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Title: Hero-worshipper or Academic?
Review: I agree with other reviewers, that the author tries to be both a hero-worshipping spectator and a musical academician. The two do not always meet, and rarely reinforce each other. Given that his main subject was Miles Davis, it seems that his interest in Coltrane developed more as an ancillary "pop" infatuation, from just being in the jazz environment, than an academic interest.While I enjoyed the author's recounting of his many encounters with the jazz musicians of the 1950s and 60s, not a lot of light was shed on Trane's music beyond the attempt to make a rather superficial connection with its Nigerian roots. This is rather curious in itself since the author admitted not really understanding Trane's later more spiritual music.Given these concerns and the fact that the manuscript was rather sloppy written -- especially for a Phd student -- there is not much to recommend about this book. Two stars
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