Alfred McCoy Tyner (December 11, 1938 - March 6, 2020) was a jazz pianist f… Read Full Bio ↴Alfred McCoy Tyner (December 11, 1938 - March 6, 2020) was a jazz pianist from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, known for his work with the John Coltrane Quartet and a long solo career.

Tyner was born in Philadelphia as the oldest of three children. He was encouraged to study piano by his mother. He finally began studying the piano at age 13 and within two years, music had become the focal point in his life. His early influences included Bud Powell, a Philadelphia neighbor. Among many other things, Tyner's playing can be distinguished by a low bass left hand, in which he tends to raise his arm relatively high above the keyboard for an emphatic attack, creating at times a veritable tsunami of sound. Tyner's unique right hand soloing is recognizable for a detached, or staccato quality, and descending arpeggios, both of a triadic shape and in other patterns. His unique approach to chord voicing has influenced a wide array of contemporary jazz pianists.

Tyner's first main exposure came with Benny Golson being the first pianist in Golson's and Art Farmer's legendary Jazztet (1960). After departing the Jazztet, Tyner joined Coltrane's group in 1960. (Coltrane had known Tyner for a while, and featured one of the pianist's compositions, "The Believer", as early as 1958.) He appeared on the saxophonist's popular recording of "My Favorite Things" for Atlantic Records. The Coltrane Quartet, which consisted of Coltrane on tenor sax, Tyner, Jimmy Garrison on bass, and Elvin Jones on drums, toured almost non-stop between 1961 and 1965 and recorded a number of classic albums, including Live at the Village Vanguard, Ballads, Live at Birdland, Crescent, A Love Supreme, and The John Coltrane Quartet Plays ..., on the Impulse! label.

Tyner has recorded a number of highly influential albums in his own right. While in Coltrane's group, he recorded a series of relatively conservative albums (primarily in the piano trio format) for Impulse, starting with the fleet-fingered Inception (1962), which showcases Tyner's work as a composer. After leaving Coltrane's group, Tyner began a series of post-bop albums released on the Blue Note label, in the 1967–1970 time frame (The Real McCoy, 1967; Tender Moments, 1967; Expansions, 1968; Extensions, 1970). Soon thereafter he moved to the Milestone label and recorded many influential albums, including Sahara (1972), Enlightenment (1973), and Fly With The Wind (1976), which featured flautist Hubert Laws, drummer Billy Cobham, and a string orchestra. His music for Blue Note and Milestone often took the Coltrane quartet's music as a point of departure and also incorporated African and East Asian musical elements. On Sahara, for instance, Tyner plays koto, in addition to piano, flute, and percussion. These albums are often cited as examples of vital, innovative jazz from the 1970s that was neither fusion nor free jazz. Trident (1975) is notable for featuring Tyner on harpsichord (rarely heard in jazz) and celeste, in addition to his primary instrument, piano. Often cited as a major influence on younger jazz musicians, Tyner still records and tours regularly and played from the 1980s through '90s with a trio that included Avery Sharpe on bass and Aaron Scott on drums. He made a trio of mature yet vibrant solo recordings for Blue Note, starting with Revelations (1988) and culminating with Soliloquy (1991). Today Tyner records for the Telarc label and has been playing with different trios, the most recent of which includes Charnett Moffett on bass and Eric Harland on drums.

Tyner was a Sunni Muslim for a period of time beginning at the age of eighteen. His Muslim name was Sulaimon Saud. Today Tyner does not practice a specific religion.

McCoy Tyner was also married at one time and has three sons. His brother, Jarvis Tyner, is a high official in the leadership of the American Communist Party. McCoy, however, is not a pronounced advocate of any political ideology.

Prelude To A Kiss
McCoy Tyner Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

If you hear
A song in blue
Like a flower crying
For the dew
That was my heart serenading you
My prelude to a kiss

If you hear a song that grows

From my tender sentimental woes
That was my heart trying to compose
A prelude to a kiss

Though it's just a simple melody
With nothing fancy
Nothing much
You could turn it to a symphony
A Shubert tune with a Gershwin touch

Oh how my love song gently cries
For the tenderness within your eyes
My love is a prelude that never dies
A prelude to a kiss

Though it's just a simple melody
With nothing fancy
Nothing much
You could turn it to a symphony
A Shubert tune with a Gershwin touch

Oh how my love song so gently cries
For the tenderness within your eyes

My love is a prelude that never dies
A prelude to a kiss

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of this song speak of a deep love that the singer has for someone. They describe how their heart serenades the person with a song in blue, like a flower crying for the dew. This is a metaphor for how the singer's heart is yearning for the love and attention of this person. The song that the singer tries to compose is a prelude to a kiss, which hints at the idea that they want to take their relationship to the next level.

The second verse continues to describe the depth of the singer's love. They say that their heart is trying to compose a song that grows from their tender sentimental woes. This shows that their love is not just a passing infatuation, but something that they have deeply felt for some time. The singer acknowledges that although the song they have composed is a simple melody, it has great potential to become something much more profound.

The song's lyrics beautifully explore love in a way that is both powerful and sensitive. The metaphor of a song in blue crying for the dew is incredibly evocative and adds depth to the lyrics. The way the singer describes their love as a prelude to a kiss is also poignant and adds to the romantic feel of the song.

Line by Line Meaning

If you hear
If you listen

A song in blue
A sad song

Like a flower crying
As if a flower shedding tears

For the dew
In need of moisture

That was my heart serenading you
That was my heart singing to you lovingly

My prelude to a kiss
My way of getting ready to kiss you

If you hear a song that grows
If a song slowly develops

From my tender sentimental woes
From my emotional pain

That was my heart trying to compose
That was my heart attempting to create something beautiful

A prelude to a kiss
A preparation for kissing

Though it's just a simple melody
Despite it being a basic tune