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John Coltrane was Born.
John Coltrane was born in Hamlet North Carolina to two parents, John R. Coltrane and Alice B. Coltrane. (All Music) -
John Coltrane Joined the Navy.
John Coltrane was joined the U.S. Navy and was stationed on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. While a member of the Navy, he played clarinet and alto saxophone at small gigs he took part in during downtime. (Biography in Context)
Image source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:John_Coltrane_Naval_Reserve_Enlistment,_1943.jpg -
Coltrane's First Recording.
Coltrane recorded a small collection of well-known jazz standards with several of his friends from the navy. (Biography in context) -
Coltrane Developed a Heroin Addiction.
Sometime around the early 50's, Coltrane began to engage in recreational heroin use. This would lead to him losing many gigs and jobs and would be partially the cause of his life-ending liver cancer. (All Music) -
Coltrane Joined the Miles Davis Quintet.
Coltrane become the tenor player for the Miles Davis quintet after Sonny Rollins left. At the time, Davis was one of the biggest names in jazz and this opportunity would greatly boost Coltrane's notoriety. In 1957, Coltrane would be fired Due to his heroin habit. (Biography in context)
Image source: https://musicaficionado.blog/2018/03/20/the-miles-davis-quintet-recordings-1955-1956/ -
John Coltrane's First Marriage.
John Coltrane Married Naima Grubbs. He would later divorce her in 1966. (Biography in Context)
Image source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2_FXIJkOxQ -
John Coltrane Released His First Album.
The album "Two Tenors" was Coltrane's first project in which he played the role of band leader. The Album featured both Coltrane and famed hard-bop saxophonist Hank Mobley on Tenor Sax. (All Music)
Image source: https://www.amazon.com/Tenors-John-Hank-Mobley-Coltrane/dp/B00TKGOK60 -
"Kind of Blue" was Released.
After temporarily kicking his heroin habit, Coltrane rejoined with The Miles Davis quintet, now a sextet, and recorded several classic albums including the most critically acclaimed jazz album of all time: "Kind of Blue". (Biography in context)
Image source: https://www.amazon.com/Flamenco-Sketches/dp/B003GITGLW -
"Giant Steps" was released.
Considered by many to be Coltrane's second best album, this collection of wicked fast tunes with complicated and obtuse chord progression still acts as a point of comparison to many young jazz musicians today. (All Music)
Image source: https://treacherousfriends.blog/2018/01/27/john-coltrane-giant-steps/ -
"My Favorite Things" was Released.
One of Coltrane's most commercially successful albums, not surprising seeing as how the title track was a jazz reinterpretation of a popular song from "The Sound of Music". The record saw the debut of Coltrane playing soprano sax as opposed to tenor sax. (All Music)
Image source: https://jazzyoutoo.wordpress.com/2014/11/05/my-favorite-things-john-coltrane/john-coltrane-my-favorite-things/ -
"A Love Supreme" was Released.
Often touted as one of the best jazz albums of all time, this landmark recording from the John Coltrane quartet acts as a spiritual and emotional offering to a higher power. (All Music)
Image source: http://catalog.1234gorecords.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=67&products_id=11118 -
Quote 1
“I know that there are bad forces, forces that bring suffering to others and misery to the world. I want to be the opposite force. I want to be the force which is truly for good.” (Johncoltrane.com) -
Quote 2
“There is never any end…there are always new sounds to imagine, new feelings to get at. And always there is the need to keep purifying these feelings and sounds so that we can really see what we've discovered in its pure state. So that we can see more and more clearly what we are . . . we have to keep on cleaning the mirror.” (Johncoltrane.com) -
John Coltrane's Second Marriage.
John Coltrane married pianist and harpist Alice McCleod. They would remain married for the rest of John's life and have two children, Ravi Coltrane and John Coltrane Jr. (Biography in Context)
Image source: https://www.npr.org/2018/02/06/582178492/meditating-on-the-healing-power-of-alice-coltranes-journey-in-satchidananda -
John Coltrane Died.
John Coltrane Died in Huntington New York due to liver cancer at the age of 40 (Johncoltrane.com) -
The St. John Coltrane African Orthodox Church was Created.
This branch of the African Orthodox Church located in San Francisco worships Coltrane as a saint. This includes services in which pastors and bishops play music of and in the style of Coltrane on their saxes. (BBC Documentary)
Image source: http://www.openculture.com/2016/11/the-church-of-saint-john-coltrane-a-documentary.html
