Jazz Video Guy

Listening to "The Father, The Son and the Holy Ghost" on John Coltrane's Meditations, I remembered this: In the early 70s, when I was at NYU FIlm School, I drove a taxi at night to support myself. My boombox saved me. I listened to a variety of music non-stop, including Coltrane.

One Friday just after midnight, I got stopped by a hotel doorman, who put the great chanteuse Ethel Merman in my cab. To say she was drunk would be a huge understatement. In fact, she was so tipsy, I was afraid she was going to puke in the back seat. The doorman sensed my concern and said, don't worry, she's only going a few blocks. Three to be exact.

I was listening to "The Father, The Son and the Holy Ghost" from Meditations at the time, the moment where Trane and Pharoah escalate their musical dialogue. Just for the fun of it, yes, I'm a wicked soul, I turned up the volume for Ethel.

As we sped to her destination, she screamed loud enough so people in the street turned heads. "Why are you torturing me? That's not music." She rolled down the window and yelled to passersby, "help, help."
This madness only lasted about forty five seconds. I think the fare was $.95. She gave me $1.25 and as she exited, told me, I'm reporting you to the police.

As she slammed the door shut, I put on another cassette that seemed very appropriate at the time. Sonny Rollins playing "There's No Business Like Show Business."

1 week ago | [YT] | 103

Jazz Video Guy

Thank you to everyone who has purchased or downloaded my book, “How John Coltrane Changed Me.” I have another request—please consider writing a review on Amazon. Reviews drive the algorithm and increase the chances Amazon will recommend the book to new readers.

This isn't just about book sales or recognition. It has become my mission to share the transformative power of genuine artistic expression in a world too often consumed by empty spectacle.

I'm committed to using every skill and creative resource I have to ensure this message reaches people who need it. This work stands firmly on the side of what nurtures the human spirit rather than what diminishes it. I stand with Coltrane and all artists who dedicate themselves to elevating consciousness through their craft.

While our culture often celebrates violence, sensationalism, and division, Coltrane's music represents the opposite impulse: the desire to build, to heal, to transcend what keeps us trapped in cycles of pain. His saxophone became an instrument of spiritual exploration, showing us that meaning is possible, that beauty matters, that transcendence is real.

My commitment extends beyond this book. I'll continue using my voice, research, and writing to counter narratives that present destruction as entertainment and spiritual emptiness as sophistication. Every conversation becomes an opportunity to redirect attention toward what truly matters: cultivating wisdom, beauty, and genuine human connection.

Coltrane refused the cheap currency of distraction. In an age where sensation eclipses substance, his devotion to sound as spirit offers something different. He showed that practice is prayer, that music is a discipline of the soul, a path to liberation.

To invoke him now is to resist the mentality that reduces everything to its lowest common denominator. It insists that meaning exists in rigor, that beauty arises from struggle, and that transcendence remains possible through human effort aligned with divine intention.

I've witnessed how Coltrane's music can transform consciousness, how engagement with authentic art can awaken dormant possibilities, how pursuing transcendent beauty provides an alternative to the cycles of violence that dominate our attention. This is why your support matters.


tinyurl.com/coltranebook

3 weeks ago | [YT] | 66

Jazz Video Guy

Gary Bartz turns 85 today. Damn!

4 weeks ago | [YT] | 29

Jazz Video Guy

My new Coltrane book is now available on Amazon. This week only, you can get the Kindle (ebook) version for free: tinyurl.com/coltranekindle

Why for free? An author gives away a Kindle book for free to lower the barrier for readers to try it, which increases the chance they will leave a review. Reviews act as social proof and influence buying decisions far more than descriptions or ads. On Amazon, books with more reviews rank higher in search and recommendation algorithms, which drives visibility and sales.

If you don’t own a Kindle device, you can download the free app to read the book on your phone, table, laptop, desktop or smart glasses.


Thank you for your continued support of my work!

1 month ago (edited) | [YT] | 39

Jazz Video Guy

My story: "How John Coltrane Changed My Life - A Jazz Journey" tinyurl.com/howcoltranechangedme

1 month ago | [YT] | 11

Jazz Video Guy

Sonny turns 95 today. I did this film in 2007 during a tour of New Mexico. At the time I was producing Sonny's website, and we did a number of videos together, which you'll find here on my channel. I hope you like it!

1 month ago | [YT] | 82

Jazz Video Guy

One of the problems with aging is that the cast of characters keeps changing and the pace quickens. We lose our loved ones, our friends and eventually we join them. I'm blessed to have known Mulgrew and heard him play live, many times. His is missed. BIG TIME

2 months ago | [YT] | 39

Jazz Video Guy

Very sad to learn of the passing of Hal Galper. I had the honor of writing the introduction to one of his books, and we did some great video together.

Hal Galper was an American jazz pianist, composer, and educator. He was born on April 18, 1938, in Salem, Massachusetts. Galper has been a prominent figure in jazz for several decades, known for his unique approach to improvisation and his collaborations with other notable jazz musicians.

Galper first gained fame in the 1960s as a sideman with musicians such as Chet Baker, Stan Getz, and Phil Woods. He later formed his own bands and recorded many influential albums as a bandleader, including "Wild Bird," "Speak with a Single Voice," and "The Guerilla Band."

Galper was known for his use of harmonic substitution and rhythmic displacement in his improvisation, as well as his ability to blend different styles of jazz into his playing. He was also an acclaimed jazz educator, having taught at the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music and the William Paterson University Jazz Studies Program.



youtube.com/playlist?list=PLX...

3 months ago | [YT] | 39

Jazz Video Guy

John Coltrane died fifty-eight years ago this week on July 17, 1967.

By 1966, John Coltrane had established himself as one of jazz's most innovative voices through his work with Miles Davis and the albums Giant Steps and A Love Supreme. Yet as he ventured deeper into free jazz, he faced the harshest criticism of his career—attacks that would have broken a lesser artist but ultimately revealed his profound artistic conviction.

The turning point came with Ascension (1965), a sprawling 40-minute collective improvisation that abandoned traditional harmonic structures entirely. Where once Coltrane had been praised for his technical mastery and spiritual seeking, critics now accused him of self-indulgence and cacophony. The jazz establishment that had embraced his earlier innovations began turning against him as he pushed into what many considered mere noise.

DownBeat, long a supporter, published reviews reflecting the growing divide. Critics complained his music had become "screaming" and "incoherent," with Martin Williams writing that Coltrane's new direction represented "an all-too-willing surrender to chaos." Personal attacks followed, with reviewers questioning his mental state and suggesting his spiritual searching had devolved into self-absorbed navel-gazing.

The criticism peaked in 1967 with albums Expression and Interstellar Space. These recordings, featuring extended saxophone solos that stretched the instrument's limits, were met with bewilderment and hostility. Critics who had once hailed him as a master now wrote him off as a has-been who had abandoned melody, harmony, and structure for formless experimentation.
Yet Coltrane's response revealed his true artistic integrity. Rather than retreating to safer territory, he doubled down on his explorations. "I know that there are some people who say I've gone too far," he told journalist Nat Hentoff. "But I can't worry about that. I have to follow what I hear and what I feel."

Coltrane viewed his musical journey as part of a larger spiritual quest. "My music is the spiritual expression of what I am," he explained. "If you don't like it, you don't like me. But I can't change what I am to please other people."

His refusal to compromise his vision, even facing widespread rejection, demonstrated artistic integrity few musicians have matched, establishing him as a model of artistic courage whose uncompromising vision continues to inspire.

3 months ago | [YT] | 92

Jazz Video Guy

“Oh, jazz is dead,” they say. “Nobody listens to that music anymore.” Really? Dead? Then explain this: in the past month alone, nearly a quarter million views poured into my Jazz Video Guy channel. That’s right—250,000 souls, from every corner of the globe, tuned in to hear Coltrane cry to the heavens, to feel Elvin’s thunder, to float on a cloud of Bill Evans chords or ride the fire of Freddie Hubbard’s horn.
Jazz isn’t dead. It’s underground, eternal, waiting for the needle to drop or the next curious ear to click play. They’ve buried it a thousand times. But the truth? Jazz doesn’t die. It resurrects. Over and over again. And the proof? You’re watching it.

3 months ago | [YT] | 392