** 1/2 CONRAD HERWIG, “The Latin Side of John Coltrane,” Astor Place

Positioning Coltrane’s music within a Latin rhythmic frame doesn’t seem, at first glance, to be a bad idea. Many of the legendary saxophonist’s themes--”A Love Supreme,” “Blue Train,” “Naima,” “Africa” and “Impressions” are among the nine included--translate readily into Latin-styled settings.

Herwig is a veteran trombonist who has long been a showcase performer with Eddie Palmieri, Tito Puente, Paquito D’Rivera, among others. Working with producer Bob Belden, he has come up with a group of brisk, energetic tracks featuring a brass-loaded ensemble, crisp flute playing by Dave Valentin, excellent piano from Palmieri and Danilo Perez, solid drumming from Adam Cruz and his own sometimes power heavy, sometimes lyrical trombone work.

But the total seems less than the sum of the parts. Although the Coltrane pieces work well enough with the rhythmic undercurrent, the soloing often appears grounded by the regularity and predictability of the Latin rhythms.

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