THIS Rhett Butler Will Never Die

As usual, I'm a bit of a late bloomer and didn't start to listen closely to John Coltrane until about 15 years ago. His mystical music takes me places that I used to only get through chanting. If you are unfamiliar with him, check out some of the videos posted on my blog. If you are familiar with him, listen to him today and offer thanks for the vision he shared with us. John William Coltrane ( September 23 , 1926 – July 17 , 1967 ), nicknamed Trane , was an American jazz saxophonist and composer . Although recordings of his work from as early as 1946 exist, Coltrane's recording career did not begin in earnest until 1955. From 1957 onward he recorded and produced dozens of albums, many of them not released until years after his death. He achieved extraordinary popularity, while also responding to a religious awakening that has made him spiritually inspiring to others. Coltrane has been credited with reshaping modern jazz and being the predominant influence on success...

I only discovered this amazing musician's music a few years ago and have delighted in learning more and more about his very strange life and ways. He spent a lot of time in Oakland and Berkeley, which makes total sense. Anyway, I may beef up this posting with various sundry articles and links during the day. If you get a chance, read more about him. Sun Ra (Born Herman Poole Blount ; legal name Le Sony'r Ra [1] ; born May 22 , 1914 in Birmingham, Alabama , died May 30 , 1993 in Birmingham, Alabama ) was an innovative jazz composer , bandleader , piano and synthesizer player, poet and philosopher who came to be known as much for his "cosmic philosophy " as for his musical compositions and performances. He abandoned his birth name and took on the name and persona of Sun Ra ( Ra being the ancient Egyptian god of the Sun ). Claiming that he was of the " Angel Race " and not from Earth , but from Saturn , Ra developed a complicated persona of "cos...