Alice Coltrane

One of my favorite musicians and biggest influences on my own music is Alice Coltrane.
Back in my college days I was deeply devoted to scouring used record stores for copies of her Impulse! and Warner Bros. recordings. Like most things, these recordings, including her devotional music cassettes, are now easily obtainable on the internet either on CD or LP or from less legal sources. 

However, back in college there were only a few people I knew that were into Alice Coltrane's music, and even fewer that were as fanatical about it as I was. One such devotee was Franya Berkman, a graduate student in the music department.

Franya was not just a "fan" of Alice Coltrane. Alice was the focus of Franya's PhD dissertation. From that point, probably around 2000, I have been waiting for her to transform those years of work into a book about this unique musician.

Well, after about a decade, here it is.

Monument Eternal:  The Music of Alice Coltrane

I haven't read it yet, but I received it in the mail today and have started.  Twenty pages in and I am already enthralled by what lies ahead in exploring her unique spiritual, musical, and cultural creations.


Here's a recording of me taking Alice's tune "Journey in Satchidananda" for a quick unrehearsed spin with Peter Sax on bass and Greg Tuzzolo on drumset back in 2006.

  Journey in Satchidananda (Alice Coltrane) by akgmusic