Dear John C.

Dear John C. is an album by American jazz drummer Elvin Jones featuring performances recorded in 1965 for the Impulse! label.^[2] The "John C." mentioned in the title is John Coltrane. The album was also released on SACD. It features Jones leading a quartet of alto saxophonist Charlie Mariano, pianist Roland Hanna and bassist Richard Davis.

Dear John C.
Studio album by Elvin Jones
Released	November 1965[1]
Recorded	February 23 & 25, 1965
Studio	Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ
Genre	Jazz
Length	39:25
Label	Impulse! A-88
Producer	Bob Thiele
Elvin Jones chronology
Illumination! (1963) Dear John C. (1965) And Then Again (1965)

Reception

The Allmusic review by Michael G. Nastos awarded the album 4 stars stating "The variety from cut to cut is engaging, and there's nothing over the top, even the drumming of Elvin Jones. With the musicality at a high level, Dear John C. needs revisiting by drumming students and jazz fans to note how teamwork, shared values, and held-in-check dynamics benefit the overall quality of music. It seems this recording is underrated when over time it should never be. Dear John C. is deserving of an excellent rating".^[3]

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[3]
DownBeat	[4]
The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide	[5]

Track listing

Original track listing

1. "Dear John C." (Hammer, Thiele) - 3:54
2. "Smoke Rings" (Gifford, Washington) - 3:41
3. "Love Bird" (Mingus) - 3:49
4. "Feeling Good" (Anthony Newley, Leslie Bricusse) - 4:11
5. "Anthropology" (Gillespie, Parker) - 4:20
6. "This Love of Mine" (Sol Parker, Hank Sanicola, Sinatra) - 4:20
7. "Fantazm" (Ellington) - 3:56
8. "Ballade" (Hammer) - 5:18
9. "Everything Happens to Me" (Tom Adair, Matt Dennis) - 5:56

Recorded on February 23, 1965 (tracks 2, 4, 5, 6 and 7), and February 25, 1965 (tracks 1, 3, 8, 9)

A CD reissue features a different track list and the bonus track "That Five-Four Bag"

Personnel

• Elvin Jones  – drums
• Charlie Mariano – alto saxophone
• Roland Hanna (1, 3, 8) – piano
• Hank Jones (4, 5, 7) – piano
• Richard Davis – bass