Ratliff's Coltrane: The Story of a Sound is somewhat disappointing. It does not fail to deliver in its coverage of the evolution of Coltrane's music from the earliest navy band recordings to his death 1967. However, a full biography would likely have contextualized more effectively some of the conditions in which Coltrane felt a compulsion to constantly evolve and search for deeper meaning in his music. Ratliff, without hagiography and excessive biographical detail, does manage to accomplish some of this through other biographies and interviews with those who knew Coltrane. But for reasons perhaps unbeknownst to me, the text does does not quite capture the sublime quality of Coltrane's music in the manner a proper biography would. Everything seems aloof and unmoored from the context of his work, despite its coverage of the full breadth of Coltrane's career.
Further, I am not convinced I share the author's opinions on some of Coltrane's creative decisions or personnel, particularly the enriching role of Eric Dolphy as a sideman and arranger for some of Coltrane's most riveting work (Africa/Brass and Olé Coltrane). I've long enjoyed the contrast in styles represented by Dolphy and the Coltrane "classic" quartet, and contrasting nature of Dolphy's own style adds a beautiful clash. His arranging skills and mutual interest in "Eastern" and Indian musical modes and expression surely shaped Coltrane, too, adding another speech-like layer of sound through his alto and bass clarinet solos. I suppose one can always find points of disagreement among fans and aficionados of Coltrane, as his vast legacy has shaped free and mainstream jazz since his untimely death in 1967.
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