John Coltrane

Listen to John Coltrane playing ballads & fall under a spell like no other. There was no one quite like him, although com temporaries like Charlie Parker & Sonny Rollins also elevated the saxophone to similar, but differing new levels.

Coltrane played various styles & forms, within jazz. He died tragically young at age 40. He is closely associated with Miles Davis (trumpet) & others of the so-called Bebop movement.


You don't have to "understand" his original compositions & improvisations to "get him". The recording "A Love Supreme" is considered a masterpiece - but, give a listen to his unbelievable rendition of "My Favorite Things".

There is a recent book out about him....

Coltrane: The Story of a Sound (Paperback)
Ben Ratliff (Author)


Here is an excerpt from Wikpedia:


John William "Trane" Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967[1]) was an American jazz saxophonist and composer.

Working in the bebop and hard bop idioms early in his career, Coltrane helped pioneer the use of modes in jazz and later was at the forefront of free jazz. He was prolific, making about fifty recordings as a leader during his recording career, and appeared as a sideman on many other albums, notably with trumpeter Miles Davis and pianist Thelonious Monk. As his career progressed, Coltrane's music took on an increasingly spiritual dimension.

He influenced innumerable musicians, and remains one of the most significant tenor saxophonists in jazz history.