bop movement rather than the concentrated efforts of
The Art of the Improvisers, Change of the Century,
The Shape of Jazz to Come,
This Is Our Music, and of course the pivotal
Free Jazz. There are three most definitive selections that define
Coleman's sound and concept. "Monk & the Nun" is angular like
Thelonious Monk, soulful as spiritualism, and golden with the rhythm team of bassist
Charlie Haden and drummer
Billy Higgins driving the sweet and sour alto sax of
Coleman and piquant trumpeting of
Don Cherry. "Check Up" is a wild roller coaster ride, mixing meters, tempos, and dynamics in a blender in an unforgettable display of sheer virtuosity, and featuring bassist
Scott LaFaro. "Joy of a Toy" displays the playful
Ornette Coleman in interval leaps, complicated bungee jumps, in many ways whimsical but not undecipherable. It is one of the most intriguing of all of
Coleman's compositions. Less essential, "First Take" showcases his double quartet in a churning composition left off the original release
This Is Our Music, loaded with interplay as a showcase for a precocious young trumpeter named
Freddie Hubbard, the ribald bass clarinet of
Eric Dolphy, and the first appearance with
Coleman's groups for New Orleans drummer
Ed Blackwell. "Little Symphony" has a great written line with room for solos in a joyful hard bop center with the quartet of
Coleman,
Cherry,
Haden, and
Blackwell. All in all an excellent outing for
Coleman from a hodgepodge of recordings that gives a broader view of his vision and the music that would come later in the '60s. ~ Michael G. Nastos