Coltrane's Giant Steps

Coltrane had always had a gift for music and he would constantly think of what was next to come in jazz. During Coltrane’s time working with Gillespie, he worked on what he called “sheets of sound” which is when he would try to play every note in every chord. This was tremendously hard to do and he challenged not only himself to do it, but members of his band as well. This is evident in one of his recordings called, “Giant Steps” (Jazzman). This is a sixteen-bar composition that Coltrane wrote himself and had practiced many times before the actual recording day. While Coltrane had time to practice this hard technique in “Giant Steps” his bandmates did not see the notes of the song until the day of the recording session. This was a bad decision

This was Coltrane’s biggest selling albums and he earned two Grammy nominations due to its success. “A Love Supreme” was released in 1964 and is made up of four phases: “Acknowledgement,” “Resolution,” “Pursuance,” and “Psalms” (Azevedo). Coltrane’s Classical Quartet are featured on this record. This record includes modal harmony, chanting, as well as a deeply spiritual feel to it. While listening to the record I felt that it had a blues feel due to its religious aspect. There were three types of songs that contributed to the blues which were: field holler, work songs, and religious songs. Religious songs provided a positive outlook on life for slaves after slavery. the reason why I make this connection is because when “A Love Supreme” came out it was during the civil rights movement. The civil rights movement was in full swing and their main goal was to reach a sense of unity as well as citizen rights. They also wanted to stop racism, segregation, and discrimination against people of color. "During the year 1957," Coltrane wrote, I experienced by the grace of God, a spiritual awakening which

At this time, in gratitude, I humbly asked to be given the means and privilege to make others happy through music. I feel that this has been granted through his grace. ALL PRAISE TO GOD” (Nevader 26). This quote was taken from an article written in 1982 titled, "John Coltrane: Music and Metaphysics." In it Coltrane explains how his spiritual awakening was something that allowed him to create music that would have a positive impact on the lives of his listeners. I strongly believe that John Coltrane did in fact have a major impact on the lives of many of his listeners, he overcame his addiction and became a man of God and in his appreciation of God’s miracle he created “A Love Supreme” and helped many during a time where faith was greatly needed. The fact that