Synopsis
Chasing Trane (2017) — watch online on iFILM — is John Scheinfeld's documentary about John Coltrane (1926–1967), the saxophonist who spent the last decade of his life dismantling what jazz was supposed to sound like.
From his upbringing in Hamlet, North Carolina, through his years alongside Miles Davis and into the records that still divide and fascinate — Giant Steps in 1959, A Love Supreme in 1964, the late free-session recordings — the film draws on first-hand accounts from McCoy Tyner, Wayne Shorter, Sonny Rollins and Carlos Santana. Bill Clinton also appears on camera; Denzel Washington narrates. Coltrane died at forty, leaving a catalogue musicians are still working through.
Scheinfeld resists reducing the man to a myth. Several voices disagree with each other, and the film is better for it. A solid entry point for anyone new to the name, and a rewarding one for anyone who already owns the records. Stream Chasing Trane online on iFILM.
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