'A Love Supreme: The Story of John Coltrane's Signature Album' (2002)

In the last post, we considered the merits of Russell Martin's Picasso's War: The Destruction of Guernica, and the Masterpiece That Changed the World. New York: Dutton, 2002.  In this one, let's consider the similarly structured A Love Supreme: The Story of John Coltrane's Signature Album by Ashley Kahn (New York: Viking, 2002). 

Kahn's study provides the backstory, big and little, of A Love Supreme (1965) -- John Coltrane's life, the jazz scene specifically and the greater scene in general; how the album came to be recorded on December 9, 1964 with experimental follow-up on the next night; its release and immediate impact; Coltrane's career until his death in 1967; and the album's enduring, long-term impact, including re-release in CD format and beyond. A wonderful read.

Over the years, I've acquired multiple copies of A Love Supreme. Here, images of the verso of two of my CD copies.

From Coltrane's liner notes, quoted on page 123: '"Words, sounds, speech, men, memory, thoughts, fears and emotions -- time -- all related . . . all made from one."'

The impact of Trane and A Love Supreme is far-reaching, especially among musicians, writers and other artists. 

Carlos Santana: '"The first time I heard A Love Supreme, it really was an assault. It could've been from Mars as far as I was concerned, or another galaxy . . . It was like trying to tell a monkey about spirituality or computers, you know . . .'" (page xviii). 

Ravi Shankar: "'I have been so moved by this record . . . It's beautiful . . .'" (page xxiii).

Patti Smith in high school: "'. . . Coltrane spoke to my soul and my developing intellect.'" (page 73).

Branford Marsalis: "'You know Led Zeppelin's 'Whole Lotta Love?' . . . That's the bass line in the first section of A Love Supreme . . .'" (page 99)

Rick James: "'Most of the white boys I was hanging out with in Toronto in 1965 were down with Coltrane . . . Joni Mitchell, Gordon Lightfoot, Neil Young. That's one of the good things about the musical experience there . . . everybody had A Love Supreme.'" (page 160).

Patti Smith (again): "'I can't say why it's so popular, but perhaps it fulfills people's need for prayer . . . A Love Supreme has a feeling of moral authority in the most humble and spiritual way.'" (page 212).  

"Four decades on, A Love Supreme continues to be felt and to matter . . . [i]n sound, spirit, and name, its arc of influence and inspiration remains unbroken and, like the transitory elements that helped create it, poignantly unrepeatable." (page 213).

An added bonus for me is that A Love Supreme was recorded on December 9 -- my birthday!

Today's Rune: Initiation.