It is undoubtedly one of the most influential, spiritual, and important jazz albums ever recorded. And the inside story on just how this album came into being, as told by many of those who were there, is a story that makes for two great hours of radio.

• How did Coltrane with drummer Elvin Jones, pianist McCoy Tyner and bassist Jimmy Garrison accomplish this landmark album in one day in a studio in New Jersey?
  
• Why did Coltrane write a poem to accompany it?
  
• Why did they only perform the entire suite live one time?
  
• Why was Coltrane's music politicized by the world?

Answers to these questions form the basis of A Love Supreme, a two-hour exploration of Coltrane's 1964 masterpiece that airs on WNYC 93.9 FM Friday, November 29 at 9pm. This special program features rare interviews with Coltrane's colleagues, friends, and family members, who reveal the glorious details of how the recording was made. We hear directly from Coltrane himself, as well as his widow Alice Coltrane, his sidemen (Tyner, Garrison, and Jones), recording engineer Rudy Van Gelder, guitarist Carlos Santana, and saxophonists Wayne Shorter, Archie Shepp, and Branford Marsalis, among others. Many of these interviews were conducted by Ashley Kahn, author of A Love Supreme: The Story of John Coltrane's Signature Album (Viking Books). Hosting the program is the inimitable rapper/actor Mos' Def. (Click on the above audio link for a short preview.)

A Love Supreme: Yesterday and Today

As this two-hour program illustrates, A Love Supreme was conceived against the rich historical backdrop of the turbulent 1960s, a time when conflict simmered in Vietnam and civil rights struggled in the U.S. The year the album was recorded, the Warren Commission had delivered its final report on President Kennedy's assassination, while China became the fifth nation to produce the bomb. When the album hit the airwaves and record bins, it made an immediate impact. It marked a crossroads for Coltrane's music, one that would lead him into uncharted territory.

Nearly 40 years later, A Love Supreme is one of a handful of jazz records that has been universally embraced, from hip hoppers to headbangers, from rockers to ragers. This month, Viking Books is publishing Ashley Kahn's A Love Supreme/The Story of John Coltrane's Signature Album. Also, Verve Music Group is releasing a deluxe edition of A Love Supreme, featuring the quartet's only live performance of the suite, as well as rare, sextet performances of "Acknowledgement."

Additional Reading

Read a review of Ashley Kahn's A Love Supreme/The Story of John Coltrane's Signature Album

More about Verve's new deluxe edition of A Love Supreme, which includes a bonus disc featuring the John Coltrane Quartet's only live performance of the suite, recorded at the Antibes jazz festival in 1965. It also includes the long-rumored sextet version of the opening movement, receiving its first release of any kind.

More about John Coltrane. A Love Supreme may be the saxophonist's masterpiece, but it was hardly his first popular hit. My Favorite Things, Africa Brass, Impressions, and Giant Steps were all major achievements that came shortly after his stint with the Miles Davis Quintet in 1958.

A Love Supreme is produced by WBGO Newark and Joyride Media.