The complete and utter synthesis of spiritual connectivity and musicality achieved by John William Coltrane has arguably never been matched by any other composer and musician in the 20th century. One listen to Ascension can tell you that. In fact, Trane's impact was so great that an African Orthodox Church in San Francisco has beatified Coltrane - or rather, Saint Coltrane.
According to Wikipedia (no jokes please), "The African Orthodox Church is a primarily African-American denomination in the Anglican tradition, founded in the United States in 1919. It has approximately 15 parishes and 5,000 members." I'm frankly not too surprised that Coltrane has become such - not a religious figure, but, in a sense, a mythical figure. I'm not commenting on the African Orthodox Church in particular (I'm not implying that "saints" and "mythic" are one and the same), but, as with any great, there's always the potent combination of amazement and nostalgia. That combination makes "legends," but Coltrane in particular has all the right ingredients: A journeyman who gets a break with a star and suddenly takes the scene by storm, changing the face of the music forever, refusing to become still, constantly innovating and discovering, overcoming his personal vices, finding his inner spiritual voice, blah blah blah. It's all true of course, but Coltrane embodies it like no jazzman before him or since.
Oh, and have I mentioned that this performance is possibly the most breathtaking live performance I've ever seen?
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