When I was a kid, long before I came to New York, John Coltrane was the man. Never as colorful as Charlie Parker, nonetheless he embodied the same sort of Nietzchian ideal I had at the time of the figure standing outside and above society, creating on his own rules, his own metaphysics as it were. John Coltrane was a man dedicated to his music. Someone recounted walking past the open window of his Harlem apartment in the morning and hearing him practice scales, holding each note for a couple of seconds, then walking past a few hours later to hear Coltrane practicing the same scale, but at blinding speed. It was said he could practice scales eight hours a day, every day.
It’s been a long time since I read John Coltrane’s bio and after reading his Wikipedia entry (what else), I was surprised to find out he was not actually born and raised in New York, but grew up in North Carolina (and served in the Navy) and got his start in Philidelphia before coming to New York with Miles Davis. Nonetheless, his sound has always meant New York to me.
With Miles Davis, another transplanted New Yorker, playing the timeless ‘So What’. Look at the class those guys had. I really wish the next sub-culture movement would take up styling like this. ‘Cause these guys had STYLE.
No related posts.
Great post! I just had an obnoxious thought — along with the resurgence of so-called heritage brands and artisanal this, that and whatever, we need a rebirth of heritage music, played by musicians with historic facial hair, wearing heritage brands and sipping on artisanal cocktails.
So true! I’d love to see the return the greaser look myself. I guess what we need is retro retro, since this has been done already. ‘There is nothing new under the sun’ especially in the new millenium . . .
t.
Hey City of Strangers,
Time Out New York has just launched a new group of neighborhood guides, helping our readers experience our favorite spots in the East Village. And– in the spirit of being a good neighbor–we wanted to recommend some additional blogs where our followers can get some additional resources and get a better vibe of the area. I wanted to give you an official heads up that we’ve included a link to your site! You can see the guide here: http://newyork.timeout.com/things-to-do/new-york-neighborhoods/2556677/east-village-les-blogs?package=2503085.
As the publicist for Time Out, I’d love to talk further about any ways we can work together to grow our audiences and get the best content out there possible! Please feel free to contact me with any ideas going forward and I’ll do the same. Thanks!
Meg Rushton
Digital Marketing Publicist
Time Out North America
(646) 432-3090
meg.rushton@timeoutna.com