John Coltrane's Birthday

Today is the 88th anniversary of the birth of John William Coltrane in Hamlet, NC. He died of liver cancer on July 17, 1967 at age 40, long before his work was finished. Resonance Records has chosen today to release a long-awaited two-CD recording, Offering: Live at Temple University. The concert was recorded on November 11, 1966, eight months before his death.

A 45-min interview with John Coltrane has recently been restored and made available. It was conducted by a fan, August Blume, in his home on June 15, 1958, prior to a performance of the Miles Davis Quintet in Washington, DC.  The first 20 min or so is about religion and philosophy. The remainder concerns musicians he admires, with special emphasis on Monk.

Sean O'Connell has written a blog entry (with links) entitled "Ten John Coltrane Tracks For People Who Don't Know Anything About John Coltrane." You may find it interesting even if you do know something about him. Here's a favorite track of mine that O'Connell missed. "Blue Train" is from 1957. The other musicians are Lee Morgan, trumpet; Curtis Fuller, trombone; Kenny Drew, piano; Paul Chambers, bass; and Philly Joe Jones, drums.

Today is a big day for the arrival of musicians. Ray Charles was born on September 23, 1930, four years after John Coltrane.

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CD Review:  John Coltrane Quartet, Afro-Blue Impressions

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Video of the Week #38 (Miles Davis)