"Dear Lord" is an instrumental ballad by John Coltrane, who is its sole composer. Coltrane recorded it at Van Gelder Studio in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, in 1965, during sessions on June 10 and June 16, with McCoy Tyner on piano, Jimmy Garrison on bass and Roy Haynes on drums in place of Elvin Jones. The performance first appeared on the album Transition, released by Impulse! in July 1970, three years after Coltrane's death in 1967, where it is track A2. The track was left off the first CD edition of the album and restored in a 2001 Japanese edition; it later appeared on the compilation Dear Old Stockholm. Gary Bartz recorded the tune on Coltrane Rules: Tao Music Warrior, and the song has since been covered by players including Dave Liebman, Harold Mabern and Kenny Garrett. Critics rated the album highly.
