1926-1967
Jazz Saxophonist

A Link between Styles.

The career of John Coltrane, one of the most influential jazz saxophonists of the 1960s and after, bridges the mature bebop of the 1950s and the experimental developments of the late 1960s.

Sheets of Sound.

Coltrane played with bebop masters Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, and Thelonious Monk during the 1950s before starting his own quartet in 1960. Composed of Coltrane, pianist McCoy Tyner, bassist Jimmy Garrison, and drummer Elvin Jones, the group allowed Coltrane to expand on the melodic and harmonic possibilities of jazz. Coltrane's music from this period, usually described as consisting of "sheets of sound," was both structurally complex and emotionally rich, including long improvisations, unorthodox chords, and elements of Eastern music. The effect was popular with many jazz fans, particularly on Coltrane's famous version of "My Favorite Things" (1961).

Innovations Cut Short.

In 1966, impressed with Ornette Coleman's experiments...