A Love Supreme

Kenny had a great post over at Empty Kettle the other day. I am particularly fond of the paintings of Paul Gauguin, and I thoroughly agree with Kenny’s point regarding the irony of such a dissolute man reflecting such beauty.

John Coltrane died of liver cancer in 1967. He had overcome alchoholism and heroin addiction a decade before, but the damage had been done. He experienced a spiritual awakening which led him to sobriety among other things. Of course, there are those who do not care for his music, nor do I wish to imply that every note he played was divinely inspired. However, I must confess that I am moved by his music in a way that very few composers or players have affected me. I will never forget the Sunday afternoon when I listened to ‘A Love Supreme’ on headphones and started to read the liner notes. I came across the ‘Psalm’ that Coltrane wrote, and I puzzled over it until the fourth movement, ‘Psalm’ moved into Trane’s solo and I realized that he was literally playing the words of his psalm through his horn. This ex-junkie and former wino was singing to God, and it moved me to tears. Divinity and grace reveal themselves in unlikely places.