THE BLACKENED BLUES, One Poem at a Time: John Coltrane’s Cancer
Sean MurphyI’m happy to announce that my first poetry collection, The Blackened Blues, is available wherever you buy books (yes, *wherever*, so you don’t have to put more money in Rocket Man’s…
The (Really) Real McCoy
An absolute giant, musical genius, and the rarest of human beings has departed from a planet that could scarcely contain him. McCoy Tyner is, without question, one of the most…
John Coltrane at 90
For those whose definition of genius is either too encompassing or excessively narrow, John Coltrane poses no problems: there isn’t anyone who knows anything about music (in general) and jazz…
O’Connor and Coltrane: Saints of American Art
i. I never, until this year, made the explicit connection between John Coltrane and Flannery O’Connor. Why should I have? One was an introverted white woman, a southern writer who…
No One Has Ever Done Anything as Well as John Coltrane Played the Saxophone
9/23/14: Today would have been the great one's 88th birthday. Respect. *** 5/1/2010: The question isn’t, really, about who might be interested in this documentary; it is about who might…
O’Connor and Coltrane: Two Saints of American Art
I never, until this week, made the explicit connection between John Coltrane and Flannery O'Connor. And why should I have? One was an introverted white woman, a southern writer who…
No One Has Ever Done Anything as Well as John Coltrane Played the Saxophone (Revisited)
The question isn’t, really, about who might be interested in this documentary; it is about who might not be. For fans who already know everything, or those indifferent to jazz…
Interpolating A Poem: As Opposed To Prayer*
I. Nervous and unnerved this evening, alone: Searching for solace, something not unlike prayer, A hope that the past will not repeat itself, Progress: a preemptive strike, this procedure (They…
No One Has Ever Done Anything as Well as John Coltrane Played the Saxophone
The question isn’t, really, about who might be interested in this documentary; it is about who might not be. For fans who already know everything, or those indifferent to jazz…
Reflections on John Coltrane’s A LOVE SUPREME
Spring ‘06(from the liner notes of the 2003 reissue of A Love Supreme): “Boosted by a crescendo of piano chords, Coltrane steps in at full throttle. In a relatively small…