WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.319 welcome back to the deep dive today we are undertaking 00:00:02.319 --> 00:00:05.839 a well a pretty substantial journey into the 00:00:05.839 --> 00:00:08.720 life and sound of a towering figure yeah we are 00:00:08.720 --> 00:00:10.939 just discussing a great musician we are examining 00:00:10.939 --> 00:00:14.439 a phenomenon a relentless spiritual and musical 00:00:14.439 --> 00:00:18.280 force named john coltrane indeed john william 00:00:18.280 --> 00:00:21.579 coltrane or Train, as he's known, he stands, 00:00:21.579 --> 00:00:23.839 you know, unquestionably among the most influential 00:00:23.839 --> 00:00:26.019 and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz. 00:00:26.239 --> 00:00:29.480 And not just jazz. Oh, not at all. Frankly, 20th 00:00:29.480 --> 00:00:31.969 century music writ large. When you attempt to 00:00:31.969 --> 00:00:34.969 grasp the scope of his career, I mean, the radical, 00:00:35.130 --> 00:00:37.070 almost frantic evolution he went through, it's 00:00:37.070 --> 00:00:39.710 astounding. It really is. Going from a hard bop 00:00:39.710 --> 00:00:42.969 sideman battling addiction to the pioneering 00:00:42.969 --> 00:00:45.350 architect of modal and free jazz. And to think 00:00:45.350 --> 00:00:47.689 he accomplished all of this before his untimely 00:00:47.689 --> 00:00:50.490 death at the age of 40. It's just, it's breathtaking. 00:00:50.770 --> 00:00:53.170 The word influence doesn't quite capture it, 00:00:53.189 --> 00:00:55.609 does it? His legacy is so profound that it... 00:00:55.789 --> 00:00:58.109 It sort of transcends music charts or technical 00:00:58.109 --> 00:01:01.270 analysis. His life's work became something iconic. 00:01:01.530 --> 00:01:04.250 It did. So how did he become such a powerful 00:01:04.250 --> 00:01:07.469 cultural and really a spiritual figure? How did 00:01:07.469 --> 00:01:10.549 his legacy earn this unprecedented, almost mythical 00:01:10.549 --> 00:01:13.349 recognition? That recognition is exactly where 00:01:13.349 --> 00:01:14.870 we have to start. Let's just talk about the honors 00:01:14.870 --> 00:01:18.530 for a second. In 2007, he received a posthumous 00:01:18.530 --> 00:01:22.170 special Pulitzer Prize. Which is immense. It's 00:01:22.170 --> 00:01:25.090 immense. And the citation mentioned his iconic 00:01:25.090 --> 00:01:28.530 centrality to the history of jazz. But, you know, 00:01:28.530 --> 00:01:31.049 beyond the secular awards, his impact went straight 00:01:31.049 --> 00:01:32.489 to the spiritual realm. You're talking about 00:01:32.489 --> 00:01:35.870 the canonization. In 1982, yes. He was formally 00:01:35.870 --> 00:01:38.430 canonized by the African Orthodox Church. So 00:01:38.430 --> 00:01:41.209 his veneration literally moved past musical critique 00:01:41.209 --> 00:01:43.269 and into the realm of spiritual inspiration. 00:01:43.870 --> 00:01:46.629 That is an incredible starting point. So for 00:01:46.629 --> 00:01:48.769 you, the learner joining us today, our mission 00:01:48.769 --> 00:01:51.329 is to unpack this extraordinary, almost impossibly 00:01:51.329 --> 00:01:54.230 fast journey. We want to understand the relentless 00:01:54.230 --> 00:01:57.569 pace of Coltrane's evolution. How did he transform 00:01:57.569 --> 00:02:00.370 from a disciplined bebop player struggling with 00:02:00.370 --> 00:02:02.930 these profound personal demons to the spiritual 00:02:02.930 --> 00:02:05.609 pioneer who continually shattered and rebuilt 00:02:05.609 --> 00:02:08.650 his own sound until the very end? And we've drawn 00:02:08.650 --> 00:02:11.289 from some really rich source material covering 00:02:11.289 --> 00:02:14.610 everything. The precise details of his biography, 00:02:14.930 --> 00:02:18.530 the technical architecture of his artistry, the 00:02:18.530 --> 00:02:22.110 nuances of his spiritual quest, and the massive 00:02:22.110 --> 00:02:25.210 legacy he left behind. So our goal here is to 00:02:25.210 --> 00:02:27.449 extract those essential nuggets of knowledge, 00:02:27.650 --> 00:02:30.050 the specific stories, the technical secrets, 00:02:30.250 --> 00:02:32.789 the personal motivations that truly explain why 00:02:32.789 --> 00:02:34.889 Coltrane's music continues to define aspiration 00:02:34.889 --> 00:02:37.870 for musicians and listeners alike. That's the 00:02:37.870 --> 00:02:40.870 mission. Okay, let's unpack this journey by starting 00:02:40.870 --> 00:02:43.800 where any great story must begin. His origins. 00:02:44.560 --> 00:02:46.659 Coltrane was born in Hamlet, North Carolina in 00:02:46.659 --> 00:02:49.800 1926 and grew up in High Point. But his childhood 00:02:49.800 --> 00:02:52.180 was tragically marked by loss and upheaval. It 00:02:52.180 --> 00:02:54.039 was a brutal stretch. I mean, his formative years 00:02:54.039 --> 00:02:56.199 were punctuated by the severe personal tragedy 00:02:56.199 --> 00:02:59.039 starting in December 1938. And it all happened 00:02:59.039 --> 00:03:01.219 so quickly. In a devastatingly short period of 00:03:01.219 --> 00:03:03.560 just a few months, he lost his father, his aunt 00:03:03.560 --> 00:03:05.439 and both his maternal and paternal grandparents. 00:03:05.780 --> 00:03:07.879 Wow. That level of loss. I mean, these are the 00:03:07.879 --> 00:03:10.240 anchors of your young life. It must have profoundly 00:03:10.240 --> 00:03:12.789 shaped his outlook. You have to think it installed 00:03:12.789 --> 00:03:15.849 a deep seriousness in him, right? Maybe a relentless 00:03:15.849 --> 00:03:18.169 search for some kind of stability or meaning. 00:03:18.449 --> 00:03:20.409 A search that later became channeled directly 00:03:20.409 --> 00:03:22.770 into his music. There's almost no other way to 00:03:22.770 --> 00:03:25.530 see it. Losing four family members in quick succession, 00:03:25.830 --> 00:03:28.229 right as he was entering his teen years and finding 00:03:28.229 --> 00:03:31.430 music, it puts that early discipline of his into 00:03:31.430 --> 00:03:34.770 a whole new context. It really does. So what 00:03:34.770 --> 00:03:37.810 were those initial musical steps before the saxophone 00:03:37.810 --> 00:03:40.289 really took hold? Well, he started on instruments 00:03:40.289 --> 00:03:42.620 that are, you know, quite far removed from the 00:03:42.620 --> 00:03:44.939 powerful tenor saxophone we all know him for. 00:03:45.340 --> 00:03:47.439 While in high school, he played the clarinet 00:03:47.439 --> 00:03:49.539 and the alto horn. In a community band. In a 00:03:49.539 --> 00:03:51.819 community band, yeah. The shift to the saxophone 00:03:51.819 --> 00:03:54.120 came later, but his early listening was classic. 00:03:54.590 --> 00:03:57.270 He was profoundly influenced by the smooth lyrical 00:03:57.270 --> 00:04:00.229 tenor sound of Lester Young and the alto virtuosity 00:04:00.229 --> 00:04:03.009 of Johnny Hodges. Then he relocates to the North 00:04:03.009 --> 00:04:06.009 in 1943. Right, that's a big move. A huge move. 00:04:06.310 --> 00:04:10.009 In June 1943, Coltrane and his family moved to 00:04:10.009 --> 00:04:12.449 Philadelphia, which was, at the time, a vital 00:04:12.449 --> 00:04:15.050 hub for developing modern jazz. A real center 00:04:15.050 --> 00:04:17.470 of the universe for that kind of music. Absolutely. 00:04:17.910 --> 00:04:20.410 He initially took a job at a sugar refinery, 00:04:20.569 --> 00:04:23.759 but music quickly took priority. And that September, 00:04:23.980 --> 00:04:26.759 for his 17th birthday, his mother bought him 00:04:26.759 --> 00:04:29.259 his first saxophone and alto. And this leads 00:04:29.259 --> 00:04:31.759 us to the moment that, I mean, every Coltrane 00:04:31.759 --> 00:04:34.060 biographer highlights this as the definitive 00:04:34.060 --> 00:04:37.399 aha moment. It's the moment he witnessed the 00:04:37.399 --> 00:04:40.399 architect of Bebop, Charlie Parker, perform live. 00:04:40.720 --> 00:04:43.000 And it wasn't just a concert for him. No, it 00:04:43.000 --> 00:04:44.959 was an epiphany. This pivotal moment happened 00:04:44.959 --> 00:04:48.740 specifically on June 5, 1945. Coltrane recalled 00:04:48.740 --> 00:04:51.819 in a 1960 downbeat interview that seeing Parker 00:04:51.819 --> 00:04:54.500 perform, hit me right between the eyes. That 00:04:54.500 --> 00:04:56.680 just says it all. That one moment cemented his 00:04:56.680 --> 00:04:59.579 path toward bebop, and more specifically, towards 00:04:59.579 --> 00:05:01.939 the incredible technical dexterity required to 00:05:01.939 --> 00:05:04.480 execute it. He started taking serious lessons 00:05:04.480 --> 00:05:06.680 immediately after that, studying with Mike Guerra 00:05:06.680 --> 00:05:09.100 at the Ornstein School of Music. And he manages 00:05:09.100 --> 00:05:11.079 to transition almost immediately into professional 00:05:11.079 --> 00:05:13.139 playing, even as he's facing military service 00:05:13.139 --> 00:05:15.399 obligations. Yeah, he enlisted in the Navy on 00:05:15.399 --> 00:05:19.139 August 6th, 1945, which is incredibly the very 00:05:19.139 --> 00:05:21.899 day the U .S. dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. 00:05:22.040 --> 00:05:24.410 He did it to avoid the army draft. Primarily, 00:05:24.430 --> 00:05:26.829 yes. He trained in New York before being shipped 00:05:26.829 --> 00:05:28.550 to Pearl Harbor, where he was stationed at the 00:05:28.550 --> 00:05:31.629 Manana Barracks. And that was notably the largest 00:05:31.629 --> 00:05:34.009 posting of African -American servicemen globally 00:05:34.009 --> 00:05:36.170 at the time. And this is where we find a really 00:05:36.170 --> 00:05:38.610 surprising detail that just speaks volumes about 00:05:38.610 --> 00:05:41.009 the segregated reality of the time, even within 00:05:41.009 --> 00:05:43.790 the military. He joined the bass swing band, 00:05:44.029 --> 00:05:47.680 the Melody Masters. But with. A strange caveat. 00:05:48.040 --> 00:05:50.560 Exactly. What's fascinating here is the social 00:05:50.560 --> 00:05:53.240 engineering required. The Melody Masters was 00:05:53.240 --> 00:05:57.149 an established all -white band. So to avoid issues 00:05:57.149 --> 00:06:00.430 with superior officers over integration, Coltrane 00:06:00.430 --> 00:06:02.709 was recognized for his immense musical talent. 00:06:03.189 --> 00:06:05.550 But he could only participate as a guest performer. 00:06:05.790 --> 00:06:07.529 So he couldn't be a formal member of the band. 00:06:07.670 --> 00:06:09.829 Couldn't be a formal member. When he wasn't playing 00:06:09.829 --> 00:06:11.449 with them, he still had to perform his regular 00:06:11.449 --> 00:06:14.350 duties like kitchen and security details. But 00:06:14.350 --> 00:06:17.110 by the time he was discharged in August 1946, 00:06:17.750 --> 00:06:20.250 he had actually risen to assume a leadership 00:06:20.250 --> 00:06:22.970 role within that very band. And the sources confirm 00:06:22.970 --> 00:06:24.870 we actually have evidence of his playing from 00:06:24.870 --> 00:06:27.899 this period. We do. His first recordings were 00:06:27.899 --> 00:06:31.259 from an informal session in Hawaii in July 1946 00:06:31.259 --> 00:06:34.420 with fellow Navy musicians. Still on alto sax. 00:06:34.779 --> 00:06:36.639 Still on alto sax, yeah. Running through standards 00:06:36.639 --> 00:06:39.800 and bebop tunes. He was discharged as a seaman 00:06:39.800 --> 00:06:42.439 first class. And he returned home with a GI Bill. 00:06:42.600 --> 00:06:45.300 So back in Philadelphia, he uses those funds 00:06:45.300 --> 00:06:48.300 to really immerse himself in formal musical study. 00:06:48.459 --> 00:06:50.800 And this just defines the dedicated nature of 00:06:50.800 --> 00:06:52.819 his early career. He enrolled at the Granoff 00:06:52.819 --> 00:06:55.160 School of Music, studying theory with Dennis 00:06:55.160 --> 00:06:57.480 Sandol, who was a renowned guitarist and composer, 00:06:57.800 --> 00:07:00.620 and taking saxophone lessons with Matthew Rustelli. 00:07:00.779 --> 00:07:02.819 And this dedication lasted several years. It 00:07:02.819 --> 00:07:04.939 did. And it's an important detail that this formal 00:07:04.939 --> 00:07:07.560 education was halted, not because he mastered 00:07:07.560 --> 00:07:10.430 the curriculum, but because his GI Bill. funds 00:07:10.430 --> 00:07:13.189 ran out. He was always hungry for more knowledge. 00:07:13.430 --> 00:07:15.689 So during this post -war period, he's playing 00:07:15.689 --> 00:07:18.089 with important figures like King Kollax and Jimmy 00:07:18.089 --> 00:07:20.310 Heath, and it's with Eddie Vincent's band in 00:07:20.310 --> 00:07:23.529 1947 that he makes the single most pivotal instrumental 00:07:23.529 --> 00:07:26.490 choice of his entire career. That's the moment. 00:07:27.050 --> 00:07:29.709 He permanently switched to the tenor saxophone. 00:07:30.290 --> 00:07:32.509 He noted that moving to the tenor opened up a 00:07:32.509 --> 00:07:35.370 wider area of listening for him. A wider area? 00:07:35.430 --> 00:07:37.720 What did that mean for him? It meant that suddenly 00:07:37.720 --> 00:07:40.079 he was diving deep into the sounds of the older 00:07:40.079 --> 00:07:43.180 titans of the tenor. Coleman Hawkins, Ben Webster, 00:07:43.319 --> 00:07:46.259 Tab Smith. He began to understand the instrument's 00:07:46.259 --> 00:07:49.000 emotional depth and tonal breadth in a way he 00:07:49.000 --> 00:07:51.500 just hadn't before on the alto. So if the switch 00:07:51.500 --> 00:07:54.560 to tenor defined his voice, the defining characteristic 00:07:54.560 --> 00:07:57.600 of this entire formative era was his discipline. 00:07:57.980 --> 00:08:00.240 We hear anecdotes about his practice routine 00:08:00.240 --> 00:08:03.899 that just, they border on the mythical. The legendary 00:08:03.899 --> 00:08:06.430 fanatical practice ethic. I mean. We are talking 00:08:06.430 --> 00:08:08.910 about a monastic level of devotion. Jimmy Heath 00:08:08.910 --> 00:08:11.930 famously claimed that Coltrane practiced 25 hours 00:08:11.930 --> 00:08:13.990 a day. Which is just a brilliant way to put it. 00:08:14.050 --> 00:08:16.149 It's an intentional exaggeration to illustrate 00:08:16.149 --> 00:08:19.069 the sheer volume of his work. Think about this. 00:08:19.250 --> 00:08:21.689 The incident in a San Francisco hotel where, 00:08:21.829 --> 00:08:24.410 after a complaint about the noise, he sat there 00:08:24.410 --> 00:08:26.970 and practiced fingerings silently for a full 00:08:26.970 --> 00:08:30.170 hour. Just for the muscle memory. Just to internalize 00:08:30.170 --> 00:08:32.309 the muscle memory without disturbing anyone. 00:08:32.759 --> 00:08:35.240 He wasn't just practicing repertoire. He was 00:08:35.240 --> 00:08:37.480 seeking perfect mastery of the instrument itself. 00:08:37.799 --> 00:08:41.220 So he viewed the horn not just as a tool. But 00:08:41.220 --> 00:08:44.200 as an extension of his body and his mind. There 00:08:44.200 --> 00:08:46.620 were reports of him falling asleep with the mouthpiece 00:08:46.620 --> 00:08:49.100 still in his mouth or focusing on practicing 00:08:49.100 --> 00:08:51.659 a single note's tone and timbre for hours on 00:08:51.659 --> 00:08:54.600 end, just searching for that, that supreme sound. 00:08:55.039 --> 00:08:57.139 And this relentless search for technical perfection 00:08:57.139 --> 00:08:59.419 and absolute command is the engine that drives 00:08:59.419 --> 00:09:01.899 everything that follows. It's what prepares him 00:09:01.899 --> 00:09:04.240 for the creative explosion he was about to experience. 00:09:04.460 --> 00:09:07.039 Precisely. That engine of discipline drives him 00:09:07.039 --> 00:09:10.220 directly into 1955 and the call that would change 00:09:10.220 --> 00:09:13.000 everything. The invitation for Miles Davis to 00:09:13.000 --> 00:09:15.580 join his group. The timing was critical, really, 00:09:15.700 --> 00:09:18.139 for both men. Davis was ready for a professional 00:09:18.139 --> 00:09:20.080 renaissance after dealing with his own substance 00:09:20.080 --> 00:09:23.080 abuse issues. So he forms the first great quintet. 00:09:23.100 --> 00:09:25.299 He forms the first great quintet, a lineup of, 00:09:25.360 --> 00:09:28.279 I mean, just giants. Coltrane, Red Garland on 00:09:28.279 --> 00:09:31.440 piano, Paul Chambers on bass and Philly Joe Jones 00:09:31.440 --> 00:09:33.899 on drums. What was the dynamic in that room? 00:09:34.039 --> 00:09:36.440 Why did those marathon sessions for prestige 00:09:36.440 --> 00:09:39.379 become so foundational that, you know, critics 00:09:39.379 --> 00:09:42.340 still pour over them today? Well, the dynamic 00:09:42.340 --> 00:09:44.889 was explosive. And it was driven by contrast. 00:09:45.669 --> 00:09:49.389 Miles was the cool, spacious, minimalist, you 00:09:49.389 --> 00:09:52.029 know, prioritizing silence and lyricism. And 00:09:52.029 --> 00:09:54.970 Coltrane was the opposite. Coltrane was the maximalist, 00:09:54.990 --> 00:09:57.169 pouring out notes in a torrent. Those famous 00:09:57.169 --> 00:10:01.669 1956 marathon sessions for prestige, they were 00:10:01.669 --> 00:10:03.710 essentially a contractual obligation. Right, 00:10:03.769 --> 00:10:05.429 they had to knock out a bunch of albums fast. 00:10:05.710 --> 00:10:08.070 And they did, resulting in four of them, Cookin', 00:10:08.070 --> 00:10:10.480 Relaxin', Workin' and Steamin'. And these records 00:10:10.480 --> 00:10:12.559 just beautifully captured the tension and the 00:10:12.559 --> 00:10:16.159 synergy between Miles' space and Coltrane's burgeoning 00:10:16.159 --> 00:10:18.500 density. But even with this breakthrough success, 00:10:18.799 --> 00:10:21.620 that period was marked by his personal struggle 00:10:21.620 --> 00:10:24.059 that you called the dark period. Yeah, despite 00:10:24.059 --> 00:10:25.919 the musical brilliance, Coltrane was battling 00:10:25.919 --> 00:10:29.100 a severe heroin addiction and alcoholism, a struggle 00:10:29.100 --> 00:10:31.759 he'd been wrestling with since 1948. And this 00:10:31.759 --> 00:10:34.019 volatility was a major factor in the quintet's 00:10:34.019 --> 00:10:36.850 initial dissolution in 1957. It's such a dark 00:10:36.850 --> 00:10:39.210 reality that this immense creative outpouring 00:10:39.210 --> 00:10:41.389 was happening under the shadow of a crippling 00:10:41.389 --> 00:10:44.129 addiction. It really is. When that door closed 00:10:44.129 --> 00:10:46.470 though, another one opened almost immediately 00:10:46.470 --> 00:10:49.769 with Thelonious Monk. And many people view this 00:10:49.769 --> 00:10:52.549 brief collaboration as the single most transformative 00:10:52.549 --> 00:10:56.629 intellectual period of Coltrane's entire career. 00:10:56.850 --> 00:10:59.519 I think that's a crucial insight. In the latter 00:10:59.519 --> 00:11:03.139 half of 1957, Coltrane joined Monk's quartet, 00:11:03.139 --> 00:11:05.620 and they played a lengthy residency at the Five 00:11:05.620 --> 00:11:07.980 Spot Cafe in New York. And Monk was a different 00:11:07.980 --> 00:11:10.299 kind of leader than Miles. A totally different 00:11:10.299 --> 00:11:13.059 kind. Monk was the ultimate conceptual mentor. 00:11:13.419 --> 00:11:16.360 He forced Coltrane to navigate these incredibly 00:11:16.360 --> 00:11:19.980 complex angular harmonies in real time. This 00:11:19.980 --> 00:11:21.539 collaboration was intellectually foundational. 00:11:21.940 --> 00:11:24.379 It pushed Coltrane to organize that creative 00:11:24.379 --> 00:11:27.309 flood of notes he had. But due to just... awful 00:11:27.309 --> 00:11:29.830 contractual conflicts. Coltrane was still technically 00:11:29.830 --> 00:11:32.669 contracted to Prestige. They only managed one 00:11:32.669 --> 00:11:34.889 official studio recording session together at 00:11:34.889 --> 00:11:36.789 the time. That's one of the great tragedies of 00:11:36.789 --> 00:11:39.169 jazz history. However, the reputation of that 00:11:39.169 --> 00:11:41.769 group was validated years later by a stroke of 00:11:41.769 --> 00:11:44.629 pure luck. The lost tape. A high -quality tape 00:11:44.629 --> 00:11:48.289 of a 1957 concert recorded by the Voice of America 00:11:48.289 --> 00:11:52.240 was discovered and released in 2005 as Thelonious 00:11:52.240 --> 00:11:55.240 Monk Quartet with John Coltrane at Carnegie Hall. 00:11:55.419 --> 00:11:58.240 And it confirmed everything people had been saying 00:11:58.240 --> 00:12:00.519 about them. It confirmed the powerful, intense 00:12:00.519 --> 00:12:03.919 connection between Coltrane and Monk's idiosyncratic 00:12:03.919 --> 00:12:06.720 harmonies. It was all real. And at this time, 00:12:06.799 --> 00:12:08.600 Coltrane was already beginning to record under 00:12:08.600 --> 00:12:11.320 his own name, showing his compositional muscle. 00:12:11.659 --> 00:12:14.500 Absolutely. His sole date as a leader for Blue 00:12:14.500 --> 00:12:17.539 Note, Blue Train from 1958, is often considered 00:12:17.539 --> 00:12:20.299 his definitive hard bop statement. Four of the 00:12:20.299 --> 00:12:22.480 five tracks were his own compositions. Exactly. 00:12:22.919 --> 00:12:24.580 Demonstrating his rapidly developing command. 00:12:24.879 --> 00:12:27.159 Tracks like Moments Notice remain at central 00:12:27.159 --> 00:12:29.940 jazz standards to this day. So by late 1957, 00:12:30.299 --> 00:12:32.759 he's overcome his addiction. He's had a major 00:12:32.759 --> 00:12:34.559 spiritual awakening, which we'll definitely discuss 00:12:34.559 --> 00:12:37.080 later. A huge one. And he's clean and ready to 00:12:37.080 --> 00:12:39.720 rejoin Miles Davis, bringing a completely new 00:12:39.720 --> 00:12:42.399 level of technical complexity to the group. His 00:12:42.399 --> 00:12:45.820 return to Davis in December 1957 coincided with 00:12:45.820 --> 00:12:48.539 him perfecting this new, highly compressed style. 00:12:48.919 --> 00:12:51.580 And this is when the legendary critic Ira Gittler 00:12:51.580 --> 00:12:54.220 coined that famous descriptive term. Sheets of 00:12:54.220 --> 00:12:58.440 sound. Sheets of sound. In October of 1957, it 00:12:58.440 --> 00:13:01.460 describes that astonishing sound. Just rapid, 00:13:01.559 --> 00:13:04.399 cascading runs of notes delivered with an almost 00:13:04.399 --> 00:13:07.100 overwhelming density. This wasn't chaos, though. 00:13:07.629 --> 00:13:09.990 And I love that Coltrane himself gave a technical 00:13:09.990 --> 00:13:12.870 explanation for this seemingly impossible style. 00:13:12.950 --> 00:13:15.389 It was a mathematical solution to a musical problem. 00:13:15.549 --> 00:13:17.289 That's what's so fascinating here. The mechanics 00:13:17.289 --> 00:13:20.590 behind the perceived madness. Coltrane explained 00:13:20.590 --> 00:13:23.490 that to fit all his surging musical ideas into 00:13:23.490 --> 00:13:25.610 the quickly shifting chord progressions of a 00:13:25.610 --> 00:13:28.169 bebop or hardbop tune. There wasn't enough time. 00:13:28.370 --> 00:13:29.809 Right. He found he couldn't stick to conventional 00:13:29.809 --> 00:13:32.269 rhythms like even eighth notes or sixteenth notes. 00:13:32.450 --> 00:13:34.710 So he had to use these unnatural groupings. Exactly. 00:13:34.710 --> 00:13:45.530 He was forced to use uneven note groups. It's 00:13:45.530 --> 00:13:48.029 like having too many things to say and you have 00:13:48.029 --> 00:13:50.269 to speak in this strange rhythm just to get it 00:13:50.269 --> 00:13:54.090 all out. That was the sheets of sound. A pragmatic 00:13:54.090 --> 00:13:57.690 technical solution to an enormous creative outpouring. 00:13:57.850 --> 00:14:00.230 It sounds like his technical solution laid the 00:14:00.230 --> 00:14:02.549 groundwork for his most monumental collaboration 00:14:02.549 --> 00:14:06.590 and the conceptual leap into modal jazz. Tell 00:14:06.590 --> 00:14:08.870 us about his essential role in the albums Milestones 00:14:08.870 --> 00:14:11.450 and Kinda Blue. He was absolutely instrumental. 00:14:11.730 --> 00:14:14.950 He stayed with Davis until 1960. And while Miles 00:14:14.950 --> 00:14:17.529 was the intellectual driver, Coltrane's presence 00:14:17.529 --> 00:14:20.110 was essential on Milestones, and of course the 00:14:20.110 --> 00:14:22.389 monumental modal jazz blueprint, Kinda Blue. 00:14:22.610 --> 00:14:25.549 A profound conceptual shift. It was. Instead 00:14:25.549 --> 00:14:27.669 of improvising over harmony that shifted every 00:14:27.669 --> 00:14:30.570 beat, modal jazz, which is based on scales and 00:14:30.570 --> 00:14:33.230 modes, offered this wide open space and relative 00:14:33.230 --> 00:14:36.440 harmonic stillness. So instead of a rapidly shifting 00:14:36.440 --> 00:14:38.440 harmonic foundation, he suddenly had all this 00:14:38.440 --> 00:14:40.899 room to breathe. What effect did that have on 00:14:40.899 --> 00:14:43.600 his saxophone playing? It was completely liberating. 00:14:43.600 --> 00:14:46.059 It gave him endless time to explore melodic cells 00:14:46.059 --> 00:14:48.480 and rhythmic variations without the pressure 00:14:48.480 --> 00:14:50.419 of having to constantly conform to a quickly 00:14:50.419 --> 00:14:52.740 moving chord structure. So he used that space. 00:14:53.100 --> 00:14:55.580 He used that newfound space to deepen his rhythmic 00:14:55.580 --> 00:14:58.139 and tonal exploration rather than just filling 00:14:58.139 --> 00:15:00.539 it with more rapid runs. It was a new depth of 00:15:00.539 --> 00:15:02.669 searching for him. And as his time with Davis 00:15:02.669 --> 00:15:05.149 ended, he recorded his first released album as 00:15:05.149 --> 00:15:07.129 a leader for Atlantic consisting only of his 00:15:07.129 --> 00:15:10.230 own compositions. And that album, Giant Steps, 00:15:10.230 --> 00:15:13.190 fundamentally changed jazz harmony forever. Giant 00:15:13.190 --> 00:15:16.169 Steps from 1960 is his powerful statement of 00:15:16.169 --> 00:15:18.990 self. The title track contains one of the most 00:15:18.990 --> 00:15:21.690 difficult and influential chord progressions 00:15:21.690 --> 00:15:24.669 widely played in jazz, known now simply as Cool 00:15:24.669 --> 00:15:27.350 Train Changes. And they are harmonically dizzying. 00:15:27.389 --> 00:15:30.220 They are. These cycles often switch keys incredibly 00:15:30.220 --> 00:15:33.240 fast in patterns based on major thirds. They 00:15:33.240 --> 00:15:35.799 just push the limits of improvised melody, challenging 00:15:35.799 --> 00:15:38.080 every single musician who encountered them. So 00:15:38.080 --> 00:15:40.639 if Sheets of Sound was about speed, Giant Steps 00:15:40.639 --> 00:15:43.299 was about complexity and structure. What enabled 00:15:43.299 --> 00:15:46.039 that next radical shift, the formation of his 00:15:46.039 --> 00:15:49.279 own quartet? Well, in 1960, he formed his first 00:15:49.279 --> 00:15:51.929 stable group. It quickly settled into the core 00:15:51.929 --> 00:15:54.389 of what we now call the classic quartet, featuring 00:15:54.389 --> 00:15:57.149 McCoy Tyner on piano and Elvin Jones on drums. 00:15:57.370 --> 00:16:00.289 He knew Tyner from Philadelphia. He did, but 00:16:00.289 --> 00:16:02.350 he waited until the pianist was ready to handle 00:16:02.350 --> 00:16:05.470 the conceptual demands. Tyner brought this dense 00:16:05.470 --> 00:16:08.690 block chord harmonic approach, while Jones brought 00:16:08.690 --> 00:16:11.570 a multi -layered polyrhythmic drumming style. 00:16:11.789 --> 00:16:14.850 A perfect rhythmic foil for Coltrane's soaring 00:16:14.850 --> 00:16:17.990 lines. The perfect foil. And their first album, 00:16:18.350 --> 00:16:20.370 introduced an instrument back into modern jazz 00:16:20.370 --> 00:16:23.509 that had mostly been forgotten. The soprano sax. 00:16:23.830 --> 00:16:27.009 That was my favorite things in 1961. It was the 00:16:27.009 --> 00:16:29.409 launch of Coltrane's serious use of the soprano 00:16:29.409 --> 00:16:32.649 saxophone. The instrument had largely been associated 00:16:32.649 --> 00:16:35.710 with early jazz, but Trane began practicing it 00:16:35.710 --> 00:16:37.789 secretly while he was still with Miles Davis. 00:16:38.009 --> 00:16:39.830 This was a very unconventional move at the time. 00:16:39.990 --> 00:16:42.009 It was, and the outlier demonstrated that he 00:16:42.009 --> 00:16:44.769 was willing to draw on any resource past or future 00:16:44.769 --> 00:16:48.610 in his relentless search for sound. This quartet. 00:16:48.840 --> 00:16:50.519 This was the group that laid the indispensable 00:16:50.519 --> 00:16:53.299 foundation for the spiritual explosion that followed. 00:16:53.480 --> 00:16:56.259 The early 1960s saw Coltrane find his artistic 00:16:56.259 --> 00:16:59.419 home at Impulse Records, and this move was clearly 00:16:59.419 --> 00:17:01.840 necessary for the kind of boundary -pushing work 00:17:01.840 --> 00:17:05.019 he was pursuing. The move to Impulse in 1961 00:17:05.019 --> 00:17:08.019 was crucial. It provided him with the freedom, 00:17:08.160 --> 00:17:10.279 the financial stability, and the collaborative 00:17:10.279 --> 00:17:13.960 environment he needed. And crucially, it reunited 00:17:13.960 --> 00:17:16.640 him with the legendary engineer Rudy Van Gelder. 00:17:16.799 --> 00:17:19.700 Who recorded almost all... of his impulse output 00:17:19.700 --> 00:17:22.380 at his New Jersey studio. That's right. And this 00:17:22.380 --> 00:17:24.579 is where we see the band briefly expand, adding 00:17:24.579 --> 00:17:27.539 Reggie Workman on bass and Eric Dolphy as a second 00:17:27.539 --> 00:17:30.220 horn, which led to that highly documented Village 00:17:30.220 --> 00:17:32.599 Vanguard residency. Yes. The recordings released 00:17:32.599 --> 00:17:35.740 as live at the Village Vanguard in 1962 are just 00:17:35.740 --> 00:17:39.019 monumental documents of this transitional phase. 00:17:39.299 --> 00:17:41.920 They are. They reveal Coltrane's rapid absorption 00:17:41.920 --> 00:17:45.670 of new forms. deep modal exploration, influences 00:17:45.670 --> 00:17:48.630 from Indian ragas, and full -blown elements of 00:17:48.630 --> 00:17:50.529 free jazz. What's fascinating is that Coltrane 00:17:50.529 --> 00:17:53.009 wasn't working in a vacuum. He was actively listening 00:17:53.009 --> 00:17:54.950 to the cutting edge of jazz. Oh, absolutely. 00:17:55.190 --> 00:17:57.650 His deep dive into this new, expansive sound 00:17:57.650 --> 00:18:00.549 was heavily influenced by saxophonist John Gilmore, 00:18:00.670 --> 00:18:02.990 who played with Sunrise Orchestra. And Coltrane 00:18:02.990 --> 00:18:05.410 had a famous quote about him. He reportedly said 00:18:05.410 --> 00:18:07.369 after hearing him, Gilmore's got the concept. 00:18:07.769 --> 00:18:10.750 And the celebrated 15 -minute improvised blues 00:18:10.750 --> 00:18:14.089 on that Vanguard album, Chasing the Train, was 00:18:14.089 --> 00:18:17.769 directly inspired by Gilmour's approach. Coltrane 00:18:17.769 --> 00:18:19.630 was also experimenting with rhythmic layering 00:18:19.630 --> 00:18:22.130 that went far beyond the standard quartet setup. 00:18:22.529 --> 00:18:25.430 Specifically, he was using two basses to create 00:18:25.430 --> 00:18:28.130 this unique textural sound. This is one of the 00:18:28.130 --> 00:18:30.390 most intriguing aspects of his mid -career sound. 00:18:30.630 --> 00:18:33.289 He frequently paired his regular bassists, like 00:18:33.289 --> 00:18:35.650 Reggie Workman or Jimmy Garrison, with a second 00:18:35.650 --> 00:18:38.069 bassist, such as Art Davis or Donald Garrett. 00:18:38.289 --> 00:18:40.730 And Garrett recalled playing a tape for Coltrane. 00:18:40.849 --> 00:18:43.130 Yes, a tape where the two basses were performing 00:18:43.130 --> 00:18:46.029 these complex rhythmic patterns, and Coltrane 00:18:46.029 --> 00:18:48.640 just loved the resulting texture. And Coltrane 00:18:48.640 --> 00:18:50.799 connected this sound explicitly to global traditions, 00:18:50.960 --> 00:18:53.299 correct? He did. He told people he liked the 00:18:53.299 --> 00:18:55.720 dual bass sound because it was akin to the East 00:18:55.720 --> 00:18:58.880 Indian water drum, which has this distinct, multi 00:18:58.880 --> 00:19:00.960 -textured rhythm. He even explained the roles 00:19:00.960 --> 00:19:04.180 of the two basses. He did. One bass would remain 00:19:04.180 --> 00:19:06.480 in the lower register, acting as the foundation, 00:19:06.759 --> 00:19:09.559 what he called the stabilizing thing, while the 00:19:09.559 --> 00:19:11.759 second bass was freed up to improvise and fill 00:19:11.759 --> 00:19:13.880 in the spaces, much like the right hand on the 00:19:13.880 --> 00:19:16.750 drum. He was seeking a multi -directional rhythmic 00:19:16.750 --> 00:19:19.609 foundation, almost overwhelming you with the 00:19:19.609 --> 00:19:22.650 pulse. This experimental phase was incredibly 00:19:22.650 --> 00:19:25.250 polarizing for the jazz establishment, and it 00:19:25.250 --> 00:19:28.549 led to direct, painful public criticism. It was 00:19:28.549 --> 00:19:31.650 extremely divisive. In 1961, Downbeat magazine 00:19:31.650 --> 00:19:34.109 published an article that notoriously labeled 00:19:34.109 --> 00:19:37.009 Coltrane and Eric Dolphy, his second horn player, 00:19:37.250 --> 00:19:41.150 as players of anti -jazz. Anti -jazz? That must 00:19:41.150 --> 00:19:43.859 have stung. bewildered and genuinely upset both 00:19:43.859 --> 00:19:46.619 musicians. Coltrane, who was striving to make 00:19:46.619 --> 00:19:48.539 every performance a whole expression of one's 00:19:48.539 --> 00:19:51.400 being, felt deeply misunderstood. So how did 00:19:51.400 --> 00:19:53.400 he respond to that critical hostility? Did he 00:19:53.400 --> 00:19:55.940 pivot immediately? Coltrane was intensely sensitive 00:19:55.940 --> 00:19:58.119 and acutely aware of his audience, so he made 00:19:58.119 --> 00:20:00.559 a strategic decision. Shortly after that backlash, 00:20:00.859 --> 00:20:03.599 Dolphy left, and Jimmy Garrison replaced Reggie 00:20:03.599 --> 00:20:06.400 Workman on bass. Solidifying the lineup we now 00:20:06.400 --> 00:20:10.079 call the Classic Quartet. That's it. Tyner, Garrison, 00:20:10.259 --> 00:20:13.059 Jones, and Coltrane. And the subsequent two years 00:20:13.059 --> 00:20:15.039 were marked by a period of commercial and artistic 00:20:15.039 --> 00:20:17.960 balance. That balance is clearly reflected in 00:20:17.960 --> 00:20:21.940 his studio catalog from 1962 to 1964. He was 00:20:21.940 --> 00:20:24.640 managing two musical personalities. The live 00:20:24.640 --> 00:20:27.579 performances remain deeply exploratory, reworking 00:20:27.579 --> 00:20:30.140 his standards like Impressions and My Favorite 00:20:30.140 --> 00:20:33.079 Things into these challenging modal epics. But 00:20:33.079 --> 00:20:35.920 his studio albums became more approachable. Exactly. 00:20:36.079 --> 00:20:38.220 They showcased his versatility as a master of 00:20:38.220 --> 00:20:41.539 melody and tone. We got Ballads, the extraordinary 00:20:41.539 --> 00:20:44.160 collaboration with Duke Ellington, and the deeply 00:20:44.160 --> 00:20:46.559 moving album with baritone singer Johnny Hartman. 00:20:46.700 --> 00:20:48.700 The Ballads album in particular showed that he 00:20:48.700 --> 00:20:50.579 could take a polished, straightforward approach 00:20:50.579 --> 00:20:53.450 to standards like It's Easy to Remember. and 00:20:53.450 --> 00:20:56.190 just infuse it with emotional depth without sacrificing 00:20:56.190 --> 00:20:59.130 any of his technical mastery. It cemented his 00:20:59.130 --> 00:21:01.089 reputation with a wider audience while still 00:21:01.089 --> 00:21:03.970 challenging himself artistically. He recognized 00:21:03.970 --> 00:21:07.069 the value of having this balanced catalog. He 00:21:07.069 --> 00:21:09.089 knew the public needed access points even as 00:21:09.089 --> 00:21:11.289 he was preparing for his next conceptual leap. 00:21:11.660 --> 00:21:13.559 Speaking of recordings, there's an unbelievable 00:21:13.559 --> 00:21:16.079 anecdote about a session from this period that 00:21:16.079 --> 00:21:18.700 highlights how much music we almost lost entirely. 00:21:19.059 --> 00:21:20.759 Okay, here's where it gets really interesting 00:21:20.759 --> 00:21:23.240 and, frankly, frustrating for music historians. 00:21:23.900 --> 00:21:28.539 On March 6, 1963, the quartet recorded a studio 00:21:28.539 --> 00:21:30.759 session that was completely lost for decades. 00:21:31.180 --> 00:21:33.579 And the source material confirms the master tape 00:21:33.579 --> 00:21:36.400 was deliberately destroyed. Deliberately destroyed 00:21:36.400 --> 00:21:39.880 by the label, Impulse Records. Purely to save 00:21:39.880 --> 00:21:42.720 storage space. Destroyed to save space. That's 00:21:42.720 --> 00:21:44.900 sacrilege. It is shocking given the stature of 00:21:44.900 --> 00:21:47.559 the material. Fortunately, a spare copy was saved. 00:21:47.700 --> 00:21:50.059 A tape Coltrane had given to his wife. And this 00:21:50.059 --> 00:21:52.700 session was finally released in 2018. As both 00:21:52.700 --> 00:21:55.700 directions at once. The Lost Album. It contains 00:21:55.700 --> 00:21:58.160 seven tracks, including some originals that had 00:21:58.160 --> 00:22:00.539 never been heard before, proving that even during 00:22:00.539 --> 00:22:03.119 his more conservative studio phase, they were 00:22:03.119 --> 00:22:05.819 generating boundary -pushing material. All of 00:22:05.819 --> 00:22:07.819 this work, the technical search, the balancing 00:22:07.819 --> 00:22:11.019 act, the spiritual exploration, it all culminates 00:22:11.019 --> 00:22:13.299 in the album that became his spiritual pinnacle, 00:22:13.500 --> 00:22:17.400 A Love Supreme. A Love Supreme, recorded in December 00:22:17.400 --> 00:22:20.819 1964, is the spiritual culmination of the classic 00:22:20.819 --> 00:22:24.339 quartet. It wasn't just another album. It was 00:22:24.339 --> 00:22:26.920 a deeply personal statement composed at his home 00:22:26.920 --> 00:22:29.460 in Dix Hills, Long Island. A four -part suite. 00:22:29.700 --> 00:22:32.079 A four -part suite acknowledgement, resolution, 00:22:32.480 --> 00:22:36.059 pursuance, and psalm. And it is a profound, explicit 00:22:36.059 --> 00:22:39.160 ode to his faith and his love for God. The level 00:22:39.160 --> 00:22:41.720 of dedication to that faith is clear even in 00:22:41.720 --> 00:22:44.019 the composition structure, particularly in that 00:22:44.019 --> 00:22:47.000 final movement, psalm. That movement is a direct 00:22:47.000 --> 00:22:49.819 musical setting. of an original, deeply personal 00:22:49.819 --> 00:22:52.359 poem Coltrane wrote to God, which is printed 00:22:52.359 --> 00:22:54.980 in the album's liner notes. And the technical 00:22:54.980 --> 00:22:57.359 detail here is staggering. He's playing the ball. 00:22:57.519 --> 00:22:59.480 He's playing the poem. Coltrane plays almost 00:22:59.480 --> 00:23:01.880 exactly one note for each syllable of the poem, 00:23:02.019 --> 00:23:04.519 basing his phrasing and melody directly on the 00:23:04.519 --> 00:23:07.079 structure of the words themselves. The music 00:23:07.079 --> 00:23:09.660 is the prayer. This wasn't merely inspiration. 00:23:10.039 --> 00:23:12.339 The spiritual concerns were now completely integrated 00:23:12.339 --> 00:23:14.299 into the physical structure of his musical composition. 00:23:14.799 --> 00:23:17.140 And for an album that is now so revered, it's 00:23:17.140 --> 00:23:19.619 amazing that he performed it so rarely. He played 00:23:19.619 --> 00:23:23.059 it live only three times in its entirety. Recordings 00:23:23.059 --> 00:23:26.220 exist of two of those performances, one in Antibes, 00:23:26.240 --> 00:23:30.059 France in July 1965, and a recently discovered 00:23:30.059 --> 00:23:32.599 amateur recording from a concert in Seattle in 00:23:32.599 --> 00:23:35.519 October 1965. The scarcity of those live documents 00:23:35.519 --> 00:23:38.359 just makes them invaluable. Invaluable. And they 00:23:38.359 --> 00:23:40.700 show the group's transition into the next. even 00:23:40.700 --> 00:23:43.839 more radical phase following a love supreme coltrane 00:23:43.839 --> 00:23:47.000 just he dropped the pretense of balance and threw 00:23:47.000 --> 00:23:50.160 himself completely into the avant -garde The 00:23:50.160 --> 00:23:51.960 final two years of his life were characterized 00:23:51.960 --> 00:23:54.940 by radical, unrelenting musical acceleration. 00:23:55.319 --> 00:23:57.240 What's fascinating here is that he wasn't just 00:23:57.240 --> 00:24:00.759 creating a new genre. He was embracing the dissonance 00:24:00.759 --> 00:24:03.500 and raw energy of free jazz pioneers like Albert 00:24:03.500 --> 00:24:05.759 Ehler and Ornette Coleman. And he was profoundly 00:24:05.759 --> 00:24:08.779 influenced by Sun Ra. Profoundly. He used his 00:24:08.779 --> 00:24:11.240 immense stature to champion the younger generation, 00:24:11.420 --> 00:24:14.420 turning Impulse into a leading label for free 00:24:14.420 --> 00:24:16.859 jazz, especially supporting musicians like Archie 00:24:16.859 --> 00:24:18.890 Shep. And his playing style became intensely 00:24:18.890 --> 00:24:21.309 abstract at this point. It was a return to that 00:24:21.309 --> 00:24:24.089 high -density sound, but in a much wilder, less 00:24:24.089 --> 00:24:27.650 structured way. Yes. His music in 1965 became 00:24:27.650 --> 00:24:30.950 highly abstract and textural. He began employing 00:24:30.950 --> 00:24:33.250 techniques like multifonics, where he would force 00:24:33.250 --> 00:24:35.430 the horn to scream multiple notes simultaneously, 00:24:35.829 --> 00:24:38.970 along with heavy use of overtones and playing 00:24:38.970 --> 00:24:42.049 aggressively in the altissimo register. A mutated 00:24:42.049 --> 00:24:44.549 return of the sheets of sound. That's a great 00:24:44.549 --> 00:24:47.339 way to put it. Only now it was far more chaotic, 00:24:47.539 --> 00:24:50.660 vocal and emotionally charged. He focused almost 00:24:50.660 --> 00:24:53.140 solely on the tenor saxophone in the studio, 00:24:53.339 --> 00:24:56.059 abandoning the comparatively melodic soprano. 00:24:56.200 --> 00:24:58.880 And this experimentation culminated in the legendary 00:24:58.880 --> 00:25:01.579 and still highly controversial album Ascension. 00:25:01.839 --> 00:25:04.839 Ascension, recorded in June 1965, is a seminal 00:25:04.839 --> 00:25:07.640 piece of collective improvisation. It's a 38 00:25:07.640 --> 00:25:10.180 -minute sonic explosion featuring Coltrane alongside 00:25:10.180 --> 00:25:13.019 10 other musicians, including Shep and Pharoah 00:25:13.019 --> 00:25:14.740 Sanders. And the controversy really stemmed... 00:25:14.759 --> 00:25:16.799 from the collective parts. The intense simultaneous 00:25:16.799 --> 00:25:19.359 collective improvisation sections that separated 00:25:19.359 --> 00:25:21.619 the individual solos, it just sounded like a 00:25:21.619 --> 00:25:23.880 cacophony to many established critics and fans 00:25:23.880 --> 00:25:26.500 at the time. So after Ascension, Coltrane brought 00:25:26.500 --> 00:25:29.220 Pharaoh Sanders and a second drummer, Rashid 00:25:29.220 --> 00:25:32.819 Ali, into the fold. This change completely fractured 00:25:32.819 --> 00:25:35.160 the foundational unity of the classic quartet. 00:25:35.319 --> 00:25:39.319 The expansion began in late 1965, and Sanders' 00:25:39.420 --> 00:25:43.119 sound was shocking. The critic Gary Giddens noted 00:25:43.119 --> 00:25:45.789 that Sanders' appeared to have little contact 00:25:45.789 --> 00:25:49.250 with earth expanding the horn's vocabulary drastically 00:25:49.250 --> 00:25:52.730 with growling screeching and what we might call 00:25:52.730 --> 00:25:56.329 human cry and shriek squeals this intense sonic 00:25:56.329 --> 00:25:59.269 explosion and this multi -directional rhythmic 00:25:59.269 --> 00:26:02.329 complexity it was clearly too much for his longtime 00:26:02.329 --> 00:26:05.049 bandmates tyner and jones it signaled the end 00:26:05.049 --> 00:26:07.920 of the classic quartet McCoy Tyner, who built 00:26:07.920 --> 00:26:10.380 his sound on harmonic clarity and powerful block 00:26:10.380 --> 00:26:12.960 chords, left shortly after recording Meditations. 00:26:13.200 --> 00:26:16.420 He literally couldn't hear himself over the sheer 00:26:16.420 --> 00:26:18.819 volume and the two drummers. And Elvin Jones, 00:26:19.000 --> 00:26:20.960 who was arguably the greatest jazz drummer of 00:26:20.960 --> 00:26:23.640 his generation, also departed due to dissatisfaction 00:26:23.640 --> 00:26:26.099 with the musical direction. That must have created 00:26:26.099 --> 00:26:29.880 immense tension. It did. Jones followed in early 00:26:29.880 --> 00:26:33.420 1966. He famously remarked that Coltrane's late 00:26:33.420 --> 00:26:36.309 music was so abstract and spiritual that Only 00:26:36.309 --> 00:26:38.990 poets can understand it. The tension was palpable. 00:26:39.230 --> 00:26:42.289 You could feel it. Jones wanted to swing. Coltrane 00:26:42.289 --> 00:26:45.250 wanted transcendence. Yet both musicians consistently 00:26:45.250 --> 00:26:48.190 voiced this profound, genuine respect for the 00:26:48.190 --> 00:26:50.750 man and his vision, even as they couldn't follow 00:26:50.750 --> 00:26:54.109 his musical path. And that's the measure of Coltrane's 00:26:54.109 --> 00:26:57.089 genius and his character. Jones later compared 00:26:57.089 --> 00:27:00.130 Coltrane to Einstein. He said, you wouldn't expect 00:27:00.130 --> 00:27:02.250 Einstein to be playing jacks, would you? That's 00:27:02.250 --> 00:27:04.470 incredible. Tyner recalled that Coltrane was 00:27:04.470 --> 00:27:06.869 always searching like a scientist in a lab, looking 00:27:06.869 --> 00:27:09.130 for something new, a different direction. He 00:27:09.130 --> 00:27:11.369 kept hearing these sounds in his head. They left 00:27:11.369 --> 00:27:13.910 the music, but they never left the man. The second 00:27:13.910 --> 00:27:17.089 quartet was thus formed, defining his final rapid 00:27:17.089 --> 00:27:19.890 artistic period. The new core lineup featured 00:27:19.890 --> 00:27:22.670 Coltrane, his second wife Alice Coltrane on piano 00:27:22.670 --> 00:27:25.079 and harp, Jimmy Garrison still anchoring the 00:27:25.079 --> 00:27:28.180 bass, and Rashid Ali on drums. And Coltrane said 00:27:28.180 --> 00:27:30.500 he needed that new rhythm. He strongly affirmed 00:27:30.500 --> 00:27:33.400 it, feeling the urgent need for more rhythm all 00:27:33.400 --> 00:27:35.980 around me. He wanted the rhythm to feel less 00:27:35.980 --> 00:27:39.220 linear and more multi -directional. That deep 00:27:39.220 --> 00:27:41.460 affinity for percussion resulted in one of his 00:27:41.460 --> 00:27:44.859 final, most unique collaborations. The duo album 00:27:44.859 --> 00:27:48.440 Interstellar Space from 1967, which featured 00:27:48.440 --> 00:27:51.710 only Coltrane and Ali. It was the purest realization 00:27:51.710 --> 00:27:54.609 of his rhythmic exploration. It's a stunning 00:27:54.609 --> 00:27:57.150 conversation between saxophone and drums. And 00:27:57.150 --> 00:27:59.730 his live shows became legendary for their length. 00:27:59.869 --> 00:28:02.349 During his final touring years, this group was 00:28:02.349 --> 00:28:04.890 known for playing extremely long versions of 00:28:04.890 --> 00:28:07.369 their repertoire, often stretching beyond 30 00:28:07.369 --> 00:28:10.150 minutes, with individual solos lasting over 15 00:28:10.150 --> 00:28:12.910 minutes. It's hard to imagine that level of relentless 00:28:12.910 --> 00:28:15.190 searching and physical exertion was happening 00:28:15.190 --> 00:28:17.470 while he was secretly battling such a serious 00:28:17.470 --> 00:28:20.349 illness. This intense journey came to a sudden, 00:28:20.470 --> 00:28:24.250 unexpected end in 1967. It was a shock to everyone. 00:28:24.670 --> 00:28:26.690 Coltrane died of liver cancer at the age of 40 00:28:26.690 --> 00:28:30.589 on July 17, 1967 at Huntington Hospital on Long 00:28:30.589 --> 00:28:32.849 Island. Miles Davis didn't even know he was sick. 00:28:33.049 --> 00:28:35.410 Miles, who knew Coltrane so intimately, admitted 00:28:35.410 --> 00:28:37.690 he didn't know he was that sick or even sick 00:28:37.690 --> 00:28:40.140 at all. And biographers have offered speculation 00:28:40.140 --> 00:28:43.140 linking this illness back to his earlier struggles 00:28:43.140 --> 00:28:46.039 with addiction. And that link just adds a layer 00:28:46.039 --> 00:28:49.680 of immense tragedy. It does. Biographers Lewis 00:28:49.680 --> 00:28:52.720 Porter and Frederick J. Spencer noted that the 00:28:52.720 --> 00:28:55.299 ultimate cause was likely chronic hepatitis and 00:28:55.299 --> 00:28:58.799 cirrhosis. And Spencer explicitly linked this 00:28:58.799 --> 00:29:01.160 back to the contaminated needles he may have 00:29:01.160 --> 00:29:03.480 used during his prior addiction days. Saying 00:29:03.480 --> 00:29:05.920 the seeds of his cancer were sown back then. 00:29:06.079 --> 00:29:08.740 Right, despite his remarkable 1957 spiritual 00:29:08.740 --> 00:29:11.240 recovery. The intensity never ceased, though. 00:29:11.319 --> 00:29:13.940 He was performing right up until the end. He 00:29:13.940 --> 00:29:15.880 continued touring up until two months before 00:29:15.880 --> 00:29:19.119 his death. His final recorded performance was 00:29:19.119 --> 00:29:21.539 a radio broadcast for the Olatunji Center for 00:29:21.539 --> 00:29:24.000 African Culture in New York City. And his funeral 00:29:24.000 --> 00:29:26.579 was a landmark event for the music he championed. 00:29:26.579 --> 00:29:29.160 It was. Held at St. Peter's Lutheran Church, 00:29:29.440 --> 00:29:31.720 the service was started by the Albert Ehler Quartet 00:29:31.720 --> 00:29:34.220 and finished by the Ornette Coleman Quartet, 00:29:34.380 --> 00:29:37.619 a testament to his role as both a pioneer and 00:29:37.619 --> 00:29:39.839 a champion of the avant -garde. While the music 00:29:39.839 --> 00:29:42.539 was always challenging, the engine driving Coltrane's 00:29:42.539 --> 00:29:45.440 later career was intensely spiritual. It was 00:29:45.440 --> 00:29:48.500 a search for meaning rooted in that 1957 awakening 00:29:48.500 --> 00:29:51.339 that saved his life. That experience was transformative. 00:29:52.250 --> 00:29:54.289 It's what allowed him to overcome the heroin 00:29:54.289 --> 00:29:56.549 and alcohol addiction he'd battled for almost 00:29:56.549 --> 00:29:59.509 a decade. He documented the experience directly 00:29:59.509 --> 00:30:02.170 in the liner notes for A Love Supreme. What did 00:30:02.170 --> 00:30:05.269 he say? He stated he experienced, by the grace 00:30:05.269 --> 00:30:08.289 of God, a spiritual awakening which was to lead 00:30:08.289 --> 00:30:10.849 me to a richer, fuller, more productive life. 00:30:11.130 --> 00:30:13.450 And he immediately connected that grace to his 00:30:13.450 --> 00:30:16.210 profession. What did he ask for in return for 00:30:16.210 --> 00:30:18.369 this new life? He asked for the privilege to 00:30:18.369 --> 00:30:21.190 make others happy through music. And this aspiration 00:30:21.190 --> 00:30:23.470 really defined his mission for the next decade. 00:30:24.190 --> 00:30:26.569 Importantly, his belief system was entirely universal 00:30:26.569 --> 00:30:29.329 and non -denominational. I believe in all religions. 00:30:29.609 --> 00:30:31.750 He stated that openly in the liner notes for 00:30:31.750 --> 00:30:35.210 his album Meditations in 1965. His personal life 00:30:35.210 --> 00:30:37.890 reflected this spiritual openness. His first 00:30:37.890 --> 00:30:40.829 wife, Juanita Naima Grubbs, heavily influenced 00:30:40.829 --> 00:30:43.230 his early spirituality, being a Muslim convert. 00:30:43.569 --> 00:30:46.519 Naima was a central figure. She inspired his 00:30:46.519 --> 00:30:49.539 famous love ballad, Naima, which he always considered 00:30:49.539 --> 00:30:51.700 his favorite composition. And they remained close 00:30:51.700 --> 00:30:55.180 even after they divorced. Very close. In 1964, 00:30:55.460 --> 00:30:57.720 he called her to say that 90 % of his playing 00:30:57.720 --> 00:31:00.720 would now be prayer. After their divorce, he 00:31:00.720 --> 00:31:03.099 married Alice McLeod, who brought stability and 00:31:03.099 --> 00:31:05.880 shared his intellectual curiosity. Alice, who 00:31:05.880 --> 00:31:08.220 was a professional musician and his second quartet, 00:31:08.240 --> 00:31:11.180 pianist -arpist, shared his deeply rooted spiritual 00:31:11.180 --> 00:31:13.500 beliefs, especially an intense interest in Indian 00:31:13.500 --> 00:31:17.009 philosophy. They had three sons, John Jr., Ravi, 00:31:17.150 --> 00:31:19.829 and Iran. And she really understood his intellectual 00:31:19.829 --> 00:31:22.089 drive, which led to his deep dive into world 00:31:22.089 --> 00:31:24.930 spirituality. What was Coltrane reading and studying 00:31:24.930 --> 00:31:27.170 that fueled this intense musical search? His 00:31:27.170 --> 00:31:30.009 personal library was massive and extremely eclectic. 00:31:30.109 --> 00:31:33.210 It contained the Quran, the Bible, the Kabbalah. 00:31:33.250 --> 00:31:35.970 And a lot of Eastern texts. A lot. Texts that 00:31:35.970 --> 00:31:38.549 were incredibly popular in the 60s, like the 00:31:38.549 --> 00:31:41.410 Bhagavad Gita and Paramahansa Yogananda's Autobiography 00:31:41.410 --> 00:31:44.680 of a Yogi. He wasn't just skimming. He was actively 00:31:44.680 --> 00:31:48.039 searching through Hinduism, Zen Buddhism, Jiddu, 00:31:48.119 --> 00:31:50.819 Krishnamurti, and even foundational Western philosophy 00:31:50.819 --> 00:31:53.640 like Plato and Aristotle. And this research directly 00:31:53.640 --> 00:31:56.819 manifested in his music. Can you hear these specific 00:31:56.819 --> 00:31:59.000 influences? He absolutely can. I mean, the album 00:31:59.000 --> 00:32:01.519 titles themselves are direct reflections. Ascension, 00:32:01.519 --> 00:32:05.059 Meditations, Aum. The recording Aum from October 00:32:05.059 --> 00:32:09.000 1965 refers to the sacred Hindu syllable symbolizing 00:32:09.000 --> 00:32:11.690 the infinite. And that piece contains explicit 00:32:11.690 --> 00:32:14.569 chants. It does. From the Hindu Bhagavad Gita 00:32:14.569 --> 00:32:16.809 and the Buddhist Tibetan Book of the Dead, he 00:32:16.809 --> 00:32:19.809 believed specific sounds, scales, and modal structures 00:32:19.809 --> 00:32:23.089 could produce specific emotional meanings, aligning 00:32:23.089 --> 00:32:24.930 his work with the ancient traditions of musical 00:32:24.930 --> 00:32:28.079 healing. This is truly astonishing. And it leads 00:32:28.079 --> 00:32:30.359 us to the most profound and almost unbelievable 00:32:30.359 --> 00:32:33.240 insight into Coltrane's ultimate goal as a musician. 00:32:33.500 --> 00:32:36.180 He didn't just want to inspire. He wanted tangible, 00:32:36.339 --> 00:32:39.819 measurable results. This is the absolute core 00:32:39.819 --> 00:32:43.039 nugget of knowledge that elevates Coltrane above 00:32:43.039 --> 00:32:45.940 almost any other artist. His ultimate aspiration 00:32:45.940 --> 00:32:49.200 was not simply musical mastery, but discovering 00:32:49.200 --> 00:32:51.890 a musical method. a perfect frequency, a perfect 00:32:51.890 --> 00:32:55.029 song that could manifest positive physical and 00:32:55.029 --> 00:32:58.210 material outcomes in the real world. That is 00:32:58.210 --> 00:33:01.390 an astonishingly high bar. Was this secret ambition 00:33:01.390 --> 00:33:04.430 known to his bandmates? How did he balance that 00:33:04.430 --> 00:33:07.470 mystical hope with the practical demands of composing 00:33:07.470 --> 00:33:09.650 and performing? He was certainly known to those 00:33:09.650 --> 00:33:11.950 closest to him, especially in his later years, 00:33:12.109 --> 00:33:14.769 and it fueled the incredible intensity of his 00:33:14.769 --> 00:33:17.390 practice. Listen to what he said, and I quote. 00:33:17.849 --> 00:33:20.089 If one of my friends is ill, I'd like to play 00:33:20.089 --> 00:33:22.349 a certain song and he will be cured. When he'd 00:33:22.349 --> 00:33:23.849 be broke, I'd bring out a different song and 00:33:23.849 --> 00:33:26.150 immediately he'd receive all the money he needed. 00:33:26.410 --> 00:33:29.049 He viewed his music as a literal form of applied 00:33:29.049 --> 00:33:32.470 mysticism, a direct vehicle for change and healing. 00:33:32.730 --> 00:33:34.829 The intensity of his search now makes perfect 00:33:34.829 --> 00:33:37.630 sense. His practice wasn't about fame. He was 00:33:37.630 --> 00:33:39.789 searching for the universal musical structure 00:33:39.789 --> 00:33:42.529 that transcended ethnic distinctions and held 00:33:42.529 --> 00:33:45.519 the mystical language of change. That level of 00:33:45.519 --> 00:33:48.180 fanatical focus becomes understandable when you 00:33:48.180 --> 00:33:52.319 realize he believed implicitly that he was working 00:33:52.319 --> 00:33:55.599 toward the ultimate curative and unifying sound. 00:33:55.819 --> 00:33:57.859 This profound belief in the power of his sound 00:33:57.859 --> 00:34:00.160 led directly to his posthumous veneration and 00:34:00.160 --> 00:34:03.019 eventually sainthood. Tell us more about the 00:34:03.019 --> 00:34:05.359 Church of St. John Coltrane. The story begins 00:34:05.359 --> 00:34:08.960 in San Francisco. A congregation originally called 00:34:08.960 --> 00:34:11.119 the Yardbird Temple, equating Charlie Parker 00:34:11.119 --> 00:34:14.039 to John the Baptist, began worshiping Coltrane 00:34:14.039 --> 00:34:16.860 as God incarnate after his death. The power of 00:34:16.860 --> 00:34:19.000 his music just resonated that deeply. It did. 00:34:19.139 --> 00:34:21.619 The group later affiliated with the African Orthodox 00:34:21.619 --> 00:34:24.500 Church, which, recognizing the depth of his impact, 00:34:24.920 --> 00:34:27.880 formally canonized him in 1982, changing his 00:34:27.880 --> 00:34:31.090 status from a God So this is an official religious 00:34:31.090 --> 00:34:33.170 recognition where his compositions are actually 00:34:33.170 --> 00:34:35.449 used in the service. Correct. The resultant St. 00:34:35.550 --> 00:34:37.929 John Coltrane African Orthodox Church uses his 00:34:37.929 --> 00:34:40.309 music, including compositions like A Love Supreme 00:34:40.309 --> 00:34:44.170 and his lyrics as prayers in its liturgy. It's 00:34:44.170 --> 00:34:46.030 consistent with his own late life aspiration. 00:34:46.389 --> 00:34:49.789 It really is. In 1966, he told an interviewer 00:34:49.789 --> 00:34:51.949 in Japan that he hoped to be a saint in five 00:34:51.949 --> 00:34:54.570 years. He achieved that goal in less than two 00:34:54.570 --> 00:34:57.099 decades posthumously. A phenomenal conclusion 00:34:57.099 --> 00:34:59.599 to a phenomenal life. And besides the spiritual 00:34:59.599 --> 00:35:02.739 accolades, his legacy has continued to grow in 00:35:02.739 --> 00:35:05.800 the cultural sphere. Absolutely. Beyond the 1965 00:35:05.800 --> 00:35:08.239 induction into the Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame 00:35:08.239 --> 00:35:10.940 and the 1997 Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, 00:35:11.239 --> 00:35:15.380 that 2007 Special Pulitzer Prize recognizes his 00:35:15.380 --> 00:35:18.099 enduring and iconic centrality to the history 00:35:18.099 --> 00:35:21.000 of jazz. And his homes are now historic landmarks. 00:35:21.019 --> 00:35:22.920 His former home in Philadelphia and his last 00:35:22.920 --> 00:35:25.460 home in Dix Hills, Long Island, are both official. 00:35:25.519 --> 00:35:28.360 recognized as national historic landmarks. What 00:35:28.360 --> 00:35:30.880 an incredible journey from the tragic early years 00:35:30.880 --> 00:35:32.699 through the pain of addiction, the technical 00:35:32.699 --> 00:35:35.719 breakthrough of the sheets of sound, and culminating 00:35:35.719 --> 00:35:38.039 in a relentless spiritual quest for a universal 00:35:38.039 --> 00:35:40.739 musical language that he believed could literally 00:35:40.739 --> 00:35:43.460 heal the sick. Coltrane's life was defined by 00:35:43.460 --> 00:35:46.679 that unrelenting Discipline search. He sought 00:35:46.679 --> 00:35:49.199 technical mastery with giant steps, achieved 00:35:49.199 --> 00:35:51.639 spiritual and physical renewal with his 1957 00:35:51.639 --> 00:35:55.219 awakening and a love supreme, and pushed toward 00:35:55.219 --> 00:35:57.579 a universal language using world music and the 00:35:57.579 --> 00:36:00.840 avant -garde in his final years. He never stopped 00:36:00.840 --> 00:36:03.659 moving, driven by those sounds in his head and 00:36:03.659 --> 00:36:06.059 the hope that they could change the world. So 00:36:06.059 --> 00:36:09.139 what does this all mean? We discussed his ultimate, 00:36:09.239 --> 00:36:12.000 almost impossible goal. to discover a song that 00:36:12.000 --> 00:36:14.460 could literally cure illness or bring immediate 00:36:14.460 --> 00:36:17.230 material wealth. Given the enduring profound 00:36:17.230 --> 00:36:19.789 impact of his sound on millions of people decades 00:36:19.789 --> 00:36:22.409 later, did John Coltrane achieve his mission 00:36:22.409 --> 00:36:24.489 of bringing happiness and a form of spiritual 00:36:24.489 --> 00:36:26.750 cure to the world? I think he certainly achieved 00:36:26.750 --> 00:36:29.090 it in a much broader enduring sense than perhaps 00:36:29.090 --> 00:36:31.849 the immediate tangible cure he imagined. His 00:36:31.849 --> 00:36:33.889 music provides an enduring template for self 00:36:33.889 --> 00:36:36.369 -discovery, for spiritual expression, and for 00:36:36.369 --> 00:36:38.889 a relentless pursuit of truth through art. His 00:36:38.889 --> 00:36:41.349 sound has served as comfort, inspiration, and 00:36:41.349 --> 00:36:43.030 a gateway to higher thought for generations. 00:36:43.789 --> 00:36:46.469 If you, the learner, are looking to truly understand 00:36:46.469 --> 00:36:49.050 the relentless pace and abstract nature of his 00:36:49.050 --> 00:36:52.170 final search, we encourage you to go beyond the 00:36:52.170 --> 00:36:54.909 comfortable classics like Love Supreme and explore 00:36:54.909 --> 00:36:57.349 the challenging later works we discussed. Yeah, 00:36:57.409 --> 00:37:00.170 listen to the collective, explosive improvisation 00:37:00.170 --> 00:37:02.989 of Ascension and the pure rhythmic spiritual 00:37:02.989 --> 00:37:06.250 dialogue of the duo album Interstellar Space. 00:37:06.610 --> 00:37:08.650 When you hear those albums. You realize that 00:37:08.650 --> 00:37:10.690 Coltrane was not just documenting his journey, 00:37:10.789 --> 00:37:13.090 he was using his instrument as a tool for translation. 00:37:13.099 --> 00:37:15.739 searching for the sound that could change reality 00:37:15.739 --> 00:37:18.440 itself. And that search, that devotion to the 00:37:18.440 --> 00:37:21.199 potential of music, is why he remains revered. 00:37:21.280 --> 00:37:23.079 Thank you for joining us for the deep dive on 00:37:23.079 --> 00:37:24.719 John Coltrane. Until next time.