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1
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John Coltrane,
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00:00:47,568 --> 00:00:49,768
he could get in his spaceship
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00:00:49,770 --> 00:00:51,036
and it could take
him anywhere he
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00:00:51,038 --> 00:00:52,571
wanted to go.
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00:01:01,682 --> 00:01:02,882
Just to say the name
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00:01:02,884 --> 00:01:05,150
John Coltrane, it makes me shake
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00:01:05,152 --> 00:01:06,785
and tremble.
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00:01:06,787 --> 00:01:10,656
It's like talking about
Beethoven, Shakespeare.
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00:01:10,658 --> 00:01:12,691
You're talking about
an artistic genius and
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00:01:12,693 --> 00:01:14,860
a spiritual giant.
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00:01:20,067 --> 00:01:23,369
Trane had a sound
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00:01:23,371 --> 00:01:27,573
that was heavenly, it
was like, oh, my God.
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00:01:35,283 --> 00:01:36,549
Coltrane's strength of
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00:01:36,551 --> 00:01:39,118
character is in his
journey through music.
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He sacrificed, and he had the
16
00:01:41,556 --> 00:01:43,622
insight and the
consciousness to touch
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00:01:43,624 --> 00:01:45,691
that thing that's
inside of all of us.
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00:02:10,585 --> 00:02:11,984
Right now,
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00:02:11,986 --> 00:02:13,619
we're gonna take you
down to a favorite
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00:02:13,621 --> 00:02:15,554
little spot of ours
here in New York,
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00:02:15,556 --> 00:02:17,089
Café Bohemia.
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00:02:17,091 --> 00:02:18,657
Down there at the
present time is
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a young man whose
name is Miles Davis.
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00:02:20,661 --> 00:02:22,628
I'm sure you know who he is.
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He's a real cool stylist,
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Miles Davis is.
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00:02:31,606 --> 00:02:33,606
1957, John Coltrane is
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part of one of the
groundbreaking
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groups of the day, the
Miles Davis Quintet.
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00:02:40,147 --> 00:02:42,948
Miles Davis is looked
upon as the harbinger
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of everything new.
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00:02:45,820 --> 00:02:47,686
He is on the cutting edge,
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00:02:47,688 --> 00:02:50,623
everyone is looking at
him for the promise
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of what is to come.
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Are you really asking me
a question like that?
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00:03:01,168 --> 00:03:02,935
How good was that band?
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Well, I think it was
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00:03:07,642 --> 00:03:09,041
probably one of
the-the greatest,
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00:03:09,043 --> 00:03:11,877
uh, jazz bands that
was ever formed.
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Everybody in the band
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had their own voice,
and John was really,
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really special in that regard,
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00:03:19,353 --> 00:03:22,087
in that you could
hear that he was
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going somewhere,
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00:03:23,190 --> 00:03:24,890
and I think that
Miles heard that he
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00:03:24,892 --> 00:03:26,892
was going somewhere.
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00:03:33,834 --> 00:03:35,000
Being with Miles Davis
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00:03:35,002 --> 00:03:37,970
was huge for Coltrane,
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00:03:37,972 --> 00:03:39,204
absolutely huge.
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00:03:39,206 --> 00:03:41,240
It catapulted him
from being somebody
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00:03:41,242 --> 00:03:43,475
that only really serious
record collectors
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00:03:43,477 --> 00:03:45,177
knew about to being
somebody that
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00:03:45,179 --> 00:03:46,412
everybody knew.
54
00:03:49,350 --> 00:03:50,516
John Coltrane's
55
00:03:50,518 --> 00:03:54,286
experiences in Miles
Davis' quintet
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00:03:54,288 --> 00:03:55,421
was sort of like going up to the
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00:03:55,423 --> 00:03:57,389
high diving board every night,
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00:03:57,391 --> 00:03:59,925
allowing himself to be scared,
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00:03:59,927 --> 00:04:03,228
allowing himself to
not know exactly what
60
00:04:03,230 --> 00:04:05,964
was gonna be ahead of him.
61
00:04:05,966 --> 00:04:06,999
It's of a high, high
62
00:04:07,001 --> 00:04:10,169
caliber to be able
to play on a level
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00:04:10,171 --> 00:04:12,838
which is exceptional.
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00:04:12,840 --> 00:04:16,508
You've got to be touched by the
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00:04:16,510 --> 00:04:19,011
supreme whatever
to be able to play
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00:04:19,013 --> 00:04:21,947
like Miles played and
like Coltrane played.
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00:04:29,557 --> 00:04:30,956
At this time,
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00:04:30,958 --> 00:04:33,959
Coltrane is a relative
newlywed with the
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00:04:33,961 --> 00:04:36,895
entire Miles Davis
band as best men.
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00:04:36,897 --> 00:04:39,231
Coltrane marries Naima Austin,
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00:04:39,233 --> 00:04:42,167
a woman he'd met
in Philadelphia.
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00:04:42,169 --> 00:04:46,538
Naima has a child, Antonia.
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00:04:46,540 --> 00:04:47,706
This is a man who
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gets his first
experience at fatherhood
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00:04:50,111 --> 00:04:54,446
with me, you know, so,
and I was a handful,
76
00:04:54,448 --> 00:04:56,982
OK, I was a handful.
77
00:05:01,489 --> 00:05:02,921
I was remembering one
78
00:05:02,923 --> 00:05:06,992
time John had this gig,
it was a bad night,
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00:05:06,994 --> 00:05:11,230
snowy, he did the gig.
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00:05:11,232 --> 00:05:13,732
I needed some shoes.
81
00:05:13,734 --> 00:05:16,435
He walked back from
that gig home so he
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00:05:16,437 --> 00:05:18,971
wouldn't spend any
of the money so
83
00:05:18,973 --> 00:05:22,007
that I could get the
shoes the next day.
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00:05:25,880 --> 00:05:27,246
You know, then you
make that sacrifice,
85
00:05:27,248 --> 00:05:29,515
you work all night and
then you walk home
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00:05:29,517 --> 00:05:32,618
so that I can get
a pair of shoes?
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00:05:32,620 --> 00:05:34,019
That's father.
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00:05:36,423 --> 00:05:38,023
John Coltrane is
89
00:05:38,025 --> 00:05:39,258
working consistently
to support the
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wife and daughter he adores.
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00:05:42,096 --> 00:05:45,531
Life is good, but
there's a problem.
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We are playing in
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00:06:00,981 --> 00:06:05,284
nightclubs where the
pimps and hustlers
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00:06:05,286 --> 00:06:10,189
are around, and you,
uh, go for the hype,
95
00:06:10,191 --> 00:06:11,990
and hey, man, you
take some of this
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00:06:11,992 --> 00:06:16,161
and you feel up and
good, you feel good,
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00:06:16,163 --> 00:06:18,063
and you go for it and
then you're stuck.
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00:06:25,206 --> 00:06:27,139
Hard drugs is an addiction.
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00:06:27,141 --> 00:06:30,976
Charlie Parker, a great prophet
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00:06:30,978 --> 00:06:33,345
before Coltrane, Charlie Parker,
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he was on drugs.
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He wanted to get off. He
didn't quite make it.
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There was the misguided
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notion that artistic
ability was enhanced
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with hard drugs.
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Charlie Parker is the example.
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You're gonna turn from
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00:06:51,365 --> 00:06:53,098
somebody that can't play
into Charlie Parker
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00:06:53,100 --> 00:06:56,134
by doing this?
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00:06:56,136 --> 00:07:00,038
It doesn't happen. It's a myth.
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00:07:00,040 --> 00:07:01,506
Geez, and some of
my friends, I mean,
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00:07:01,508 --> 00:07:04,109
they died following that trail.
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00:07:08,115 --> 00:07:09,348
Before Coltrane was
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00:07:09,350 --> 00:07:10,515
really aware of it,
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00:07:10,517 --> 00:07:12,050
he was using the
needle and he was
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really heavily addicted.
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He had become a heroin addict,
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and it's not generally
known that he
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was also drinking to excess.
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00:07:19,660 --> 00:07:21,193
The funny thing
about him, though,
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is everybody loved him.
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I'd spoke to over 250
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00:07:24,298 --> 00:07:26,231
people when I did my
book, and I couldn't
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find anybody that said, oh,
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when he was drunk,
he was a terror.
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They all said, oh,
I didn't even know
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00:07:30,371 --> 00:07:32,137
when he was drunk
because he was always
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00:07:32,139 --> 00:07:33,238
so sweet, you know?
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He was that kind of person,
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00:07:34,408 --> 00:07:37,042
but he was unreliable.
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00:07:39,413 --> 00:07:41,146
Miles Davis famously
wrote in his
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autobiography, he would come to
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the gig in clothes
that looked liked he
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00:07:44,618 --> 00:07:47,052
had slept in them, so
this was not making
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00:07:47,054 --> 00:07:50,355
a great impression
on Miles Davis.
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00:07:50,357 --> 00:07:52,257
John Coltrane's fired.
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He's never been
higher in his career,
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00:07:54,361 --> 00:07:58,096
and so the drop down
is long and hard,
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00:07:58,098 --> 00:07:59,398
and he realizes
that he can go the
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00:07:59,400 --> 00:08:02,668
way of Charlie Parker
and just continue
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00:08:02,670 --> 00:08:06,204
in a self-destructive
path or really is he
142
00:08:06,206 --> 00:08:08,173
gonna find a way to
dedicating himself to
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00:08:08,175 --> 00:08:13,578
a clean, spiritual
existence that brings
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00:08:13,580 --> 00:08:16,114
together everything
that has inspired
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him from the time
he was a child?
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00:08:19,453 --> 00:08:22,688
And so here's John Coltrane at
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00:08:22,690 --> 00:08:24,189
a pivotal point of his life.
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He's gotta make a decision.
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I was born in a
small town called
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00:08:49,083 --> 00:08:52,250
Hamlet in North
Carolina in 1926.
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My family moved from there when
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I was a few months
old to High Point.
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I was an only child. I was
brought up Methodist.
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00:09:00,294 --> 00:09:03,161
It wasn't too strict,
but it was there.
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00:09:03,163 --> 00:09:04,563
In my early years
when I was going to
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00:09:04,565 --> 00:09:06,231
church every Sunday,
I was under the
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00:09:06,233 --> 00:09:08,700
influence of my grandfather.
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00:09:08,702 --> 00:09:12,437
He was the dominating
cat in the family.
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00:09:12,439 --> 00:09:15,307
Both of my grandfathers
were ministers.
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00:09:15,309 --> 00:09:20,212
I grew up in that and I
guess just accepted it.
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00:09:20,214 --> 00:09:21,380
To understand
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00:09:21,382 --> 00:09:22,714
John Coltrane's beginnings is to
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00:09:22,716 --> 00:09:25,751
understand that he comes
from the American South,
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00:09:25,753 --> 00:09:27,285
and the racial realities that he
165
00:09:27,287 --> 00:09:28,820
grew up with, the idea that the
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00:09:28,822 --> 00:09:33,225
black church was the
primary force that
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00:09:33,227 --> 00:09:36,194
held his family
together and also
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00:09:36,196 --> 00:09:38,430
it was the source
point for his first
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musical experiences, and
the fact that music
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00:09:41,735 --> 00:09:44,569
and the spirituality
were there as one
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00:09:44,571 --> 00:09:47,739
at the very beginning,
is to really get at the
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00:09:47,741 --> 00:09:52,778
DNA of what John
Coltrane is all about.
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00:10:18,672 --> 00:10:20,305
The Jim Crow South
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00:10:20,307 --> 00:10:21,473
was basically a
reference to what
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00:10:21,475 --> 00:10:24,176
the South was like
after the Civil War,
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00:10:24,178 --> 00:10:26,778
after Reconstruction,
where segregation
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00:10:26,780 --> 00:10:28,847
had been re-imposed.
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00:10:30,250 --> 00:10:32,551
It was a place ready-made
for the blues,
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00:10:32,553 --> 00:10:35,520
ready-made for jazz,
ready-made for people
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00:10:35,522 --> 00:10:40,325
using their pain to
catapult their art.
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00:10:43,263 --> 00:10:44,563
The Jim Crow South
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where Coltrane grew up proceeded
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00:10:46,266 --> 00:10:48,867
from slavery and under slavery,
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it was against the law for us
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to read or write.
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00:10:51,705 --> 00:10:54,406
How will our humanity
be expressed,
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creativity, courageously?
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00:10:56,276 --> 00:10:57,576
It was against the
law for black people
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00:10:57,578 --> 00:11:00,412
to worship God without
white supervision,
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00:11:00,414 --> 00:11:01,680
so what do you do?
191
00:11:01,682 --> 00:11:06,351
You steal away at
night near the creek,
192
00:11:06,353 --> 00:11:08,420
hold hands in a ring shout and
193
00:11:08,422 --> 00:11:10,355
lift your voice.
194
00:11:10,357 --> 00:11:12,724
Lift your voice, vocals,
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create a community,
camaraderie and so forth.
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Black music was the
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00:11:22,669 --> 00:11:24,769
black response to
being terrorized
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and traumatized.
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We're gonna share
and spread some
200
00:11:29,610 --> 00:11:32,377
soothing sweetness
against the backdrop
201
00:11:32,379 --> 00:11:33,979
of a dark catastrophe.
202
00:11:33,981 --> 00:11:36,281
That's black music.
203
00:11:48,462 --> 00:11:52,564
John grew up in an
extended family.
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00:11:52,566 --> 00:11:54,566
He was living in the
same house with his
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00:11:54,568 --> 00:11:57,636
mother and father,
his grandfather and
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00:11:57,638 --> 00:12:01,673
grandmother and aunt
and uncle and cousin,
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00:12:01,675 --> 00:12:04,409
and then within a
period of two years,
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00:12:04,411 --> 00:12:08,246
his father died, his uncle died,
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00:12:08,248 --> 00:12:11,583
his grandfather died,
and eventually,
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00:12:11,585 --> 00:12:13,652
so did his grandmother.
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00:12:13,654 --> 00:12:15,420
It was a devastating
few years for
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00:12:15,422 --> 00:12:17,422
the family.
213
00:12:19,459 --> 00:12:23,562
He's only 12 years old.
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00:12:23,564 --> 00:12:25,497
Can you imagine
what that does for
215
00:12:25,499 --> 00:12:27,866
any human being?
216
00:12:27,868 --> 00:12:29,467
How you gonna respond?
217
00:12:32,439 --> 00:12:33,505
And the one thing
218
00:12:33,507 --> 00:12:35,440
that happens just
at the point in
219
00:12:35,442 --> 00:12:37,442
John Coltrane's life
is that he started
220
00:12:37,444 --> 00:12:38,910
to take up music.
221
00:12:38,912 --> 00:12:41,446
He's gone from
playing clarinet to
222
00:12:41,448 --> 00:12:44,449
alto saxophone, and
it's almost like
223
00:12:44,451 --> 00:12:47,452
he hangs onto music
like a life preserver.
224
00:12:47,454 --> 00:12:50,755
He finds in music a
way of dealing with
225
00:12:50,757 --> 00:12:53,425
these harsh, harsh
realities that are
226
00:12:53,427 --> 00:12:56,995
suddenly thrust upon
the Coltrane family.
227
00:12:58,098 --> 00:12:59,764
Their standard of living
228
00:12:59,766 --> 00:13:02,601
was all of a sudden
totally changed,
229
00:13:02,603 --> 00:13:05,403
all the men are gone,
and Coltrane's mother
230
00:13:05,405 --> 00:13:08,473
just had to leave and
go north to find work.
231
00:13:19,953 --> 00:13:22,420
When I finished high school,
232
00:13:22,422 --> 00:13:24,522
I moved to be with my
mother in Philadelphia.
233
00:13:24,524 --> 00:13:26,992
This was 1943.
234
00:13:26,994 --> 00:13:29,894
I worked for a year
in a signal depot.
235
00:13:29,896 --> 00:13:32,430
We had a war, you know.
236
00:13:32,432 --> 00:13:34,899
Then I decided to
study music again.
237
00:13:34,901 --> 00:13:36,701
My mother made
many sacrifices to
238
00:13:36,703 --> 00:13:38,470
enable me to study music,
239
00:13:38,472 --> 00:13:40,071
and I was able to take lessons
240
00:13:40,073 --> 00:13:42,507
from a private
saxophone instructor.
241
00:13:48,048 --> 00:13:49,748
I was 16.
242
00:13:49,750 --> 00:13:51,449
I'd been playing saxophone for
243
00:13:51,451 --> 00:13:52,984
two years when one
of the kids came
244
00:13:52,986 --> 00:13:54,586
home from school.
245
00:13:54,588 --> 00:13:56,454
He said, "There's a
new guy that moved
246
00:13:56,456 --> 00:13:59,457
into the projects
and he plays alto,
247
00:13:59,459 --> 00:14:02,761
and he sounds just
like Johnny Hodges."
248
00:14:02,763 --> 00:14:04,462
I said, "Really?
249
00:14:04,464 --> 00:14:05,897
"Do you think you
can bring him by
250
00:14:05,899 --> 00:14:07,532
the house tomorrow?"
251
00:14:07,534 --> 00:14:09,534
He says, "I think so."
252
00:14:09,536 --> 00:14:11,536
About four o'clock,
the doorbell rang
253
00:14:11,538 --> 00:14:13,538
and there was this
country bumpkin
254
00:14:13,540 --> 00:14:16,975
looking guy standing
on the street,
255
00:14:16,977 --> 00:14:19,244
and he stood in the
doorway with this horn,
256
00:14:19,246 --> 00:14:21,146
just stood there.
257
00:14:21,148 --> 00:14:22,647
I didn't know what to say.
258
00:14:22,649 --> 00:14:25,517
The only thing I could
think to say was,
259
00:14:25,519 --> 00:14:26,618
"Play something."
260
00:14:27,654 --> 00:14:29,587
And that's what he
was waiting for.
261
00:14:31,558 --> 00:14:33,558
Now, John and I
became very close,
262
00:14:33,560 --> 00:14:36,828
and he joined our
little coterie there.
263
00:14:36,830 --> 00:14:38,496
He was quiet.
264
00:14:38,498 --> 00:14:40,498
I had to talk all the time.
265
00:14:40,500 --> 00:14:43,068
He never talked
until he put that
266
00:14:43,070 --> 00:14:45,003
saxophone in his mouth.
267
00:14:46,573 --> 00:14:48,473
Yeah.
268
00:15:05,492 --> 00:15:07,559
June 5, 1945,
269
00:15:07,561 --> 00:15:11,496
first time Coltrane
sees Charlie Parker,
270
00:15:11,498 --> 00:15:13,698
blows his mind.
271
00:15:13,700 --> 00:15:16,534
What kind of person is he?
272
00:15:16,536 --> 00:15:19,971
This brotha got so much
creativity in him,
273
00:15:19,973 --> 00:15:21,539
willing to cut
against the grain,
274
00:15:21,541 --> 00:15:23,541
courageous to the core,
and you can just
275
00:15:23,543 --> 00:15:27,011
see Coltrane just,
his mind was blown.
276
00:15:27,013 --> 00:15:30,181
John and I were
screaming, screaming.
277
00:15:30,183 --> 00:15:32,550
It's a wonder we didn't
fall over the balcony.
278
00:15:32,552 --> 00:15:35,620
We had never heard
anything like that
279
00:15:35,622 --> 00:15:37,021
in our lives.
280
00:15:37,023 --> 00:15:38,723
We never heard double time.
281
00:15:40,460 --> 00:15:41,860
It's impossible.
282
00:15:50,537 --> 00:15:51,770
The first time I heard
283
00:15:51,772 --> 00:15:55,573
Charlie Parker, I knew
that was the thing for me.
284
00:15:55,575 --> 00:15:57,041
Charlie Parker did all
the things I would
285
00:15:57,043 --> 00:15:59,744
like to do, and more.
286
00:15:59,746 --> 00:16:02,514
He really had a, a genius.
287
00:16:30,844 --> 00:16:32,043
Coltrane was in the
288
00:16:32,045 --> 00:16:35,146
Navy in 1945 to '46,
289
00:16:35,148 --> 00:16:37,081
and stationed at Pearl Harbor.
290
00:16:39,619 --> 00:16:40,752
The very first
291
00:16:40,754 --> 00:16:42,720
John Coltrane recordings,
quote-unquote,
292
00:16:42,722 --> 00:16:44,255
come from 1946 when
he's a part of
293
00:16:44,257 --> 00:16:46,758
a Navy band and they
do this recording
294
00:16:46,760 --> 00:16:49,260
in Hawaii and they're
playing Bird tunes
295
00:16:49,262 --> 00:16:51,596
and, uh, you can hear
296
00:16:51,598 --> 00:16:53,598
this very young
John Coltrane, uh,
297
00:16:53,600 --> 00:16:56,568
playing in, uh, and
imitating the style
298
00:16:56,570 --> 00:16:58,336
of Charlie Parker, his hero.
299
00:17:12,786 --> 00:17:13,985
When you hear that
300
00:17:13,987 --> 00:17:15,153
recording from when
he was in the Navy,
301
00:17:15,155 --> 00:17:16,721
he doesn't play that well.
302
00:17:16,723 --> 00:17:18,056
It's not possible
to even believe
303
00:17:18,058 --> 00:17:19,657
it's Coltrane.
304
00:17:19,659 --> 00:17:21,125
Some people blossom
305
00:17:21,127 --> 00:17:22,794
very early.
306
00:17:22,796 --> 00:17:25,730
For Coltrane, that
was not the case.
307
00:17:25,732 --> 00:17:28,066
I don't think you
could listen to that
308
00:17:28,068 --> 00:17:31,135
and say great things ahead.
309
00:17:31,137 --> 00:17:32,337
And just that he could
310
00:17:32,339 --> 00:17:34,506
go from that way
of playing to what
311
00:17:34,508 --> 00:17:36,674
he became, man, that's
all you need to
312
00:17:36,676 --> 00:17:37,976
know about him.
313
00:17:37,978 --> 00:17:39,878
Heh heh.
314
00:17:56,296 --> 00:17:57,962
After a year in the Navy,
315
00:17:57,964 --> 00:17:59,330
I came back to Philadelphia
316
00:17:59,332 --> 00:18:01,032
and then went on the road.
317
00:18:01,034 --> 00:18:03,301
I accepted work with
all kinds of groups,
318
00:18:03,303 --> 00:18:04,802
even if I didn't agrees
with their musical
319
00:18:04,804 --> 00:18:07,238
tenets, because I
could learn something
320
00:18:07,240 --> 00:18:09,707
while I was making a living.
321
00:18:09,709 --> 00:18:12,744
They were, in
comparison to baseball,
322
00:18:12,746 --> 00:18:14,712
like the minor leagues.
323
00:18:18,785 --> 00:18:20,418
I then went with
Dizzy Gillespie from
324
00:18:20,420 --> 00:18:23,721
1949 to 1951.
325
00:18:23,723 --> 00:18:25,790
I wanted to find my own way,
326
00:18:25,792 --> 00:18:27,792
but I wasn't ready.
327
00:18:27,794 --> 00:18:30,094
There was so much to learn yet.
328
00:18:30,096 --> 00:18:31,396
For John Coltrane
329
00:18:31,398 --> 00:18:33,031
to be playing with
someone of Dizzy's
330
00:18:33,033 --> 00:18:35,800
stature had to be
like waking up to
331
00:18:35,802 --> 00:18:38,169
all of your Christmases
at one time.
332
00:18:39,806 --> 00:18:41,739
Dizzy was wonderful
333
00:18:41,741 --> 00:18:44,042
in every way you can imagine.
334
00:18:44,044 --> 00:18:46,377
His sense of humor
was incredible-
335
00:18:46,379 --> 00:18:48,313
that's how he got
the name "Dizzy"-
336
00:18:48,315 --> 00:18:51,049
but he was a genius.
337
00:18:51,051 --> 00:18:52,917
So Dizz was hearing
338
00:18:52,919 --> 00:18:53,985
something in Coltrane's playing
339
00:18:53,987 --> 00:18:57,322
as being promising,
as being filled with
340
00:18:57,324 --> 00:18:59,824
possibilities and that this guy
341
00:18:59,826 --> 00:19:01,826
needed nurturing.
342
00:19:03,129 --> 00:19:04,362
When we finally got
343
00:19:04,364 --> 00:19:06,297
with Dizzy's band, John
would be practicing
344
00:19:06,299 --> 00:19:09,901
in the hotels, and invariably,
345
00:19:09,903 --> 00:19:12,270
somebody would holler, "Hey!
346
00:19:12,272 --> 00:19:14,172
"Tell that guy to
stop all that noise
347
00:19:14,174 --> 00:19:16,674
up there with that horn!"
348
00:19:16,676 --> 00:19:20,845
And Trane would stop
practicing and just
349
00:19:20,847 --> 00:19:24,849
finger the horn for an hour,
350
00:19:24,851 --> 00:19:26,951
just practicing fingering.
351
00:19:26,953 --> 00:19:29,153
I never seen anybody do that.
352
00:19:53,232 --> 00:19:55,499
He always had that horn.
353
00:19:55,501 --> 00:19:56,667
He'd play it all day long,
354
00:19:56,669 --> 00:19:58,402
and when he worked, at work
355
00:19:58,404 --> 00:20:00,404
during the intermission,
he was in the men's room
356
00:20:00,406 --> 00:20:02,272
playing his horn.
357
00:20:02,274 --> 00:20:03,907
I mean this is Spartan practice,
358
00:20:03,909 --> 00:20:05,576
you know?
359
00:20:05,578 --> 00:20:07,211
Not everybody was into that.
360
00:20:07,213 --> 00:20:09,379
I wasn't into that,
but it was like
361
00:20:09,381 --> 00:20:13,350
he was trying to best himself.
362
00:20:23,362 --> 00:20:24,495
Dizzy had a very
363
00:20:24,497 --> 00:20:26,296
strict rule about
drug use, and that
364
00:20:26,298 --> 00:20:30,400
December of 1950,
he caught Coltrane
365
00:20:30,402 --> 00:20:33,570
and Jimmy Heath shooting up.
366
00:20:33,572 --> 00:20:35,372
We were getting high
367
00:20:35,374 --> 00:20:37,608
down in the basement,
and Dizzy came
368
00:20:37,610 --> 00:20:40,310
down in intermission
and he caught us,
369
00:20:40,312 --> 00:20:43,380
you know, and he fired us,
370
00:20:43,382 --> 00:20:45,649
but Trane begged his way back in
371
00:20:45,651 --> 00:20:49,153
and I-I didn't.
372
00:20:49,155 --> 00:20:50,387
Coltrane begged.
373
00:20:50,389 --> 00:20:51,388
"No, please, I
won't do it again.
374
00:20:51,390 --> 00:20:52,523
"Let me stay.
375
00:20:52,525 --> 00:20:53,724
I really love playing
with you," so forth
376
00:20:53,726 --> 00:20:55,392
and so on, and it worked.
377
00:20:55,394 --> 00:20:56,527
Dizzy let him stay,
378
00:20:56,529 --> 00:20:58,328
but it only lasted
a few more months.
379
00:20:58,330 --> 00:21:02,332
By April of '51,
Coltrane was out again.
380
00:21:06,739 --> 00:21:08,038
I stayed in obscurity
381
00:21:08,040 --> 00:21:10,407
for a long time because I
was happy to play what was
382
00:21:10,409 --> 00:21:13,777
expected of me without
trying to add anything.
383
00:21:17,516 --> 00:21:19,583
All this time, musically,
384
00:21:19,585 --> 00:21:21,018
I was progressing
very little in the
385
00:21:21,020 --> 00:21:22,886
way I wanted.
386
00:21:22,888 --> 00:21:24,354
I had not reached the point when
387
00:21:24,356 --> 00:21:27,457
I could take active
steps by myself.
388
00:21:27,459 --> 00:21:29,426
In fact, I don't
think I reached that
389
00:21:29,428 --> 00:21:32,396
point until after
I'd got with Miles.
390
00:21:32,398 --> 00:21:34,398
It was Miles who
made me want to be
391
00:21:34,400 --> 00:21:36,466
a much better musician.
392
00:21:36,468 --> 00:21:38,902
In 1955, I joined
Miles on a regular
393
00:21:38,904 --> 00:21:41,505
basis and worked
with him until the
394
00:21:41,507 --> 00:21:44,608
middle of 1957.
395
00:21:44,610 --> 00:21:46,543
Why he picked me, I don't know.
396
00:21:46,545 --> 00:21:48,078
Maybe he saw something
in my playing
397
00:21:48,080 --> 00:21:50,380
that he hoped would grow.
398
00:21:50,382 --> 00:21:52,015
I had this desire,
which I think we
399
00:21:52,017 --> 00:21:55,419
all have, to be as
original as I could be,
400
00:21:55,421 --> 00:21:58,488
but there were so many
musical conclusions
401
00:21:58,490 --> 00:22:01,992
I hadn't arrived at
that I felt inadequate.
402
00:22:16,709 --> 00:22:18,976
In the spring of 1957,
403
00:22:18,978 --> 00:22:20,410
Miles Davis hits
a breaking point
404
00:22:20,412 --> 00:22:23,046
with John Coltrane in his group.
405
00:22:23,048 --> 00:22:24,681
John Coltrane's drug
habit is getting
406
00:22:24,683 --> 00:22:26,483
in the way of the music.
407
00:22:26,485 --> 00:22:27,718
For Miles, there's no way of
408
00:22:27,720 --> 00:22:29,820
getting past that.
409
00:22:29,822 --> 00:22:30,954
Getting fired by Miles
410
00:22:30,956 --> 00:22:32,422
was really the
shock of his life,
411
00:22:32,424 --> 00:22:34,725
and there was no other gig like
412
00:22:34,727 --> 00:22:36,393
a Miles Davis gig
413
00:22:36,395 --> 00:22:37,594
that was the top of the field,
414
00:22:37,596 --> 00:22:41,665
number one, and
number two is that
415
00:22:41,667 --> 00:22:43,500
he was kind of counting
on this gig for
416
00:22:43,502 --> 00:22:45,769
security and stability
and building
417
00:22:45,771 --> 00:22:48,272
a home and having
a married life.
418
00:22:50,442 --> 00:22:51,441
John Coltrane was
419
00:22:51,443 --> 00:22:53,610
by no means the
only great musician
420
00:22:53,612 --> 00:22:55,579
who had drug problems.
421
00:22:55,581 --> 00:22:57,447
It killed Charlie
Parker at an early age,
422
00:22:57,449 --> 00:22:59,850
and many others were afflicted.
423
00:23:01,754 --> 00:23:03,520
When he looked into the abyss,
424
00:23:03,522 --> 00:23:08,392
he decided that he couldn't stay
425
00:23:08,394 --> 00:23:09,459
where he was.
426
00:23:09,461 --> 00:23:12,562
He was either gonna
go down and die
427
00:23:12,564 --> 00:23:16,533
or go up and become
even greater.
428
00:23:26,478 --> 00:23:28,612
He quit, what they
call "cold turkey,"
429
00:23:28,614 --> 00:23:30,047
which means he didn't
go to an institution,
430
00:23:30,049 --> 00:23:31,715
he didn't have any kind
of medical support.
431
00:23:31,717 --> 00:23:33,884
During the days,
he would just stay
432
00:23:33,886 --> 00:23:36,553
home and keep the door closed.
433
00:23:46,432 --> 00:23:47,597
Only one time did it
434
00:23:47,599 --> 00:23:49,066
ever become difficult for me,
435
00:23:49,068 --> 00:23:51,568
and that was when
he was withdrawing
436
00:23:51,570 --> 00:23:54,037
and I could hear him.
437
00:23:54,039 --> 00:23:56,106
I could see Mommy taking him
438
00:23:56,108 --> 00:23:57,808
to the bathroom because he was
439
00:23:57,810 --> 00:24:00,844
always regurgitating.
440
00:24:00,846 --> 00:24:03,680
He was doing the cold turkey.
441
00:24:03,682 --> 00:24:05,515
One night it was
really, really bad,
442
00:24:05,517 --> 00:24:07,651
and I became really afraid,
443
00:24:07,653 --> 00:24:09,920
and I remember praying,
444
00:24:09,922 --> 00:24:15,158
saying to myself,
"Please, God, don't.
445
00:24:15,160 --> 00:24:17,594
Don't take my father."
446
00:24:32,711 --> 00:24:34,444
And each night he
447
00:24:34,446 --> 00:24:39,616
seemed to, um, not be as sick.
448
00:24:50,529 --> 00:24:51,628
And we thank God,
449
00:24:51,630 --> 00:24:56,199
you know, that He
allowed John Coltrane
450
00:24:56,201 --> 00:24:58,869
to get past, you know,
451
00:24:58,871 --> 00:25:03,573
the gates of hell.
452
00:25:03,575 --> 00:25:06,443
He just decided to do it,
453
00:25:06,445 --> 00:25:10,080
and by the strength
of will and faith,
454
00:25:10,082 --> 00:25:11,648
he did it.
455
00:25:18,957 --> 00:25:20,590
So he cleaned up,
456
00:25:20,592 --> 00:25:23,894
and when he cleaned up,
457
00:25:23,896 --> 00:25:27,664
things began to unfold.
458
00:25:45,584 --> 00:25:48,151
During the year 1957,
459
00:25:48,153 --> 00:25:50,787
I experienced, by
the grace of God,
460
00:25:50,789 --> 00:25:51,955
a spiritual awakening,
461
00:25:51,957 --> 00:25:54,991
which was to lead me
to a richer, fuller,
462
00:25:54,993 --> 00:25:57,694
more productive life.
463
00:25:57,696 --> 00:25:59,596
At that time, in gratitude,
464
00:25:59,598 --> 00:26:02,165
I humbly asked to
be given the means
465
00:26:02,167 --> 00:26:04,534
and privilege to
make others happy
466
00:26:04,536 --> 00:26:05,735
through music.
467
00:26:16,782 --> 00:26:18,381
John Coltrane returns
468
00:26:18,383 --> 00:26:19,883
to New York after he
gets himself clean,
469
00:26:19,885 --> 00:26:22,085
and he's very much like a man
470
00:26:22,087 --> 00:26:23,854
on a mission.
471
00:26:23,856 --> 00:26:25,822
After going cold turkey
472
00:26:25,824 --> 00:26:28,692
and not using drugs,
his energy level
473
00:26:28,694 --> 00:26:30,126
went up a notch.
474
00:26:30,128 --> 00:26:31,795
He smiled more.
475
00:26:31,797 --> 00:26:34,364
You know, that gorilla
off your back.
476
00:26:34,366 --> 00:26:36,933
Yeah. I think he
was really happy.
477
00:26:38,237 --> 00:26:40,504
When I stopped drinking and all
478
00:26:40,506 --> 00:26:42,205
that other stuff,
it helped me in all
479
00:26:42,207 --> 00:26:44,207
kinds of ways.
480
00:26:44,209 --> 00:26:46,743
I was able to play
better right then,
481
00:26:46,745 --> 00:26:47,978
you know?
482
00:26:47,980 --> 00:26:50,947
I could play better
and think better.
483
00:26:50,949 --> 00:26:52,082
Everything.
484
00:26:53,685 --> 00:26:54,918
Very significantly,
485
00:26:54,920 --> 00:26:56,753
that's also the time
period that he started
486
00:26:56,755 --> 00:26:58,955
playing with
Thelonious Monk on an
487
00:26:58,957 --> 00:27:01,124
informal basis and
then joined his band
488
00:27:01,126 --> 00:27:03,693
in July of '57.
489
00:27:03,695 --> 00:27:06,096
If you say Thelonious Monk's
name to any musician,
490
00:27:06,098 --> 00:27:08,098
say it to Miles,
"Thelonious Monk,"
491
00:27:08,100 --> 00:27:09,833
said, "Oh, Monk, Monk."
492
00:27:09,835 --> 00:27:12,769
Dizzy-"Oh, whoa, whoa,
Monk, Monk, Monk."
493
00:27:12,771 --> 00:27:14,704
First, his musicianship
was supreme.
494
00:27:14,706 --> 00:27:17,274
Just his knowledge,
his ability to play,
495
00:27:17,276 --> 00:27:19,209
his harmonic sophistication,
the structures
496
00:27:19,211 --> 00:27:21,711
of his songs, and it's Coltrane
497
00:27:21,713 --> 00:27:24,247
learning from Monk.
498
00:27:24,249 --> 00:27:25,849
Trane would come in the
morning, and they would just
499
00:27:25,851 --> 00:27:27,150
practice all day.
500
00:27:27,152 --> 00:27:28,318
You know, when you're
501
00:27:28,320 --> 00:27:30,220
spending time in Monk's house,
502
00:27:30,222 --> 00:27:32,756
and he's going through things,
503
00:27:32,758 --> 00:27:36,092
that level of genius
taking time to
504
00:27:36,094 --> 00:27:41,298
help nurture your genius...
505
00:27:41,300 --> 00:27:42,465
After working with
506
00:27:42,467 --> 00:27:44,801
Thelonious Monk,
Coltrane is fully
507
00:27:44,803 --> 00:27:46,836
on his feet.
508
00:27:46,838 --> 00:27:49,205
He's got the confidence now,
509
00:27:49,207 --> 00:27:51,841
and it is in 1957
that he records
510
00:27:51,843 --> 00:27:55,211
his first album as a leader.
511
00:27:55,213 --> 00:27:56,880
The cover says, "Coltrane".
512
00:27:56,882 --> 00:27:57,981
You know, it's like
once you're known
513
00:27:57,983 --> 00:27:59,149
just by your last name,
514
00:27:59,151 --> 00:28:00,717
you know you're
already getting big,
515
00:28:00,719 --> 00:28:01,785
and then it said
up in the corner,
516
00:28:01,787 --> 00:28:04,120
it said, "The NEW",
in capital letters,
517
00:28:04,122 --> 00:28:07,123
"tenor saxophone STAR."
518
00:28:07,125 --> 00:28:08,325
And the other thing
is that he had an
519
00:28:08,327 --> 00:28:09,326
opportunity to do
some of his own
520
00:28:09,328 --> 00:28:10,994
original music.
521
00:28:22,608 --> 00:28:24,474
His music sounded different.
522
00:28:24,476 --> 00:28:26,743
It was like there was
new blood in it.
523
00:28:26,745 --> 00:28:28,378
His playing, there
was new blood in
524
00:28:28,380 --> 00:28:29,446
his playing.
525
00:28:31,383 --> 00:28:33,416
There was a certain kind of
526
00:28:33,418 --> 00:28:34,884
almost recklessness.
527
00:28:46,098 --> 00:28:48,898
He's pushing forward
528
00:28:48,900 --> 00:28:50,834
such that he may not even know
529
00:28:50,836 --> 00:28:54,070
what he's pushing forward to.
530
00:29:16,995 --> 00:29:18,428
After my late teens,
531
00:29:18,430 --> 00:29:21,931
I questioned a lot of what
I had found in religion,
532
00:29:21,933 --> 00:29:23,967
but I never did
anything about it.
533
00:29:23,969 --> 00:29:27,370
I was too busy doing
other things.
534
00:29:27,372 --> 00:29:28,605
Recently, I started
looking into what
535
00:29:28,607 --> 00:29:30,940
people are thinking
when I saw there
536
00:29:30,942 --> 00:29:33,510
was so many religions
and kind of
537
00:29:33,512 --> 00:29:36,780
opposed somewhat to the
next and so forth.
538
00:29:36,782 --> 00:29:38,748
It screwed up my head.
539
00:29:38,750 --> 00:29:40,517
I just couldn't
believe that one guy
540
00:29:40,519 --> 00:29:42,652
could be right, because
if he's right,
541
00:29:42,654 --> 00:29:45,055
somebody else has
got to be wrong.
542
00:29:46,458 --> 00:29:47,590
The three of us,
543
00:29:47,592 --> 00:29:49,025
we didn't go to
church every Sunday,
544
00:29:49,027 --> 00:29:54,698
but I knew that my
parents believed in God,
545
00:29:54,700 --> 00:29:57,801
they had a strong belief in God.
546
00:29:57,803 --> 00:30:00,704
We had bibles, we had the Quran.
547
00:30:00,706 --> 00:30:02,739
My father was looking
at different
548
00:30:02,741 --> 00:30:06,910
Eastern religion,
Buddhism, Shinto.
549
00:30:06,912 --> 00:30:08,545
He never set out
550
00:30:08,547 --> 00:30:10,513
specifically to say
I'm a Christian
551
00:30:10,515 --> 00:30:11,548
or I'm Muslim
552
00:30:11,550 --> 00:30:13,616
or I'm Hindu or a Buddhist.
553
00:30:13,618 --> 00:30:15,885
I think he studied all
of these religions
554
00:30:15,887 --> 00:30:18,254
and understood that
there is something
555
00:30:18,256 --> 00:30:19,589
higher than that.
556
00:30:19,591 --> 00:30:20,657
There's something that a...
that,
557
00:30:20,659 --> 00:30:22,225
that all these religions
are basically
558
00:30:22,227 --> 00:30:24,160
saying that's, you
know, universal.
559
00:30:24,162 --> 00:30:25,662
I like to describe
560
00:30:25,664 --> 00:30:27,630
it as a little picture,
which is our world,
561
00:30:27,632 --> 00:30:30,500
and the big picture.
562
00:30:30,502 --> 00:30:34,003
John was about the big picture.
563
00:30:34,005 --> 00:30:36,573
John was very celestial.
564
00:30:36,575 --> 00:30:38,875
Celestial meant spiritual.
565
00:30:38,877 --> 00:30:40,877
He had a deep understanding,
566
00:30:40,879 --> 00:30:45,882
a deep feeling for
higher worlds than
567
00:30:45,884 --> 00:30:47,851
this world.
568
00:30:47,853 --> 00:30:49,085
Coltrane was definitely
569
00:30:49,087 --> 00:30:51,588
someone who was
inspired by the concept
570
00:30:51,590 --> 00:30:54,891
of the infinite and
imagining how science
571
00:30:54,893 --> 00:30:58,595
and music and math
all work together
572
00:30:58,597 --> 00:30:59,996
and that there was some kind of
573
00:30:59,998 --> 00:31:03,533
universal truth, and
so for Coltrane
574
00:31:03,535 --> 00:31:05,769
to be inspired by
Albert Einstein,
575
00:31:05,771 --> 00:31:09,405
who is a deep thinker,
not just about
576
00:31:09,407 --> 00:31:12,609
space travel and
time and energy,
577
00:31:12,611 --> 00:31:15,545
but the biggest of
the big questions:
578
00:31:15,547 --> 00:31:16,679
Why are we here?
579
00:31:16,681 --> 00:31:18,448
What are we supposed
to be doing,
580
00:31:18,450 --> 00:31:20,784
and where are we supposed
to take ourselves?
581
00:31:20,786 --> 00:31:22,685
Coltrane was absolutely on
582
00:31:22,687 --> 00:31:23,620
that same road.
583
00:31:45,644 --> 00:31:47,610
At the end of 1957,
584
00:31:47,612 --> 00:31:49,579
Coltrane came back
into Miles' band.
585
00:31:49,581 --> 00:31:53,149
The difference, though,
the second stint
586
00:31:53,151 --> 00:31:55,585
with Miles is that now
Coltrane kinda had
587
00:31:55,587 --> 00:31:57,654
a sense of who he was.
588
00:32:06,665 --> 00:32:08,965
One of the reasons
that being with Miles
589
00:32:08,967 --> 00:32:11,467
was so productive for
Coltrane is that
590
00:32:11,469 --> 00:32:13,036
Miles gave him tons of space.
591
00:32:13,038 --> 00:32:16,172
Miles let him solo
at length, and,
592
00:32:16,174 --> 00:32:18,975
you know, he really didn't
try to edit Coltrane.
593
00:32:18,977 --> 00:32:20,243
He didn't say, you know,
594
00:32:20,245 --> 00:32:21,477
"When you're playing with me,
595
00:32:21,479 --> 00:32:23,046
you gotta play shorter
solos than I do."
596
00:32:24,616 --> 00:32:25,882
Almost invariably,
Coltrane played
597
00:32:25,884 --> 00:32:27,684
longer solos.
598
00:32:27,686 --> 00:32:29,686
There is a famous story
about Miles making
599
00:32:29,688 --> 00:32:32,922
a joke to Coltrane
and saying, uh,
600
00:32:32,924 --> 00:32:34,257
"Why do you play so long?"
601
00:32:34,259 --> 00:32:35,825
And Coltrane saying,
"Well, I can't find
602
00:32:35,827 --> 00:32:37,760
a good place to stop,"
603
00:32:37,762 --> 00:32:39,529
and Miles saying,
"Well, you could just
604
00:32:39,531 --> 00:32:40,997
take the horn out
of your mouth."
605
00:32:46,504 --> 00:32:49,038
Miles is a strange guy.
606
00:32:49,040 --> 00:32:50,773
He doesn't talk a
lot and he rarely
607
00:32:50,775 --> 00:32:52,575
discusses music.
608
00:32:52,577 --> 00:32:53,843
You always have the
impression that
609
00:32:53,845 --> 00:32:55,712
he's in a bad mood
and that he's not
610
00:32:55,714 --> 00:32:57,780
interested in or
affected by what
611
00:32:57,782 --> 00:32:59,716
other people are doing.
612
00:32:59,718 --> 00:33:00,950
It's very hard in
a situation like
613
00:33:00,952 --> 00:33:04,120
that to know exactly
what you should do,
614
00:33:04,122 --> 00:33:05,889
and maybe it's
because of that that
615
00:33:05,891 --> 00:33:08,658
I just started to
do what I wanted.
616
00:34:49,905 --> 00:34:52,339
Here we go.
617
00:34:52,341 --> 00:34:54,975
Wait. OK.
618
00:34:54,977 --> 00:34:56,143
Uh, Trane and I,
619
00:34:56,145 --> 00:34:57,844
Trane and I'll play
one, you know,
620
00:34:57,846 --> 00:35:00,213
together out.
621
00:35:00,215 --> 00:35:01,882
You know what I mean?
Can you hear me?
622
00:35:01,884 --> 00:35:04,351
Yeah. Let's go.
623
00:35:11,694 --> 00:35:12,859
Oh, "Kind of Blue" was
624
00:35:12,861 --> 00:35:15,095
one of the greatest
records ever made.
625
00:35:15,097 --> 00:35:17,764
It's just got a great feel.
626
00:35:17,766 --> 00:35:21,568
You can never grow
tired of that album,
627
00:35:21,570 --> 00:35:23,337
and it crosses all boundaries.
628
00:35:23,339 --> 00:35:26,039
People who don't
understand jazz get it.
629
00:35:26,041 --> 00:35:27,841
"Kind of Blue" is so
630
00:35:27,843 --> 00:35:30,844
key to understanding
where John Coltrane
631
00:35:30,846 --> 00:35:33,747
would go in the 1960s.
632
00:35:33,749 --> 00:35:35,882
That really is sort
of the fuse to the
633
00:35:35,884 --> 00:35:38,085
Coltrane explosion later.
634
00:35:39,488 --> 00:35:40,520
It's very interesting.
635
00:35:40,522 --> 00:35:41,655
You've got the first session for
636
00:35:41,657 --> 00:35:43,557
"Kind of Blue" in early '59.
637
00:35:43,559 --> 00:35:45,993
A little while later,
about a month and a half,
638
00:35:45,995 --> 00:35:47,894
you've got the second session.
639
00:35:47,896 --> 00:35:49,863
In between, John
Coltrane's doing
640
00:35:49,865 --> 00:35:51,531
"Giant Steps."
641
00:36:00,843 --> 00:36:02,743
It was unprecedented
642
00:36:02,745 --> 00:36:06,546
that it was something
that forced all of us
643
00:36:06,548 --> 00:36:09,516
to call into question
what we had been
644
00:36:09,518 --> 00:36:13,387
hearing as that which
was innovative.
645
00:36:17,159 --> 00:36:18,425
Every tune on
646
00:36:18,427 --> 00:36:20,560
"Giant Steps" was
composed by Coltrane,
647
00:36:20,562 --> 00:36:24,031
so that album was
huge for him because
648
00:36:24,033 --> 00:36:25,465
it showed something
that I don't think
649
00:36:25,467 --> 00:36:27,634
people yet knew,
which is that he
650
00:36:27,636 --> 00:36:30,904
was as brilliant
a composer as he
651
00:36:30,906 --> 00:36:32,439
was a saxophonist.
652
00:36:41,425 --> 00:36:43,625
Writing has always
been a secondary
653
00:36:43,627 --> 00:36:45,427
thing for me, but I
find that lately,
654
00:36:45,429 --> 00:36:48,163
I'm spending more and
more time at it.
655
00:36:48,165 --> 00:36:51,099
I'm trying to tune myself,
656
00:36:51,101 --> 00:36:53,769
to look to myself, and to nature
657
00:36:53,771 --> 00:36:55,170
and to other sounds in music
658
00:36:55,172 --> 00:36:58,807
and interpret things
I feel there.
659
00:37:00,844 --> 00:37:02,377
So Miles' band was
660
00:37:02,379 --> 00:37:06,248
a great environment
for Coltrane to grow,
661
00:37:06,250 --> 00:37:07,949
and he grew so much that he
662
00:37:07,951 --> 00:37:09,685
grew too big for the band.
663
00:37:09,687 --> 00:37:11,186
I mean he grew out of it.
664
00:37:11,188 --> 00:37:13,588
He couldn't exist in it anymore.
665
00:37:13,590 --> 00:37:15,457
He was actually saying
666
00:37:15,459 --> 00:37:17,793
to me he was gonna
leave Miles Davis,
667
00:37:17,795 --> 00:37:19,561
he said, "I'm gonna
leave Miles because
668
00:37:19,563 --> 00:37:23,031
"what I'm playing
with that group
669
00:37:23,033 --> 00:37:25,567
sounds incorrect, sounds wrong."
670
00:37:25,569 --> 00:37:28,470
It's like he took off
a suit of clothes
671
00:37:28,472 --> 00:37:31,373
that he wasn't going
to wear anymore.
672
00:37:31,375 --> 00:37:32,941
And from the time
673
00:37:32,943 --> 00:37:34,142
we started out in
my living room,
674
00:37:34,144 --> 00:37:36,078
he knew nothing was
going to happen.
675
00:37:36,080 --> 00:37:38,113
It just happened
when it happened,
676
00:37:38,115 --> 00:37:41,416
but when it did happen,
I said it should have
677
00:37:41,418 --> 00:37:44,086
happened because he
was really ready.
678
00:37:44,088 --> 00:37:45,954
He had his stuff together then.
679
00:37:45,956 --> 00:37:47,656
Yes, this should be.
680
00:38:17,572 --> 00:38:20,239
You know, some people play
jazz, some people play reggae,
681
00:38:20,241 --> 00:38:21,474
some people play blues and,
682
00:38:21,476 --> 00:38:23,910
you know, he played life.
683
00:39:14,729 --> 00:39:16,362
You can't describe
684
00:39:16,364 --> 00:39:18,231
music with words.
685
00:39:18,233 --> 00:39:20,433
We can say, oh, yeah,
this guy was doing
686
00:39:20,435 --> 00:39:22,702
a lot of technical stuff, wow,
687
00:39:22,704 --> 00:39:25,304
when we analyze it and wow,
688
00:39:25,306 --> 00:39:27,306
look at this.
689
00:39:27,308 --> 00:39:30,476
Look at these changes
and these harmonics,
690
00:39:30,478 --> 00:39:32,078
but it's not about that.
691
00:39:32,080 --> 00:39:34,380
It's about hearing it.
692
00:39:45,326 --> 00:39:47,393
His sound, you know,
693
00:39:47,395 --> 00:39:49,295
it makes people cry,
like, "Oh, damn,
694
00:39:49,297 --> 00:39:50,696
"you know, what,
what is this tears?
695
00:39:50,698 --> 00:39:51,898
"Why am I crying?
696
00:39:51,900 --> 00:39:53,332
Wh-what's going on?"
697
00:39:53,334 --> 00:39:56,302
Your body's doing
something that your
698
00:39:56,304 --> 00:39:58,337
mind don't want to do.
699
00:40:13,688 --> 00:40:16,856
His sound is stunning.
700
00:40:16,858 --> 00:40:20,393
It ranges through the
different emotions
701
00:40:20,395 --> 00:40:23,429
people have in a
way that very few
702
00:40:23,431 --> 00:40:26,299
people can do, and as I said,
703
00:40:26,301 --> 00:40:29,635
he did it, uh, partly from his
704
00:40:29,637 --> 00:40:33,639
own inner spirit,
but he also was
705
00:40:33,641 --> 00:40:35,374
intellectually brilliant.
706
00:40:35,376 --> 00:40:38,344
That is, he wrote
brilliant music,
707
00:40:38,346 --> 00:40:41,948
and he could take a standard
708
00:40:41,950 --> 00:40:45,451
and play it in a
way that made you
709
00:40:45,453 --> 00:40:46,586
think you were hearing it for
710
00:40:46,588 --> 00:40:47,753
the first time.
711
00:41:01,836 --> 00:41:03,502
Within a year of leaving
712
00:41:03,504 --> 00:41:06,739
Miles Davis for
good, John Coltrane
713
00:41:06,741 --> 00:41:09,208
has an incredible
radio hit with this
714
00:41:09,210 --> 00:41:12,411
tune that is from
"The Sound of Music."
715
00:41:33,001 --> 00:41:34,967
So here's this Broadway,
716
00:41:34,969 --> 00:41:38,404
uh, melody, oh, and
he just transforms
717
00:41:38,406 --> 00:41:41,440
it into this gorgeous thing.
718
00:42:02,697 --> 00:42:04,030
"My Favorite Things"
719
00:42:04,032 --> 00:42:05,298
was a record that
I actually played
720
00:42:05,300 --> 00:42:06,465
for my friends
because I felt like
721
00:42:06,467 --> 00:42:07,533
they would like it.
722
00:42:07,535 --> 00:42:08,701
The reason that music
touches everybody
723
00:42:08,703 --> 00:42:10,469
is that was
Coltrane's intention,
724
00:42:10,471 --> 00:42:12,471
and he put a lot of
everybody's music
725
00:42:12,473 --> 00:42:14,407
in that music, you
know, and then that
726
00:42:14,409 --> 00:42:15,675
soprano-saxophone,
that kind of nasal
727
00:42:15,677 --> 00:42:17,476
sound is really popular all over
728
00:42:17,478 --> 00:42:18,778
the world.
729
00:42:18,780 --> 00:42:19,779
Coltrane had worked on that
730
00:42:19,781 --> 00:42:20,780
his entire life.
731
00:42:20,782 --> 00:42:22,415
How can I bring people together
732
00:42:22,417 --> 00:42:23,549
and how can I bring
these cultures
733
00:42:23,551 --> 00:42:25,985
and how can I bring
this music together?
734
00:42:25,987 --> 00:42:28,187
And what allowed him
to bring it together
735
00:42:28,189 --> 00:42:29,989
was a spiritual consciousness.
736
00:43:24,524 --> 00:43:26,524
I've gotta keep experimenting.
737
00:43:26,526 --> 00:43:28,726
And I feel that I'm
just beginning.
738
00:43:28,728 --> 00:43:29,894
I have a part of
what I'm looking
739
00:43:29,896 --> 00:43:32,630
for in my grasp, but not all.
740
00:43:32,632 --> 00:43:35,066
I like Eastern music,
Africa, Spain,
741
00:43:35,068 --> 00:43:38,269
Scotland, India or China.
742
00:43:38,271 --> 00:43:40,104
It's that universal
side of music
743
00:43:40,106 --> 00:43:43,708
which interests and draws me,
744
00:43:43,710 --> 00:43:46,544
and that's where I wanna go.
745
00:43:46,546 --> 00:43:47,678
For Coltrane,
746
00:43:47,680 --> 00:43:50,081
I think there was a
pattern of doing
747
00:43:50,083 --> 00:43:51,515
something that is
unexpected when
748
00:43:51,517 --> 00:43:52,717
you look at what came before it,
749
00:43:52,719 --> 00:43:54,619
so he would do
something that would
750
00:43:54,621 --> 00:43:56,487
sort of trip himself
up so he could
751
00:43:56,489 --> 00:43:58,189
figure out what to do next,
752
00:43:58,191 --> 00:44:00,625
and that sense of struggle and
753
00:44:00,627 --> 00:44:03,661
thinking through
the next problem
754
00:44:03,663 --> 00:44:06,597
propelled him and made him
755
00:44:06,599 --> 00:44:09,200
keep getting better and stronger
756
00:44:09,202 --> 00:44:11,202
and more interesting
and challenging.
757
00:44:21,998 --> 00:44:23,864
There's an intensity
758
00:44:23,866 --> 00:44:24,932
that I've never
heard anything like
759
00:44:24,934 --> 00:44:26,801
it before him or after him.
760
00:44:26,803 --> 00:44:28,035
I always liken it
to like looking
761
00:44:28,037 --> 00:44:29,870
at the sun.
762
00:44:29,872 --> 00:44:30,971
Like hearing John
Coltrane is like
763
00:44:30,973 --> 00:44:35,576
the brightest light
you can hear.
764
00:44:35,578 --> 00:44:36,644
I mean his tone is,
765
00:44:36,646 --> 00:44:37,745
is so unique.
766
00:44:37,747 --> 00:44:38,913
I mean it's so striking.
767
00:44:38,915 --> 00:44:41,315
I mean no one had
that tone on the,
768
00:44:41,317 --> 00:44:44,351
on the horn, uh,
during that time.
769
00:44:44,353 --> 00:44:46,921
It became the standard.
770
00:44:57,166 --> 00:44:58,332
It's not the car,
771
00:44:58,334 --> 00:45:00,401
it's the driver, so his sound,
772
00:45:00,403 --> 00:45:02,670
it sounds like it's
coming from some deep
773
00:45:02,672 --> 00:45:04,138
part of himself,
and even though,
774
00:45:04,140 --> 00:45:05,339
like, you hear him
on different horns,
775
00:45:05,341 --> 00:45:06,640
you hear him on
different mouthpieces.
776
00:45:06,642 --> 00:45:08,042
You can see him playing
different setups,
777
00:45:08,044 --> 00:45:09,376
like, but still,
it doesn't matter,
778
00:45:09,378 --> 00:45:11,612
like it's coming from that soul.
779
00:45:11,614 --> 00:45:12,813
His grandfather was
780
00:45:12,815 --> 00:45:16,116
a preacher, and I can hear that,
781
00:45:16,118 --> 00:45:17,985
uh-they said there's
782
00:45:17,987 --> 00:45:21,055
a wailing sometimes, a wailing.
783
00:45:21,057 --> 00:45:24,124
I can hear Trane's
appreciation for
784
00:45:24,126 --> 00:45:26,961
what his grandfather's
mission was.
785
00:45:54,056 --> 00:45:55,222
The evolution of
786
00:45:55,224 --> 00:45:57,258
John Coltrane's band,
'til he develops
787
00:45:57,260 --> 00:45:59,560
what we now called
'The Classic Quartet,"
788
00:45:59,562 --> 00:46:03,063
is typical Coltrane
experimentation.
789
00:46:03,065 --> 00:46:05,466
It's him trying out new ideas,
790
00:46:05,468 --> 00:46:07,968
new players, new things.
791
00:46:07,970 --> 00:46:09,737
He went through
792
00:46:09,739 --> 00:46:13,340
a lot of try-outs
with different people
793
00:46:13,342 --> 00:46:15,109
and finally, he got the group
794
00:46:15,111 --> 00:46:18,512
that he wanted, and
he was able to
795
00:46:18,514 --> 00:46:23,183
fly like he wanted to do.
796
00:46:56,586 --> 00:46:57,685
I'm very lucky.
797
00:46:57,687 --> 00:47:00,054
I work with very fine musicians.
798
00:47:00,056 --> 00:47:01,355
They are very inventive.
799
00:47:01,357 --> 00:47:03,123
I don't have to tell anybody
800
00:47:03,125 --> 00:47:04,792
what to do.
801
00:47:04,794 --> 00:47:07,194
We have a great confidence
in one another.
802
00:47:07,196 --> 00:47:08,596
That's essential.
803
00:47:08,598 --> 00:47:10,097
They're with me and
always wanting
804
00:47:10,099 --> 00:47:13,133
the band to move into new areas.
805
00:47:13,135 --> 00:47:15,636
We don't believe
in standing still.
806
00:47:20,943 --> 00:47:22,042
And just to have Elvin,
807
00:47:22,044 --> 00:47:23,744
the level of intelligence
and seriousness
808
00:47:23,746 --> 00:47:24,878
he was on, and
Jimmy, the type of
809
00:47:24,880 --> 00:47:26,246
heart he had, and
McCoy was the young-
810
00:47:26,248 --> 00:47:28,148
was a kid.
811
00:47:28,150 --> 00:47:29,316
They are originals.
812
00:47:29,318 --> 00:47:31,085
They set music in
another direction,
813
00:47:31,087 --> 00:47:32,086
gave us another way
to perceive the
814
00:47:32,088 --> 00:47:34,521
universe through the music.
815
00:47:34,523 --> 00:47:36,090
People who heard
them would, would-
816
00:47:36,092 --> 00:47:38,325
their lives were transformed.
817
00:47:46,202 --> 00:47:48,202
When I was 17,
818
00:47:59,082 --> 00:48:02,183
I had heard that
Coltrane was coming
819
00:48:02,185 --> 00:48:05,186
to Shelly's Manne-Hole
in Hollywood,
820
00:48:05,188 --> 00:48:07,588
saw them, oh, I don't know,
821
00:48:07,590 --> 00:48:09,524
five or six times.
822
00:48:09,526 --> 00:48:10,925
Unbelievable.
823
00:48:12,896 --> 00:48:15,396
I didn't know that
Coltrane would
824
00:48:15,398 --> 00:48:18,366
be such an icon,
but I sensed that
825
00:48:18,368 --> 00:48:21,435
I was witnessing magic.
826
00:48:21,437 --> 00:48:23,204
It would be just like Coltrane
827
00:48:23,206 --> 00:48:24,839
would be saying something on his
828
00:48:24,841 --> 00:48:26,908
tenor or soprano...
829
00:48:26,910 --> 00:48:29,977
Elvin would answer-
830
00:48:29,979 --> 00:48:31,979
And then it would get
all intertwined,
831
00:48:31,981 --> 00:48:35,449
and, uh, it was free.
832
00:49:35,728 --> 00:49:37,094
Elvin Jones gave
833
00:49:37,096 --> 00:49:40,831
me my hands, which he did.
834
00:49:40,833 --> 00:49:43,801
I copied all his style,
835
00:49:43,803 --> 00:49:45,669
and then I found my own.
836
00:49:45,671 --> 00:49:49,173
I think it gave me the
courage to maybe-
837
00:49:49,175 --> 00:49:50,774
A drummer's job is
to keep the beat,
838
00:49:50,776 --> 00:49:53,610
but then if you can
be expressive,
839
00:49:53,612 --> 00:49:55,612
have a conversation
with the singer
840
00:49:55,614 --> 00:49:58,615
or the soloist,
you can push him,
841
00:49:58,617 --> 00:50:01,518
and I witnessed that
with Elvin and Coltrane,
842
00:50:01,520 --> 00:50:02,920
and I pushed Jim Morrison
843
00:50:02,922 --> 00:50:06,523
because of those guys.
844
00:50:06,525 --> 00:50:09,593
The greatest quartet in
the history of jazz.
845
00:50:09,595 --> 00:50:11,929
Miraculous.
846
00:50:11,931 --> 00:50:13,697
We were like brothers
847
00:50:13,699 --> 00:50:15,132
and we were there for a reason,
848
00:50:15,134 --> 00:50:18,335
which was to create
beautiful music,
849
00:50:18,337 --> 00:50:19,570
you know?
850
00:50:19,572 --> 00:50:20,938
I use the word beautiful because
851
00:50:20,940 --> 00:50:22,773
I couldn't think
of a better word.
852
00:50:24,210 --> 00:50:27,978
But it, uh, we were committed.
853
00:50:44,196 --> 00:50:45,729
We thought that what
854
00:50:45,731 --> 00:50:47,231
we were doing, the gift came
855
00:50:47,233 --> 00:50:48,766
from the almighty,
856
00:50:48,768 --> 00:50:50,868
not that we were walking
around, "I'm th-,
857
00:50:50,870 --> 00:50:52,870
I'm, you know, I'm
this, I'm that."
858
00:50:52,872 --> 00:50:54,772
It's not, it's not ego at all.
859
00:50:54,774 --> 00:50:57,041
It's what you were put here for.
860
00:50:57,043 --> 00:50:58,342
What your, what's your reason
861
00:50:58,344 --> 00:50:59,943
for being here?
862
00:51:59,205 --> 00:52:03,373
Birmingham is a symbol
of hardcore resistance
863
00:52:03,375 --> 00:52:05,876
to integration.
864
00:52:07,113 --> 00:52:09,379
It is probably the most
thoroughly segregated city
865
00:52:09,381 --> 00:52:10,814
in the United States,
866
00:52:10,816 --> 00:52:12,749
and the injustices
inflicted upon Negroes
867
00:52:12,751 --> 00:52:15,853
are the notorious realities.
868
00:52:26,098 --> 00:52:27,264
Growing up in the South,
869
00:52:27,266 --> 00:52:28,465
of course, I know he wanted
870
00:52:28,467 --> 00:52:31,902
things to be better,
871
00:52:31,904 --> 00:52:33,770
but he didn't talk about it.
872
00:52:34,940 --> 00:52:37,708
I think he put
that in his music.
873
00:53:20,920 --> 00:53:22,052
Coltrane did talk
874
00:53:22,054 --> 00:53:23,954
politics in his music.
875
00:53:23,956 --> 00:53:27,157
It was only a few months
after that horrible
876
00:53:27,159 --> 00:53:29,826
bombing of a church and he wrote
877
00:53:29,828 --> 00:53:31,895
a piece called "Alabama."
878
00:53:33,399 --> 00:53:35,832
And it shows the
879
00:53:35,834 --> 00:53:38,001
creativity and
depth of Coltrane,
880
00:53:38,003 --> 00:53:42,940
a beautiful elegy
screaming with pain,
881
00:53:42,942 --> 00:53:44,575
undergirded by love.
882
00:53:44,577 --> 00:53:45,943
I mean it was just,
it's-it's-it's a
883
00:53:45,945 --> 00:53:47,911
masterful piece, really.
884
00:53:50,883 --> 00:53:52,916
[Martin Luther King, Jr.
These children,
885
00:53:52,918 --> 00:53:56,853
unoffending, innocent
and beautiful,
886
00:53:56,855 --> 00:53:59,823
were the victims
of one of the most
887
00:53:59,825 --> 00:54:04,228
vicious and tragic crimes ever
888
00:54:04,230 --> 00:54:06,430
perpetrated against humanity.
889
00:54:09,868 --> 00:54:12,803
Coltrane himself
890
00:54:12,805 --> 00:54:14,972
told McCoy Tyner,
his piano player,
891
00:54:14,974 --> 00:54:17,274
that he developed
the melody out of
892
00:54:17,276 --> 00:54:19,876
a speech that Martin
Luther King gave.
893
00:54:19,878 --> 00:54:21,111
And today as I
894
00:54:21,113 --> 00:54:23,480
stand over the remains of these
895
00:54:23,482 --> 00:54:26,216
beautiful darling girls,
896
00:54:26,218 --> 00:54:30,387
I paraphrase the words
of Shakespeare,
897
00:54:30,389 --> 00:54:33,123
goodnight sweet princesses,
898
00:54:33,125 --> 00:54:38,095
goodnight those who
symbolize a new day,
899
00:54:38,097 --> 00:54:41,098
and may the flight of angels
900
00:54:41,100 --> 00:54:46,603
take thee to thy eternal rest.
901
00:54:46,605 --> 00:54:47,971
Martin Luther King, Jr.,
902
00:54:47,973 --> 00:54:51,875
John Coltrane go hand
in hand, hand in hand.
903
00:54:51,877 --> 00:54:54,811
Why? Because they're
love warriors.
904
00:54:54,813 --> 00:54:56,113
They represent the best,
905
00:54:56,115 --> 00:54:57,648
not just of black people,
not just for America.
906
00:54:57,650 --> 00:54:58,782
They represent the best
907
00:54:58,784 --> 00:55:01,285
of the human spirit.
908
00:55:01,287 --> 00:55:03,920
That song has a soul
909
00:55:03,922 --> 00:55:06,990
that lets you know that it was
910
00:55:06,992 --> 00:55:09,293
a lot of pain going on there,
911
00:55:09,295 --> 00:55:14,064
but it's something
that's inspirational
912
00:55:14,066 --> 00:55:15,432
about that song.
913
00:55:15,434 --> 00:55:17,000
When you hear "Alabama,"
914
00:55:17,002 --> 00:55:19,002
you feel all that struggle from
915
00:55:19,004 --> 00:55:20,103
those times,
916
00:55:20,105 --> 00:55:22,539
the times of the
civil rights days,
917
00:55:22,541 --> 00:55:25,375
but you also feel the progress.
918
00:55:25,377 --> 00:55:26,576
John Coltrane was
919
00:55:26,578 --> 00:55:28,045
ahead of his time.
920
00:55:28,047 --> 00:55:30,447
I don't think that his music
921
00:55:30,449 --> 00:55:33,317
is a thermometer,
it's a thermostat.
922
00:55:33,319 --> 00:55:36,019
See, a thermometer just
reflects the climate,
923
00:55:36,021 --> 00:55:38,355
a thermostat shapes the climate.
924
00:55:38,357 --> 00:55:40,023
So when you hear "Alabama,"
925
00:55:40,025 --> 00:55:43,393
it's not just his deep love
926
00:55:43,395 --> 00:55:44,961
of the precious
four girls who were
927
00:55:44,963 --> 00:55:47,097
killed by cowardly
white supremacists
928
00:55:47,099 --> 00:55:49,299
in 16th Street Baptist Church,
929
00:55:49,301 --> 00:55:51,301
it's not just a refiguration
930
00:55:51,303 --> 00:55:53,036
musically of certain
speech patterns
931
00:55:53,038 --> 00:55:55,105
of Martin Luther King, Jr.
932
00:55:55,107 --> 00:55:57,040
He's looking at black
people all the
933
00:55:57,042 --> 00:56:00,043
way down the road.
934
00:56:05,351 --> 00:56:08,318
He's already telling us
you're gonna need courage,
935
00:56:08,320 --> 00:56:10,053
vision, and most importantly,
936
00:56:10,055 --> 00:56:13,123
love at the center of it.
937
00:56:15,094 --> 00:56:16,293
As black people,
938
00:56:16,295 --> 00:56:19,463
we've been through a
lot in this country,
939
00:56:19,465 --> 00:56:21,264
and we stay hopeful,
940
00:56:21,266 --> 00:56:23,333
and that's what I
feel in "Alabama"
941
00:56:23,335 --> 00:56:25,569
is the pain we went through,
942
00:56:25,571 --> 00:56:28,605
but the hope that we have.
943
00:57:06,445 --> 00:57:08,111
It was at night
944
00:57:08,113 --> 00:57:09,346
when all of a sudden the voices
945
00:57:09,348 --> 00:57:11,181
got louder and
louder and louder,
946
00:57:11,183 --> 00:57:15,051
and I'm like, "Uh-oh.
947
00:57:15,053 --> 00:57:18,388
Oh dear. What is going on?"
948
00:57:32,304 --> 00:57:33,370
It's hard to know
949
00:57:33,372 --> 00:57:34,571
specifically what
was happening in
950
00:57:34,573 --> 00:57:36,206
John Coltrane's personal life
951
00:57:36,208 --> 00:57:38,208
in the early '60s,
952
00:57:38,210 --> 00:57:40,243
but certainly there's
indications that
953
00:57:40,245 --> 00:57:41,778
he was not that happy with
954
00:57:41,780 --> 00:57:45,482
his marriage to Naima.
955
00:57:45,484 --> 00:57:47,050
They didn't know
956
00:57:47,052 --> 00:57:50,120
I was sitting around the bend
957
00:57:50,122 --> 00:57:51,254
of the stairway,
958
00:57:51,256 --> 00:57:55,158
but I could hear everything.
959
00:57:55,160 --> 00:57:57,194
Neither one of my
parents were arguers,
960
00:57:57,196 --> 00:58:01,064
so when that argument erupted,
961
00:58:01,066 --> 00:58:02,632
I knew something was really,
962
00:58:02,634 --> 00:58:07,103
really, really bad, and, um,
963
00:58:07,105 --> 00:58:12,108
that was the, the day he left...
964
00:58:12,110 --> 00:58:14,578
but he came back and
he talked to me.
965
00:58:14,580 --> 00:58:15,712
He said, "There are things
966
00:58:15,714 --> 00:58:18,448
"going on I can't explain.
967
00:58:18,450 --> 00:58:20,617
"I love you very much.
968
00:58:20,619 --> 00:58:22,385
"You're my daughter.
969
00:58:22,387 --> 00:58:25,255
I'll always take care of you,"
970
00:58:25,257 --> 00:58:27,524
and that was it.
971
00:58:51,717 --> 00:58:53,116
My mother,
972
00:58:53,118 --> 00:58:55,151
Alice McCloud, at the time,
973
00:58:55,153 --> 00:58:57,220
was playing with a vibraphonist
974
00:58:57,222 --> 00:58:58,321
named Terry Gibbs,
975
00:58:58,323 --> 00:58:59,656
and they were doing
a double bill
976
00:58:59,658 --> 00:59:02,158
with John Coltrane's Quartet at
977
00:59:02,160 --> 00:59:03,460
the original Birdland on
978
00:59:03,462 --> 00:59:06,162
52nd Street in New York City.
979
00:59:06,164 --> 00:59:07,998
They noticed each other,
980
00:59:08,000 --> 00:59:10,700
and it was a little
bit like, you know,
981
00:59:10,702 --> 00:59:13,370
there's a young
lady here and, oh,
982
00:59:13,372 --> 00:59:14,738
she's a pianist.
983
00:59:14,740 --> 00:59:17,173
John definitely stuck
around to hear
984
00:59:17,175 --> 00:59:19,309
a little bit of her playing
985
00:59:19,311 --> 00:59:20,610
and admired that.
986
00:59:22,781 --> 00:59:24,214
Something in the
987
00:59:24,216 --> 00:59:27,250
sound of his tenor
caught her ear,
988
00:59:27,252 --> 00:59:30,520
and, uh, at one point in between
989
00:59:30,522 --> 00:59:31,755
the breaks of the band,
990
00:59:31,757 --> 00:59:34,257
my father started
to follow my mother
991
00:59:34,259 --> 00:59:36,660
around the club with his horn.
992
00:59:38,263 --> 00:59:41,264
So he was serenading
her through the club,
993
00:59:41,266 --> 00:59:42,399
and I guess at that point,
994
00:59:42,401 --> 00:59:45,268
they began to sit and
have conversations.
995
00:59:47,372 --> 00:59:48,438
They spoke,
996
00:59:48,440 --> 00:59:49,940
they had a lot of
things in common
997
00:59:49,942 --> 00:59:51,508
when they spoke.
998
00:59:52,778 --> 00:59:54,311
I just remember my
999
00:59:54,313 --> 00:59:57,781
mother saying that he's a very,
1000
00:59:57,783 --> 01:00:00,517
just a very kind,
gracious person,
1001
01:00:00,519 --> 01:00:02,586
a very decent man,
1002
01:00:02,588 --> 01:00:05,188
and they hit it off very well.
1003
01:00:17,235 --> 01:00:18,468
She was interested
1004
01:00:18,470 --> 01:00:19,569
in the harp,
1005
01:00:19,571 --> 01:00:23,473
and he bought her a
concert-size harp.
1006
01:00:23,475 --> 01:00:27,243
Beautiful, it's painted in gold,
1007
01:00:27,245 --> 01:00:28,311
you know, like a real,
1008
01:00:28,313 --> 01:00:30,280
like what an orchestra
would have.
1009
01:00:31,984 --> 01:00:33,383
I think that's true love-
1010
01:00:34,453 --> 01:00:36,386
When someone buys you a harp.
1011
01:00:42,694 --> 01:00:44,260
They're both gentle people,
1012
01:00:44,262 --> 01:00:47,230
I think perfectly
paired by the universe.
1013
01:00:53,338 --> 01:00:54,704
John Coltrane used
1014
01:00:54,706 --> 01:00:57,273
to leave little notes,
little poems expressing
1015
01:00:57,275 --> 01:01:01,277
his love for Alice
around the home.
1016
01:01:01,279 --> 01:01:02,278
He would leave for the gig,
1017
01:01:02,280 --> 01:01:03,513
you know, she would come back
1018
01:01:03,515 --> 01:01:04,981
to the house and she
would find these
1019
01:01:04,983 --> 01:01:06,683
little messages,
1020
01:01:06,685 --> 01:01:08,385
and I don't think the
romance ever left
1021
01:01:08,387 --> 01:01:11,354
John and Alice's relationship.
1022
01:01:18,730 --> 01:01:19,829
You know,
1023
01:01:19,831 --> 01:01:21,297
he was married before,
1024
01:01:21,299 --> 01:01:22,499
and for whatever reason,
1025
01:01:22,501 --> 01:01:25,368
did not have any
children with Naima.
1026
01:01:26,505 --> 01:01:29,439
Clearly when he met my mom,
1027
01:01:29,441 --> 01:01:32,375
they, uh, they didn't
waste much time.
1028
01:01:33,478 --> 01:01:35,378
In a very short span,
1029
01:01:35,380 --> 01:01:36,913
three sons were born.
1030
01:01:39,885 --> 01:01:41,818
He was an only child,
and his father
1031
01:01:41,820 --> 01:01:44,421
was an only child, as well,
1032
01:01:44,423 --> 01:01:45,655
so I think maybe there-
1033
01:01:45,657 --> 01:01:48,291
it was something that
he wanted to do in,
1034
01:01:48,293 --> 01:01:49,959
in his lifetime to
father children,
1035
01:01:49,961 --> 01:01:51,227
and I think it,
1036
01:01:51,229 --> 01:01:52,495
I think it made him
extremely happy.
1037
01:02:46,351 --> 01:02:47,550
John Coltrane has
1038
01:02:47,552 --> 01:02:50,854
set aside some time,
and he secludes
1039
01:02:50,856 --> 01:02:52,622
himself above the garage in his
1040
01:02:52,624 --> 01:02:55,525
house at Dix Hills, Long Island,
1041
01:02:55,527 --> 01:03:00,764
to put together what
he sees as a suite.
1042
01:03:00,766 --> 01:03:02,298
He doesn't know how
it's gonna go.
1043
01:03:02,300 --> 01:03:04,267
He has some loose melodies,
1044
01:03:04,269 --> 01:03:06,236
some ideas.
1045
01:03:06,238 --> 01:03:08,505
Mrs. Coltrane tells
the story about
1046
01:03:08,507 --> 01:03:09,672
him coming down and
grabbing little
1047
01:03:09,674 --> 01:03:12,475
bits of food now and again,
1048
01:03:12,477 --> 01:03:14,577
and then disappearing
for a whole day.
1049
01:03:14,579 --> 01:03:17,413
This is just after John, Jr.
is born,
1050
01:03:17,415 --> 01:03:20,483
so she's got her four
year old daughter,
1051
01:03:20,485 --> 01:03:21,785
and an infant,
1052
01:03:21,787 --> 01:03:24,320
and a disappeared husband.
1053
01:03:24,322 --> 01:03:26,022
And she said he was upstairs.
1054
01:03:26,024 --> 01:03:28,725
It was like two weeks
he was up there,
1055
01:03:28,727 --> 01:03:31,461
and she always related
these stories
1056
01:03:31,463 --> 01:03:34,063
to us, you know, in
a, in a happy way,
1057
01:03:34,065 --> 01:03:36,432
that what he was doing
was significant
1058
01:03:36,434 --> 01:03:37,967
and important and she understood
1059
01:03:37,969 --> 01:03:41,437
that as if he was on a mission
1060
01:03:41,439 --> 01:03:43,873
and she was there to support it.
1061
01:03:45,410 --> 01:03:46,509
A few days later,
1062
01:03:46,511 --> 01:03:47,944
he comes down the stairs,
1063
01:03:47,946 --> 01:03:49,479
and as Mrs. Coltrane put it,
1064
01:03:49,481 --> 01:03:51,514
it was like Moses coming
1065
01:03:51,516 --> 01:03:53,783
down from the mountain.
1066
01:03:53,785 --> 01:03:56,119
And for once, the guy who really
1067
01:03:56,121 --> 01:03:58,054
thought and re-thought
1068
01:03:58,056 --> 01:04:00,423
about music seemed
very satisfied
1069
01:04:00,425 --> 01:04:02,559
with where he was
with his project
1070
01:04:02,561 --> 01:04:05,061
and his words to Mrs.
Coltrane were,
1071
01:04:05,063 --> 01:04:07,764
"It's the first time I
have everything ready.
1072
01:04:07,766 --> 01:04:10,466
"I've completed the
project on paper.
1073
01:04:10,468 --> 01:04:11,868
"I know exactly
what I'm gonna do
1074
01:04:11,870 --> 01:04:13,703
in the studio."
1075
01:04:40,298 --> 01:04:42,498
All praise to God.
1076
01:04:42,500 --> 01:04:45,835
This album is a humble
offering to him,
1077
01:04:45,837 --> 01:04:50,039
an attempt to say,
thank you, God.
1078
01:04:50,041 --> 01:04:51,908
Through our work, even as we do
1079
01:04:51,910 --> 01:04:55,812
through our hearts and
with our tongues,
1080
01:04:55,814 --> 01:04:57,981
may He help and strengthen all
1081
01:04:57,983 --> 01:05:01,117
men in every good endeavor.
1082
01:05:03,221 --> 01:05:04,487
It's the individual
1083
01:05:04,489 --> 01:05:08,458
expression of a, um,
1084
01:05:08,460 --> 01:05:11,594
a musical titan
who wants to give
1085
01:05:11,596 --> 01:05:13,463
a certain message to the world
1086
01:05:13,465 --> 01:05:14,597
in light of his own
1087
01:05:14,599 --> 01:05:16,933
relationship to God.
1088
01:05:39,925 --> 01:05:41,057
"A Love Supreme"
1089
01:05:41,059 --> 01:05:42,625
is something I think every great
1090
01:05:42,627 --> 01:05:45,561
musician aspires to,
which is finding
1091
01:05:45,563 --> 01:05:48,798
that one moment or that one song
1092
01:05:48,800 --> 01:05:49,999
or that one recording,
1093
01:05:50,001 --> 01:05:51,601
that one album which really kind
1094
01:05:51,603 --> 01:05:54,103
of encapsulates
everything that they are,
1095
01:05:54,105 --> 01:05:55,805
what their message is.
1096
01:06:09,554 --> 01:06:11,020
The thing about
"A Love Supreme",
1097
01:06:11,022 --> 01:06:13,690
all of Trane's
mysticism is in it.
1098
01:06:13,692 --> 01:06:15,124
The totality of
his consciousness
1099
01:06:15,126 --> 01:06:18,761
expresses itself most
fully on that record.
1100
01:06:18,763 --> 01:06:20,730
I don't even think he knew why.
1101
01:06:20,732 --> 01:06:22,699
Sometimes in the life
of artists or people
1102
01:06:22,701 --> 01:06:23,766
who search and practice
1103
01:06:23,768 --> 01:06:25,768
and study and work on stuff,
1104
01:06:25,770 --> 01:06:28,604
they find things and
it's, it's in there,
1105
01:06:28,606 --> 01:06:31,607
and, and, uh, it was in there.
1106
01:06:41,619 --> 01:06:42,685
The second piece
1107
01:06:42,687 --> 01:06:45,688
on there is the one
that touches me.
1108
01:07:01,973 --> 01:07:06,209
That's the one that
touches me, that melody.
1109
01:07:06,211 --> 01:07:07,810
Where does it take you?
1110
01:07:07,812 --> 01:07:09,712
It takes me to heaven
1111
01:07:09,714 --> 01:07:13,616
where I want to be
when I leave here.
1112
01:07:16,254 --> 01:07:17,320
That's it, isn't it?
1113
01:07:40,745 --> 01:07:42,578
And the audacity
1114
01:07:42,580 --> 01:07:45,048
that someone would
absolutely speak
1115
01:07:45,050 --> 01:07:48,918
to the heavens using
a jazz group,
1116
01:07:48,920 --> 01:07:51,421
it speaks to the singularity of
1117
01:07:51,423 --> 01:07:53,890
John Coltrane's vision.
1118
01:07:53,892 --> 01:07:55,091
I think I've played
1119
01:07:55,093 --> 01:07:56,292
that album more than
I've played any other
1120
01:07:56,294 --> 01:07:58,728
album in my life.
1121
01:07:58,730 --> 01:08:01,264
When somebody's music
is that uplifting,
1122
01:08:01,266 --> 01:08:02,765
it's something angelic about it,
1123
01:08:02,767 --> 01:08:04,767
it's something that
just touches you
1124
01:08:04,769 --> 01:08:06,769
in your spirit where you're like
1125
01:08:06,771 --> 01:08:10,139
I know this is coming
from another place.
1126
01:08:11,576 --> 01:08:14,110
I just thought, "Oh, my God.
1127
01:08:14,112 --> 01:08:16,779
"You know, this guy,
1128
01:08:16,781 --> 01:08:23,453
"his mind and his heart is so-
1129
01:08:23,455 --> 01:08:26,289
"they're in a place
that everybody
1130
01:08:26,291 --> 01:08:29,125
ought to reach for."
1131
01:08:40,705 --> 01:08:42,071
May we never forget
1132
01:08:42,073 --> 01:08:44,740
that in the sunshine
of our lives,
1133
01:08:44,742 --> 01:08:48,177
through the storm
and after the rain,
1134
01:08:48,179 --> 01:08:54,217
it is all with God, in
all ways and forever.
1135
01:08:54,219 --> 01:08:56,819
All praise to God.
1136
01:12:16,528 --> 01:12:18,094
I myself don't recognize
1137
01:12:18,096 --> 01:12:19,295
the word jazz.
1138
01:12:19,297 --> 01:12:21,230
I mean we're sold
under this name,
1139
01:12:21,232 --> 01:12:23,933
but to me, the word
doesn't exist.
1140
01:12:23,935 --> 01:12:28,237
I just feel that I
play John Coltrane.
1141
01:12:33,812 --> 01:12:35,745
I think the main thing
a musician would
1142
01:12:35,747 --> 01:12:39,248
like to do is give a
picture to the listener
1143
01:12:39,250 --> 01:12:41,784
of the many wonderful
things he knows of
1144
01:12:41,786 --> 01:12:44,454
and senses in the universe.
1145
01:12:44,456 --> 01:12:46,456
That's what music is to me.
1146
01:12:46,458 --> 01:12:49,592
It's just another way of
saying this is a big,
1147
01:12:49,594 --> 01:12:52,762
beautiful universe we
live in that's been
1148
01:12:52,764 --> 01:12:55,898
given to us, and
here's an example
1149
01:12:55,900 --> 01:12:58,167
of just how magnificent
1150
01:12:58,169 --> 01:13:01,104
and encompassing it is.
1151
01:13:03,274 --> 01:13:04,674
John Coltrane,
1152
01:13:04,676 --> 01:13:08,377
he was outward bound the
way he was playing.
1153
01:13:08,379 --> 01:13:11,080
He could get in his spaceship,
1154
01:13:11,082 --> 01:13:13,316
metaphorically,
and it could take
1155
01:13:13,318 --> 01:13:15,318
him anywhere he wanted to go.
1156
01:13:16,654 --> 01:13:18,321
That's the way he was.
1157
01:13:20,325 --> 01:13:21,491
One of the most incredible
1158
01:13:21,493 --> 01:13:23,760
chapters in John Coltrane's
1159
01:13:23,762 --> 01:13:26,262
life is 1965, 'cause
he has achieved
1160
01:13:26,264 --> 01:13:28,531
a level of success that includes
1161
01:13:28,533 --> 01:13:30,366
Grammy nominations.
1162
01:13:30,368 --> 01:13:31,467
He's been inducted into the
1163
01:13:31,469 --> 01:13:33,336
"Downbeat" Hall of Fame,
1164
01:13:33,338 --> 01:13:35,805
one of the very first living
1165
01:13:35,807 --> 01:13:39,408
jazz musicians to be
afforded that honor.
1166
01:13:39,410 --> 01:13:43,346
He has an outstanding
best-selling album in
1167
01:13:43,348 --> 01:13:45,882
"A Love Supreme."
1168
01:13:45,884 --> 01:13:47,617
There's an awareness
that is starting
1169
01:13:47,619 --> 01:13:52,722
to creep into all
levels of music fandom,
1170
01:13:52,724 --> 01:13:55,925
and he starts to
dismantle that because
1171
01:13:55,927 --> 01:13:59,362
he is now gonna try
new musical ideas,
1172
01:13:59,364 --> 01:14:01,631
musical ideas that
are not popular,
1173
01:14:01,633 --> 01:14:05,201
musical ideas that
challenge most ears,
1174
01:14:05,203 --> 01:14:07,303
musical ideas that
in effect will
1175
01:14:07,305 --> 01:14:10,306
take apart his classic quartet.
1176
01:14:10,308 --> 01:14:12,441
By the end of 1965,
1177
01:14:12,443 --> 01:14:15,478
he will lose Elvin
Jones and McCoy Tyner
1178
01:14:15,480 --> 01:14:17,313
because of this new
path that he's
1179
01:14:17,315 --> 01:14:19,315
going along, and he will replace
1180
01:14:19,317 --> 01:14:21,851
them with a very young drummer
1181
01:14:21,853 --> 01:14:24,320
named Rashied Ali
from Philadelphia
1182
01:14:24,322 --> 01:14:27,557
and his wife Alice
Coltrane on piano,
1183
01:14:27,559 --> 01:14:28,958
and he'll expand the band
1184
01:14:28,960 --> 01:14:30,393
and bring in a second horn
1185
01:14:30,395 --> 01:14:32,528
with Pharaoh Sanders.
1186
01:14:32,530 --> 01:14:33,796
Here's the thing.
1187
01:14:33,798 --> 01:14:36,332
John Coltrane went from bebop to
1188
01:14:36,334 --> 01:14:40,469
Miles Davis quintet,
modern cool,
1189
01:14:40,471 --> 01:14:42,672
to his own quartet.
1190
01:14:42,674 --> 01:14:45,241
He went the whole transition,
1191
01:14:45,243 --> 01:14:46,742
so he could play standards.
1192
01:14:46,744 --> 01:14:50,847
He had the right to go
out as far as he wanted.
1193
01:14:50,849 --> 01:14:52,348
John Coltrane's sound
1194
01:14:52,350 --> 01:14:54,951
rearranges molecular structure.
1195
01:14:54,953 --> 01:14:57,353
People were like... "What?"
1196
01:15:14,205 --> 01:15:15,371
Some said that he
1197
01:15:15,373 --> 01:15:18,574
was taking jazz in
the wrong direction,
1198
01:15:18,576 --> 01:15:21,043
which was of course, a lie.
1199
01:15:21,045 --> 01:15:22,845
He's taking it forward
1200
01:15:22,847 --> 01:15:25,815
and the reason you're
not aware of it,
1201
01:15:25,817 --> 01:15:28,451
because you've never
heard it before.
1202
01:15:29,954 --> 01:15:31,454
Coltrane was definitely
1203
01:15:31,456 --> 01:15:34,523
one of the scientists
of the saxophone,
1204
01:15:34,525 --> 01:15:35,791
someone who was pushing
the instrument
1205
01:15:35,793 --> 01:15:37,994
to its limit, kind
of what Jimi Hendrix
1206
01:15:37,996 --> 01:15:40,796
would later do with
the electric guitar.
1207
01:15:46,004 --> 01:15:47,904
I don't care what
the critics say.
1208
01:15:47,906 --> 01:15:49,572
If you like it, you like it.
1209
01:15:49,574 --> 01:15:52,475
If you don't, you don't.
1210
01:15:54,746 --> 01:15:57,213
He may have been
reaching for something
1211
01:15:57,215 --> 01:16:01,851
else spiritually that
they don't understand.
1212
01:16:18,600 --> 01:16:20,767
Would you want him
to tiptoe, to,
1213
01:16:20,769 --> 01:16:23,369
to where he's trying
to get, you know?
1214
01:16:23,371 --> 01:16:26,606
It, you know, John Coltrane is,
1215
01:16:26,608 --> 01:16:28,274
you know, he's mean.
1216
01:16:56,204 --> 01:16:57,270
You know,
1217
01:16:57,272 --> 01:16:58,604
I don't understand it.
1218
01:16:58,606 --> 01:17:00,440
I'm open to it. I
try to embrace it.
1219
01:17:00,442 --> 01:17:01,674
I try to follow it.
1220
01:17:14,084 --> 01:17:16,284
But it's not the kind of, uh,
1221
01:17:16,286 --> 01:17:17,285
music I would just sit there
1222
01:17:17,287 --> 01:17:18,553
and listen to all the time.
1223
01:17:18,555 --> 01:17:21,256
I got to really gotta zero in,
1224
01:17:21,258 --> 01:17:24,359
and I still don't fully
grasp what's going on.
1225
01:17:44,739 --> 01:17:46,405
Later when I saw
1226
01:17:46,407 --> 01:17:48,140
him play, I would say half
1227
01:17:48,142 --> 01:17:52,778
the audience left
before it was over.
1228
01:17:52,780 --> 01:17:55,314
They just didn't know they were
1229
01:17:55,316 --> 01:17:59,218
witnessing something
ahead of its time,
1230
01:17:59,220 --> 01:18:01,286
something spiritual
but cathartic
1231
01:18:01,288 --> 01:18:05,224
and tumultuous, and
I just ate it up.
1232
01:18:05,226 --> 01:18:07,226
He could go to Mars.
1233
01:18:07,228 --> 01:18:08,627
I'm with him.
1234
01:18:14,935 --> 01:18:16,235
I have no fear about
my music being
1235
01:18:16,237 --> 01:18:18,003
too way out.
1236
01:18:18,005 --> 01:18:19,672
My goals remain the same,
1237
01:18:19,674 --> 01:18:21,373
and that is to uplift people
1238
01:18:21,375 --> 01:18:24,209
as much as I can to inspire
1239
01:18:24,211 --> 01:18:27,613
them to realize more
and more of their
1240
01:18:27,615 --> 01:18:32,184
capacities for living
meaningful lives
1241
01:18:32,186 --> 01:18:36,255
because there certainly
is meaning to life.
1242
01:19:32,983 --> 01:19:34,449
I was a first year student
1243
01:19:34,451 --> 01:19:38,153
in junior high school
when it happened.
1244
01:19:46,098 --> 01:19:48,732
I saw the flash and
gazed at the center
1245
01:19:48,734 --> 01:19:51,635
of that overpowering light.
1246
01:20:01,240 --> 01:20:03,573
The Earth was shaking.
1247
01:20:03,575 --> 01:20:07,310
The heat was intense.
1248
01:20:07,312 --> 01:20:10,447
Much of Nagasaki vanished.
1249
01:20:10,449 --> 01:20:14,017
Perhaps as many as 75,000 people
1250
01:20:14,019 --> 01:20:18,622
died instantly, and
another 75,000
1251
01:20:18,624 --> 01:20:20,624
were wounded and exposed to
1252
01:20:20,626 --> 01:20:25,495
massive radiation and
an uncertain future.
1253
01:20:37,042 --> 01:20:40,010
I dislike war. Period.
1254
01:20:40,012 --> 01:20:42,679
So therefore, as far
as I'm concerned,
1255
01:20:42,681 --> 01:20:44,781
it should stop.
1256
01:20:58,530 --> 01:21:02,265
It was July 14th, 1966,
1257
01:21:02,267 --> 01:21:04,901
when I went to pick
up John Coltrane
1258
01:21:04,903 --> 01:21:07,904
and his musicians at
the train station.
1259
01:21:07,906 --> 01:21:11,308
Everyone came out
except Coltrane.
1260
01:21:11,310 --> 01:21:13,977
I looked all over for
him and found him
1261
01:21:13,979 --> 01:21:18,481
in a car of the express
train playing the flute.
1262
01:21:18,483 --> 01:21:20,483
I was so surprised.
1263
01:21:20,485 --> 01:21:24,621
Then he looked at
me and grinned.
1264
01:21:24,623 --> 01:21:26,556
I asked him a question,
1265
01:21:26,558 --> 01:21:29,159
"Why were you
playing the flute?"
1266
01:21:29,161 --> 01:21:30,961
He said that he was searching
1267
01:21:30,963 --> 01:21:34,931
for the sound of Nagasaki.
1268
01:21:34,933 --> 01:21:38,235
I was extremely moved by this.
1269
01:21:38,237 --> 01:21:40,170
I asked him if he wanted to go
1270
01:21:40,172 --> 01:21:44,941
straight to his hotel,
and he said no.
1271
01:21:44,943 --> 01:21:47,410
He said he wanted
to go to the atomic
1272
01:21:47,412 --> 01:21:49,946
bomb hypocenter.
1273
01:21:49,948 --> 01:21:53,149
For me, that place is sacred.
1274
01:21:53,151 --> 01:21:57,087
It's the same as a gravesite.
1275
01:22:09,868 --> 01:22:11,134
He took a wreath
1276
01:22:11,136 --> 01:22:13,336
of flowers and put
it down in front
1277
01:22:13,338 --> 01:22:16,439
of the pillar, and
then he stood up
1278
01:22:16,441 --> 01:22:18,208
and he prayed.
1279
01:22:18,210 --> 01:22:22,078
He was praying and
looking up at the sky.
1280
01:22:22,080 --> 01:22:24,648
He just kept staring up above
1281
01:22:24,650 --> 01:22:25,982
the pillar for a
1282
01:22:25,984 --> 01:22:28,618
considerable amount of time.
1283
01:22:28,620 --> 01:22:30,120
I asked him why,
1284
01:22:30,122 --> 01:22:32,055
and he replied that he was
1285
01:22:32,057 --> 01:22:36,459
imagining the sounds,
the plane, the bomb,
1286
01:22:36,461 --> 01:22:39,596
the suffering of the
Japanese people.
1287
01:22:39,598 --> 01:22:42,065
I think that Coltrane
had studied about
1288
01:22:42,067 --> 01:22:43,700
all of these things,
1289
01:22:43,702 --> 01:22:45,435
and for that reason,
1290
01:22:45,437 --> 01:22:48,071
he chose to come to Nagasaki on
1291
01:22:48,073 --> 01:22:51,241
his Japanese tour.
1292
01:26:19,426 --> 01:26:21,326
Coltrane's concert in
1293
01:26:21,328 --> 01:26:24,295
Nagasaki was something special.
1294
01:26:24,297 --> 01:26:26,865
I was the announcer that night.
1295
01:26:26,867 --> 01:26:30,702
The second song was
"Peace on Earth."
1296
01:26:30,704 --> 01:26:32,504
He must have wanted to perform
1297
01:26:32,506 --> 01:26:35,640
that here in Nagasaki.
1298
01:26:35,642 --> 01:26:37,809
The whole concert hall was
1299
01:26:37,811 --> 01:26:40,879
totally caught up in Coltrane.
1300
01:26:40,881 --> 01:26:43,381
It was an amazing atmosphere.
1301
01:26:53,270 --> 01:26:54,269
At that time,
1302
01:26:54,271 --> 01:26:56,104
we were still so
struggling from the
1303
01:26:56,106 --> 01:26:59,174
atomic bombing and many people
1304
01:26:59,176 --> 01:27:00,342
are still struggling,
1305
01:27:00,344 --> 01:27:04,713
and, uh, Coltrane was
so kind to play for us.
1306
01:27:13,566 --> 01:27:15,766
Coltrane composed the song
1307
01:27:15,768 --> 01:27:17,968
"Peace on Earth" almost as
1308
01:27:17,970 --> 01:27:21,171
requiem for victim
of the atomic bomb
1309
01:27:21,173 --> 01:27:26,977
as well as his wish
to stop all war.
1310
01:27:57,471 --> 01:27:59,070
His passion was
1311
01:27:59,072 --> 01:28:04,142
peace and love for the universe.
1312
01:28:41,152 --> 01:28:42,184
You know,
1313
01:28:42,186 --> 01:28:43,319
the last time I talked to John
1314
01:28:43,321 --> 01:28:50,326
on the phone, his, uh,
his voice sounded-
1315
01:28:52,363 --> 01:28:55,798
it sounded, uh...
1316
01:29:12,783 --> 01:29:13,949
There were indications
1317
01:29:13,951 --> 01:29:17,987
by the end of 1966 and into '67
1318
01:29:17,989 --> 01:29:19,421
that Coltrane wasn't doing well.
1319
01:29:19,423 --> 01:29:22,091
His sidemen later
would report that he
1320
01:29:22,093 --> 01:29:25,427
was holding his side
like he was in pain,
1321
01:29:25,429 --> 01:29:26,562
and sure enough,
1322
01:29:26,564 --> 01:29:30,399
he was later diagnosed
with liver cancer.
1323
01:29:32,136 --> 01:29:34,737
At first when Coltrane died,
1324
01:29:34,739 --> 01:29:36,205
I think it was just shock.
1325
01:29:36,207 --> 01:29:38,207
I mean he was only 40,
1326
01:29:38,209 --> 01:29:41,176
and he hadn't been
ill for a long time.
1327
01:29:49,120 --> 01:29:50,986
My mother did speak
1328
01:29:50,988 --> 01:29:52,354
of John's death in this way,
1329
01:29:52,356 --> 01:29:55,924
which it was, this
just floored me.
1330
01:29:55,926 --> 01:30:02,131
Uh, she said it was beautiful.
1331
01:30:02,133 --> 01:30:03,465
It was warm, and the breath when
1332
01:30:03,467 --> 01:30:05,167
went out of him.
1333
01:30:05,169 --> 01:30:07,102
He was not in any pain.
1334
01:30:07,104 --> 01:30:10,973
She said at the very-this is
the, the moment of transition.
1335
01:30:10,975 --> 01:30:12,941
She used the word beautiful.
1336
01:30:12,943 --> 01:30:16,078
That's what-how she
revealed it to me.
1337
01:30:22,953 --> 01:30:24,219
All the things flash
1338
01:30:24,221 --> 01:30:28,957
through my mind that
we had done together,
1339
01:30:28,959 --> 01:30:30,626
and I went into my apartment,
1340
01:30:30,628 --> 01:30:33,595
shut the door and cried.
1341
01:30:37,468 --> 01:30:41,103
Boy.
1342
01:30:41,105 --> 01:30:44,373
That was rough.
1343
01:30:44,375 --> 01:30:47,042
Phew.
1344
01:30:47,044 --> 01:30:50,279
That really got me,
1345
01:30:50,281 --> 01:30:52,281
and you can see it's
getting me now.
1346
01:30:54,118 --> 01:30:55,617
I'm sorry.
1347
01:31:20,144 --> 01:31:21,910
I was at the funeral.
1348
01:31:21,912 --> 01:31:24,379
They wanted me to
be a pallbearer,
1349
01:31:24,381 --> 01:31:28,016
and I, man, but I
could not do it.
1350
01:31:28,018 --> 01:31:34,089
I looked at him in the casket
1351
01:31:34,091 --> 01:31:37,659
and the way he was
embalmed and all that.
1352
01:31:39,029 --> 01:31:44,099
Only thing I recognized
was his hands.
1353
01:31:50,307 --> 01:31:54,176
He had fingers that
went kinda strange,
1354
01:31:54,178 --> 01:31:55,244
'cause I've been
looking at his hands.
1355
01:31:55,246 --> 01:31:57,112
We'd been practicing together,
1356
01:31:57,114 --> 01:32:00,415
and that's the only
thing that reminded
1357
01:32:00,417 --> 01:32:03,185
me of Trane, you know,
1358
01:32:03,187 --> 01:32:05,053
so that wasn't him.
1359
01:32:05,055 --> 01:32:09,124
He had passed on
to the next place.
1360
01:32:09,126 --> 01:32:12,394
His spirit was gone.
1361
01:32:19,136 --> 01:32:22,137
John was my best friend.
1362
01:32:22,139 --> 01:32:27,075
He wasn't like 99 percent
of other people.
1363
01:32:27,077 --> 01:32:29,511
He existed in the real world.
1364
01:32:29,513 --> 01:32:31,113
I mean he had a family,
1365
01:32:31,115 --> 01:32:32,214
he had kids,
1366
01:32:32,216 --> 01:32:34,216
but that's not where he was at.
1367
01:32:34,218 --> 01:32:36,185
He was not in the real world.
1368
01:32:36,187 --> 01:32:39,288
He was someplace else.
1369
01:32:39,290 --> 01:32:42,324
So he's, he's cool.
1370
01:32:42,326 --> 01:32:43,559
He's cool.
1371
01:32:43,561 --> 01:32:45,294
He was cool when he was here
1372
01:32:45,296 --> 01:32:47,262
and he's cool in
the big picture.
1373
01:32:47,264 --> 01:32:49,164
He's cool.
1374
01:32:59,109 --> 01:33:00,676
Since Trane passed away,
1375
01:33:00,678 --> 01:33:03,378
his music has transcended,
1376
01:33:03,380 --> 01:33:06,582
and it's more and
more known, people-
1377
01:33:06,584 --> 01:33:07,583
That type of artistic
1378
01:33:07,585 --> 01:33:09,718
achievement stays around.
1379
01:33:09,720 --> 01:33:11,186
It's mythic because of the,
1380
01:33:11,188 --> 01:33:13,188
the sacrifice involved,
1381
01:33:13,190 --> 01:33:16,024
and it will remain mythic.
1382
01:33:16,026 --> 01:33:17,192
If you go to any
1383
01:33:17,194 --> 01:33:18,660
kind of comprehensive
retrospective
1384
01:33:18,662 --> 01:33:19,828
of Picasso's art,
1385
01:33:19,830 --> 01:33:21,396
it's breathtaking what he did,
1386
01:33:21,398 --> 01:33:23,131
how he went from
being a very good
1387
01:33:23,133 --> 01:33:25,334
traditional painter
to the blue period,
1388
01:33:25,336 --> 01:33:28,136
his abstract and then
his cubist work.
1389
01:33:28,138 --> 01:33:31,106
If you think about what
John Coltrane did,
1390
01:33:31,108 --> 01:33:32,441
moving through his
various phases
1391
01:33:32,443 --> 01:33:34,209
of musical creativity,
1392
01:33:34,211 --> 01:33:36,111
he basically did
everything Picasso
1393
01:33:36,113 --> 01:33:40,148
did in about 50 years less time,
1394
01:33:40,150 --> 01:33:42,217
and I just think that
if you got any kind of
1395
01:33:42,219 --> 01:33:46,154
love for music and
regard for the craft,
1396
01:33:46,156 --> 01:33:48,156
you hear three or
four notes and say,
1397
01:33:48,158 --> 01:33:51,293
this man owns this horn,
1398
01:33:51,295 --> 01:33:52,928
owns this music,
1399
01:33:52,930 --> 01:33:54,730
and at least when he's playing,
1400
01:33:54,732 --> 01:33:56,765
is the master of his soul.
1401
01:33:58,168 --> 01:33:59,368
His spirit is still
1402
01:33:59,370 --> 01:34:00,936
very much alive,
1403
01:34:00,938 --> 01:34:03,505
and he's saying,
"I'm gonna use music
1404
01:34:03,507 --> 01:34:06,241
"to try to convince you to grasp
1405
01:34:06,243 --> 01:34:09,611
"in time a love
supreme so that you
1406
01:34:09,613 --> 01:34:12,481
"don't remain just a
prisoner of time.
1407
01:34:12,483 --> 01:34:13,982
"You will be a maker,
1408
01:34:13,984 --> 01:34:16,485
a creator of a better world."
1409
01:34:16,487 --> 01:34:19,554
That is a Coltrane
version of what
1410
01:34:19,556 --> 01:34:21,423
he learned in Sunday school,
1411
01:34:21,425 --> 01:34:23,258
what he was taught,
that the kingdom
1412
01:34:23,260 --> 01:34:24,960
of God is within you,
1413
01:34:24,962 --> 01:34:27,195
and everywhere you go,
1414
01:34:27,197 --> 01:34:29,698
you ought to leave a
little heaven behind,
1415
01:34:29,700 --> 01:34:32,701
and he left some heaven behind.
1416
01:34:34,405 --> 01:34:37,706
To be a musician is,
1417
01:34:37,708 --> 01:34:39,341
it's really something.
1418
01:34:39,343 --> 01:34:42,511
It goes very, very deep.
1419
01:34:42,513 --> 01:34:45,647
My music is the
spiritual expression
1420
01:34:45,649 --> 01:34:47,249
of what I am.
1421
01:34:47,251 --> 01:34:51,520
My faith, my
knowledge, my being.
1422
01:34:51,522 --> 01:34:54,189
I know that there
are bad forces.
1423
01:34:54,191 --> 01:34:55,524
I know that there
are forces out here
1424
01:34:55,526 --> 01:34:57,659
that bring suffering to others
1425
01:34:57,661 --> 01:34:59,728
and misery to the world,
1426
01:34:59,730 --> 01:35:02,764
but I want to be the
opposite force.
1427
01:35:02,766 --> 01:35:10,172
I want to be the force
which is truly for good.
100315