A Must-Watch Film: "Chasing Trane: The John Coltrane Documentary"

Here is a great documentary on an enigmatic man that has massively influenced the world of jazz during his lifetime but more so after his death in 1967. He was truly a giant in bebop, hard-bop and free jazz in his short-lived life (he was only 40 when he passed away).

I had the chance to watch the documentary almost 2 weeks ago and since then I have been trying to gather some ideas on Coltrane, especially on his musical, political but mostly philosophical/spiritual views. Even though I had read a fair amount of books on John Coltrane, one can always discover many new things about him, especially on his political and spiritual stance. So expect a post on the great Trane when I am ready...

Back to the documentary; written and directed by talented John Scheinfeld (you might remember him from "The U.S. vs. John Lennon" film  in 2006). He returns with another great musical figure 10 years later. The film has been made with the full co-operation and participation of Coltrane's family as well as his producers and records companies. Be ready for some sentimental stories...

Throughout the film, you will see a lot of celebrities like Sonny Rollins, Ravi Coltrane (his son), Jimmy Heath, Benny Golson, Wynton Marsalis, Carlos Santana (in my opinion one of the best insights came from him), Wayne Shorter, Kamasi Washington and Bill Clinton (yes the ex-president and a good saxophonist), sharing their feelings about him. You can also hear Denzel Washington speak as Coltrane, which I believe is an excellent choice. (Here's a link how the director found him as Coltrane's voice)

The director has done a great job in portraying Coltrane and he has managed to tell the legend's personal and musical story with a good balance. One can perfectly picture him as a man and as an artist, or can well dig down his authentic political attitude and spirituality. The use of old original footage and pictures along with his musician friends' and family's comments impressed me. One amazing detail is that former US president Bill Clinton's deep knowledge about Coltrane (we miss such politicians...). At one point of the film, Sonny Rollins says that in order to understand and feel Coltrane's music, you have to experience it. I guess that is true for all great artists.

Official Trailer

One thing that has always affected me about Coltrane is that his comeback after going cold turkey from drugs and emerging as a new man, more political in his own way (mostly with music, less with words) and spiritual in his creative side. This part of his life has really been well reflected in the documentary, especially his visit to War Memorial in Nagasaki, Japan.

So briefly, the documentary is not another jazz movie. It reflects well the Coltrane spirit, his struggles against racism during his younger years (Dr. Cornel West defines the black music as a response to the traumas of the African-American society), his musical development, especially his interactions with Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie and Thelonious Monk, his tough drug addicted years and finally his enlightenment (I don't like this word because one can never be John Coltrane without a form of enlightenment, so let's say he was always enlightened but after quitting drugs he was enlightened to the next level).

"Alabama" composed by Coltrane in response to the church bombing in Birmingham Alabama that killed four African-American girls. It was inspired by the inflection and rhythm of a speech by Martin Luther King.

Watch it, if you like the great John Coltrane...
Watch it, if you want to know Trane better...
Watch it, if you want to witness what a great artist is.

Watch it, I promise, it will make you feel a lot better and even will make you think that there is still hope somewhere...