Serpentine. I’m basing my analysis on Harwell’s article because, even though Coltrane probably saw the Times, it did not have as many quotes from Dr. King. singing songs about the southland. Third, it seems that if and when it was broadcast, it was many years later, most likely, not even during Dr. King’s all-too-short lifetime, but excerpted in the many radio and film documentaries that came later. Alabama (John Coltrane song) "Alabama" is a composition written by John Coltrane that appears on his album Live at Birdland (1963). Then again, he only had these isolated quotes, not the full text of the speech, so it was up to him to make them into something coherent. The video below shows the John Coltrane Quartet playing “Alabama.” But Coltrane’s message comes through loud and clear. Check my website for updates on my research, performing and recording. As I’ve already noted, that’s the way John was. John Coltrane - tenor sax McCoy Tyner - piano Jimmy Garrison - bass Elvin Jones - drums "Alabama" is a tribute to four children killed in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing, an attack at a Birmingham, Alabama church by white supremecists on September 15, 1963. In fact, we might call these “Pieces with Hidden Texts.”, When our late friend Delorme asked John about poems, his full response was, “…certain pieces on the album Crescent are also poems, like ‘Wise One,’ ‘Lonnie’s Lament,’ ‘The Drum Thing.’”. John Coltrane composed Alabama as a reflection on Dr Martin Luther King's eulogy for four little African-American girls murdered by the KKK in Birmingham Alabama on Sep 15,1963. This is the longest that I ever wrote but certain pieces on the album Crescent are also poems… I sometimes proceed in this manner because it’s a good approach to musical composition.”. I’m not yet certain how he rearranged the words. However, on the third piece, I distinctly hear Coltrane say on his saxophone “The drum thing” at the end of the opening (2:07) and closing (7:08). McCoy Tyner and John Coltrane at New Jersey's Van Gelder studios in 1963. Credit Joe Alper / Joe Alper Photo Collection LLC, Chuck Stewart / Courtesy of the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History, A Deep Dive into John Coltrane's 'A Love Supreme' by His Biographer, Lewis Porter (Pt. 0:05: God still has a way (of) bringing good (longer note for “good”) out of evil — they did not die in vain. Then the sound of John Coltrane’s saxophone writhes on top: mournful, melismatic, menacing. In this era when it has been necessary to affirm that Black Lives Matter, John Coltrane’s powerful piece “Alabama” feels more relevant and urgent than ever. where the skies are so blue sweet home alabama It seems to me that, unlike “Psalm,” he might be embellishing some words with extra notes. It winds its way toward a theme but always stops just short, repeatedly approaching something like coherence only to turn away at the last moment. It was written in response to the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing on September 15, 1963, an attack by the Ku Klux Klan in Birmingham, Alabama that killed four girls. now watergate does not bother me big wheels keep on turning But I don’t think that’s significant. (We know what he said because we have his written text.) 4.9 out of 5 stars 38. I should add, in response to some questions, that I had heard the piece many times before that day in 1978 when I suddenly understood the last movement and decided to write about it. It might seem that instrumental music, lacking words, would not be the most effective medium for a statement of outrage. All of this should not be a surprise. It was written in response to the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing on September 15, 1963, an attack by the Ku Klux Klan in Birmingham, Alabama that killed four African-American girls. This is a section of Steve Rowland's radio documentary "Tell Me How Long Trane's Been Gone". and i think its a sin, yes a southern man don't need him around anyhow carry me home to see my kin The answer is simple: by listening! Watch the video for Alabama from John Coltrane's Ken Burns Jazz for free, and see the artwork, lyrics and similar artists. And the style of the piece absolutely does sound like a recitation. Please understand, this could mean nothing, but I think it’s worth considering. Thanks to youtube, however, you can still hear him perform. I’m certain that Coltrane is chanting a text here, even though I haven’t fully figured it out yet. lord, i'm coming home to you John Coltrane. If it’s a vague impression, why not fool around with it, play whatever you feel like? What do we know about its genesis, and why is there this pervasive opinion that it has a hidden text? The critic Francis Davis spoke with Tyner and Jones and learned that Coltrane did not tell them the inspiration for the piece, or even its name, when they recorded it in the studio on Nov. 18, 1963. does your conscience bother you John Coltrane, photographed in his backyard in Queens, New York in 1963. The reporters wrote down what they heard: in those days, taking quick notes, sometimes using the “shorthand” system, was required. This concludes my Deep Dive series at WBGO, as I turn my focus to shorter, more informal pieces that I’ll post elsewhere online. Records. singing songs about the southland big wheels keep on turning. 0:30: We must not despair (extra notes on “despair”), we must not become bitter. sweet home alabama That is not at all what is going on in “Psalm.”, Pieces Inspired by Words: The late French journalist Michel Delorme, having seen Coltrane’s poem in the liner notes to A Love Supreme, asked, “Do you often write poems?” Coltrane replied (in my translation): “From time to time; I try. For example, the Times wrote, “Good still has a way of growing out of evil,” whereas Harwell wrote, “God still has a way of bringing good out of evil.” But what Dr. King actually said, according to his typescript, is: “God still has a way of wringing good out of evil.”. In fact, he never even told anyone that the piece was a response to the sick and brutal Birmingham bombing of Sept. 15, though it seems obvious — why else would a piece be named “Alabama” so close to that heinous and criminal event? ,qq 40884815, Download John Coltrane - Alabama free mp3, a southern man don't need him around anyhow, and they've been known to pick a song or two, LOCOMOTION - ENHANCED CD VERSION;1996 DIGITAL REMASTER, MY FAVORITE THINGS (LIVE AT THE HALF NOTE '63), STORM (EUROVISION 2019 - ESTONIA / KARAOKE VERSION), ONLY TO BE WITH YOU (LIVE AT HARMONIE BONN, 20.10.2005). Notice that you can see Alice Coltrane sitting in a chair on the left side of the screen.). But Coltrane moved around so much that he could easily have seen one of the hundreds of papers that carried Harwell’s piece. Coltrane is a saxophonist best known for writing and recording the song, "Alabama" which spoke to people's hearts following a devastating event sparked by racism. The lyrical, wide ranging melody of “Wise One,” to choose one example, is nothing like the chanting back and forth on a few notes found in “Psalm,” and he plays it differently the second time (starting at 1:37). The John Coltrane Quartet’s “Alabama” is a strange song, incongruous with the rest of the album on which it appears. The poem had to be personal to him, to be truly one with the music he was writing — not from someone else’s experience. 3), A Deep Dive into John Coltrane's 'A Love Supreme' by His Biographer Lewis Porter (Pt. Or did he simply always buy travel insurance — it was, and still is, an option on every flight — making it a coincidence that the only one we have a record of is this one? On those, it seems that Coltrane used his poems as inspiration, because these are not “readings” of poems, so I would put them in the middle category. Among them is "Alabama", a tribute to four children killed in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing, an attack at a Birmingham, Alabama church by white supremacists. Although originally issued on the long player Live At Birdland (1963), “Alabama” is one of two sides (the other being “Your Lady”) from a mid-November, 1963 studio session. $1.29. Coltrane was inspired by Martin Luther King’s speech, delivered in the church sanctuary three days after the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing, and patterned his saxophone playing on it. here i come alabama And, on a later album, “Attaining” is perhaps the closest to “Psalm” of any piece I know. My book John Coltrane: His Life and Music begins with A Love Supreme. But please don’t waste your time trying to fit existing poems to this music. (Yes, in the old days people often threw out the pieces of tape that they cut out during editing; even engineers editing jazz albums were known to do that.). "Alabama" is a song written by John Coltrane that appears on his album Live at Birdland. The latter appeared in many papers, but I chose to reproduce the one from High Point, N.C., the city where Coltrane grew up; his family moved there when he was an infant. lordy Second, with pieces in this middle area — inspired by words, but not chanting them one syllable at a time— there are literally thousands of texts that might seem to vaguely fit. This is followed by the improvisation, marked by Garrison’s walking bass. sweet home alabama Stay healthy and safe! John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. lord, i'm coming home to you Without knowing the poem that Coltrane intended, one cannot possibly guess at the text. Song information for Alabama - John Coltrane on AllMusic. well, i heard ole neil put her down And of course, it’s possible that John added some words of his own, or slightly reworded things. 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