I'm back! It was a very lovely vacation - I can say now that we were on a cruise to Bermuda, thanks to the generosity of my parents, and it was exactly what the doctor ordered. I've been feeling kind of run-down and burned out in recent weeks, so this did me a world of good. It was my fourth time on that beautiful island, but we've already picked out one or two new things to do if there's another visit in our future.
I hadn't decided what my topic would be when I returned to the blog, but I sort of had the decision made for me thanks to a new addition to the list of guest photographers. Kevin's brother Darren sent me a photo of a marker I didn't have in Philadelphia. (I considered saving it until September, for the 100th birthday of the gentleman in question, but knowing me I'd forget.) My prior knowledge of John Coltrane was extremely limited; it mostly stemmed from having seen the movie Mr. Holland's Opus in my late teens, in which the title character names his son Coltrane after the musician. While researching this quest, though, I learned a lot of things, some of which surprised me. For one, this is the first time I'm writing about a canonized saint, although it won't be the last.
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| The marker stands at the former Coltrane residence, 1125 North 33rd Street. Image courtesy of Darren Klotz. |
Back in Philadelphia, John resumed studying and playing his music. According to some who knew him then, he was so dedicated to mastering his craft that he would sometimes fall asleep with the instrument still in his mouth. He gradually shifted from alto sax to tenor sax, and played with and was influenced by a number of well-known jazz musicians including Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, and Eddie Vinson. Later, in the 1950s, he added Miles Davis and Thelonious Monk to this list. Unfortunately, also during this time, Trane became addicted to heroin, which caused one of the groups with whom he played to disband. He had also struggled with alcoholism since 1948. Astonishingly, however, in 1957 he had a religious experience which he later described as "a spiritual awakening which was to lead me to a richer, fuller, more productive life." Not only did this lead him to overcome both of his addictions, but his music changed. It became his form of prayer. He had been raised in a religious family, with both of his grandfathers having been ministers, and now he became deeply spiritual.
In private life, Trane married for the first time in 1955. Juanita "Naima" Grubbs was a Muslim convert, and she also had an impact on his spiritual beliefs. Trane adopted her five-year-old daughter from a previous relationship, changing little Antonia Anderson's name to Syeeda Coltrane. He wrote "Naima," a love ballad for his first wife, which he always said was his favorite composition and remains one of his best-known. "Syeeda's Song Flute" was inspired by and named for their daughter, and is considered one of his most cheerful pieces. For the first few years of their marriage, the couple lived together in the house in Philadelphia where the marker is positioned, in the historic neighborhood known as Strawberry Mansion; the house, known as the John Coltrane House, has since been designated a national historic landmark. They eventually separated in 1963, and officially divorced a couple of years later. However, they remained close friends for the rest of his life.
Trane's second wife was Alice McLeod, a fellow jazz musician whom he met after his separation from Naima. Like Naima, Alice had a daughter from a previous relationship, Michelle, whom Trane adopted, and the couple went on to also have three sons together - John Jr., Ravi (named for the Indian sitar player Ravi Shankar), and Oranyan. All three sons and daughter Michelle have pursued music in their own right, although John Jr.'s promising career never took off; he was tragically killed in a car accident when he was 18. Syeeda is stated to be a private individual, so it's not clear what she's doing these days.
Trane's own discography is extensive, both in solo releases and those done with other jazz legends. His debut solo LP, Coltrane, was the first of four albums released through Prestige and Blue Note Records in 1957 and 1958. In 1960 and 1961 he released four more with Atlantic Records, and the other seventeen were produced by Impulse! Records. A number of his recording sessions have also been released. His work is considered exceptionally groundbreaking, as he developed new sounds and styles of jazz. His work included Indian, Arabic, and African influences, combining them with classical melodies and jazz standards.
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| Public domain image of John Coltrane, date unknown, courtesy of WikiCommons. |
Trane only received two awards for his music during his lifetime. In 1961 he was given an Edison Award, a Dutch honor for outstanding musical achievements, for his album Giant Steps. In 1965, he was inducted into the DownBeat Jazz Hall of Fame. However, he has been given many posthumous honors, including a Pulitzer Prize, a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and a place in the list of 100 Greatest African-Americans. But easily his most unusual honor has to be his veneration as a saint. Initially, he was actually worshipped as God incarnate by a congregation called the Yardbird Temple, but once they became affiliated with the African Orthodox Church, he was instead made a saint. St. John Coltrane African Orthodox Church in San Francisco uses his music and lyrics in their liturgy. His feast day is observed on December 8th and he is considered the patron of all artists. Curiously, Trane seems to have almost predicted that this would happen. In 1966, the year before he died, a Japanese interviewer asked him what he wanted to be five years from then, and Trane replied, "A saint."
It took a little longer than that, but he got there.
Except where indicated, all writing and photography on this blog is the intellectual property of Laura Klotz. This blog is written with permission of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. I am not employed by the PHMC. All rights reserved.
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