If you asked someone to make you a single-disc mixtape of legendary jazz saxophonist
John Coltrane's most important recordings, focused on both his creative innovations and abiding spirituality, you'd probably get something akin to the soundtrack to the 2017's
Chasing Trane: The John Coltrane Documentary. Directed by acclaimed documentarian John Scheinfeld (Who Is Harry Nilsson…?, The U.S. vs. John Lennon),
Chasing Trane attempts to encompass
Coltrane's life and entire career, from his early days as a freelance bebop musician in Philadelphia to his transformation into a deeply spiritual, avant-garde-influenced jazz giant. Not surprisingly, the soundtrack feels thoughtfully curated, and while not exhaustive, offers a succinct portrait of the saxophonist. Rather than putting tracks in chronological order, here we get a more narrative structure with
Coltrane's most indelible moments presented in a timely and emotionally gratifying manner. Fittingly, Scheinfeld and producer Harry Weinger kick things off dramatically with what is arguably
Coltrane's most important recording, 1965's landmark "A Love Supreme, Pt. 1: Acknowledgment" off
A Love Supreme. From there, the set moves backward to his propulsively swinging rendition of
Irving Berlin's "Russian Lullaby," off 1958's Soultrane, and later, moves forward again to his visceral rumination on the 1963 racially motivated bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church, "Alabama," off 1964's Live at Birdland. We also get such essential recordings as 1958's "Moment's Notice," 1960's "Giant Steps," and 1961's "My Favorite Things." Ultimately,
Chasing Trane offers a moving portrait of
Coltrane's ascension into jazz mythology. ~ Matt Collar