Coltrane The Story of a Sound

Ben Ratliff

ISBN 10: 0374126062 / ISBN 13: 9780374126063

Published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York, NY, 2007

About this Item

250 pages; Foxing to the exterior edge of pages. Highlighting throughout the book but light. Good overall condition otherwise. No other noteworthy defects. No markings.; - Your satisfaction is our priority. We offer free returns and respond promptly to all inquiries. Your item will be carefully cushioned in bubble wrap and securely boxed. All orders ship on the same or next business day. Buy with confidence.

Seller Inventory # HVD-40591-A-0

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Coltrane The Story of a Sound
• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York, NY
• Publication Date: 2007
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0374126062
• ISBN 13: 9780374126063
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: First Edition; First Printing.
• Condition: Good
• Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good

About this title

Synopsis

A major work about the great saxophonist—and about the state of jazz.

What was the essence of John Coltrane’s achievement that makes him so prized forty years after his death? What was it about his improvising, his bands, his compositions, his place within his era of jazz that left so many musicians and listeners so powerfully drawn to him? What would a John Coltrane look like now—or are we looking for the wrong signs?

The acclaimed jazz writer Ben Ratliff addresses these questions in Coltrane. First Ratliff tells the story of Coltrane’s development, from his first recordings as a no-name navy bandsman to his last recordings as a near-saint, paying special attention to the last ten years of his life, which contained a remarkable series of breakthroughs in a nearly religious search for deeper expression.

In the book’s second half, Ratliff traces another history: that of Coltrane’s influence and legacy. This story begins in the mid-’50s and considers the reactions of musicians, critics, and others who paid attention, asking: Why does Coltrane signify so heavily in the basic identity of jazz?

Placing jazz among other art forms and American social history, and placing Coltrane not just among jazz musicians but among the greatest American artists, Ratliff tries to look for the sources of power in Coltrane’s music—not just in matters of technique, composition, and musical concepts, but in the deeper frequencies of Coltrane’s sound.

About the Author

Ben Ratliff has been a jazz critic at The New York Times since 1996. He lives in Manhattan with his wife and their two sons. His New York Times Essential Library: Jazz was published in 2002.