Live at the Village Vanguard was Coltrane's first official 'live' album. He is joined on two tunes by Eric Dolphy on bass clarinet, along with McCoy Tyner on piano, Elvin Jones on drums, and Reggie Workman and Jimmy Garrison alternating on bass.

Garrison's presence on this album marks the first recording by what would become known as Coltrane's 'Classic Quartet'. The album was recorded live at the Village Vanguard in New York on November 2 and 3, 1961.

This LP is part of Verve's Acoustic Sounds Series, featuring transfers from the original analog tapes mastered by Ryan K. Smith at Sterling Sound and pressed on 180-gram vinyl at QPR. The series is supervised by Chad Kassem, CEO of Acoustic Sounds, and releases are presented in deluxe gatefold tip-on packaging.