Alice Coltrane facts for kids

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Quick facts for kids Alice Coltrane
Coltrane in 1972
Born	Alice McLeod (1937-08-27)August 27, 1937 Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
Died	January 12, 2007(2007-01-12) (aged 69) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Other names	Turiyasangitananda
Spouse(s)	Kenny Hagood (m. 1960, divorced) John Coltrane (m. 1965; ~~his death~~ 1967)
Children	Four, including Michelle and Ravi
Family	Ernie Farrow (half brother) Flying Lotus (grand nephew)
Musical career
Genres	Spiritual jazz avant-garde jazz post-bop devotional
Instruments	Piano organ harp vocals
Years active	1960–2006
Labels	Impulse! Columbia Warner Bros.

Alice Lucille Coltrane (born Alice McLeod; August 27, 1937 – January 12, 2007) was an American jazz musician and spiritual leader. She was also known as Swamini Turiyasangitananda, or simply Turiya. Alice was a talented pianist and one of the few harpists in jazz history.

She recorded many albums as a bandleader starting in the late 1960s. Her music was a unique blend of jazz and spiritual sounds. It influenced many musicians both in and outside of jazz. Alice Coltrane was married to the famous jazz saxophonist John Coltrane. She performed with his band from 1966 to 1967.

From the mid-1970s, Alice focused more on her spiritual journey. She founded the Vedantic Center in 1975. Later, she started the Shanti Anantam ashram in California in 1983. An ashram is a spiritual community or monastery. She served as its spiritual director. In 1994, she renamed the ashram Sai Anantam Ashram. During the 1980s and 1990s, she recorded several albums of Hindu devotional songs. These are songs dedicated to religious worship. She returned to spiritual jazz in the 2000s, releasing her final album, Translinear Light, in 2004.

Alice Coltrane's Life Story
Alice Coltrane's Influence on Music
Discography
See Also

Alice Coltrane's Life Story

Early Years and Music Career (1937–1965)

Alice Lucille McLeod was born on August 27, 1937, in Detroit, Michigan. She grew up in a very musical family. Her mother, Anna McLeod, sang in her church choir. Her half-brother, Ernie Farrow, became a jazz bassist. Her younger sister, Marilyn McLeod, became a songwriter for Motown.

Alice's father encouraged her to pursue music. She began performing in clubs around Detroit. Later, she moved to Paris in the late 1950s. In Paris, she studied classical music and jazz with Bud Powell. She also worked as a pianist during breaks at the Blue Note Jazz Club. In 1960, she appeared on French television with other musicians.

She married Kenny Hagood in 1960 and had a daughter, Michelle. The marriage ended a short time later, and Alice returned to Detroit with their daughter. She continued playing jazz professionally in Detroit. She performed with her own trio and as a duo with vibraphonist Terry Pollard. From 1962 to 1963, she played with Terry Gibbs' quartet. During this time, she met John Coltrane.

In 1965, Alice and John married in Mexico. John Coltrane became the stepfather to Alice's daughter, Michelle. Alice and John had three children together. Their son John Jr. was born in 1964 and became a drummer. He passed away in a car accident in 1982. Their son Ravi was born in 1965 and became a saxophonist. Their son Oranyan was born in 1967 and became a DJ. Oranyan also played saxophone with the band Santana for a while.

Solo Music and Spiritual Journey (1967–1978)

Alice and John's shared interest in spirituality influenced John's music, like his album A Love Supreme. In January 1966, Alice Coltrane joined John Coltrane's band as the pianist. She recorded and performed with him until his death on July 17, 1967. After her husband passed away, Alice continued their musical and spiritual vision. She began releasing her own records as a composer and bandleader.

Alice was trained as a pianist, but she also became a skilled harpist. She received a concert harp after John's death, and quickly became very good at playing it. Her first album, A Monastic Trio, was recorded in 1967. From 1968 to 1977, she released thirteen full-length albums. Over time, her music moved from traditional jazz to a more "cosmic" and spiritual style.

Albums like Universal Consciousness (1971) and World Galaxy (1972) show this change. Her music grew from a small group to a larger, orchestral sound. It featured beautiful string arrangements and flowing harp sounds. Until 1973, she released music with Impulse! Records, John Coltrane's jazz label. From 1973 to 1978, she mainly released music on Warner Bros. Records. After this, she stepped away from public life for a while.

Alice and John Coltrane in 1966

After her husband's death, Alice Coltrane went through a difficult time. She focused deeply on spiritual practices, which she called tapas. A friend introduced her to Swami Satchidananda, a Yoga teacher. She began to study Hinduism with him in the early 1970s. By 1972, she moved to California and later started the Vedantic Center in 1975.

Ashram Years and Devotional Music (1975–1995)

During the mid-1970s, Alice Coltrane had a powerful spiritual experience. She felt that God gave her the spiritual name Turiyasangitananda. This name means "the Transcendental Lord's Highest Song of Bliss." She felt called to dedicate her life to spiritual pursuits. She traveled to India to deepen her spiritual studies.

She became the spiritual leader, or guru, of the Shanti Anantam Ashram. This ashram was founded by the Vedantic Center in 1983 near Malibu, California. Alice led spiritual ceremonies and group chanting, called kirtan, at the ashram. She created new melodies for traditional chants. She also added synthesizers, complex song styles, and Gospel music elements to her compositions.

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Alice Coltrane was inspired by the devotional music of the Sathya Sai Baba movement and ISKCON groups. She began to include their bhajans (devotional songs) in her music. Her album Radha-Krsna Nama Sankirtana was released in 1977. It featured popular bhajans and mantras with a Gospel music feel. She sent her album to A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, the founder of ISKCON. He praised her chanting in a letter. Alice Coltrane later met Bhaktivedanta Swami in India. She was also invited to perform at Ratha-yatra festivals in the United States.

Even with her many spiritual connections, Alice Coltrane mainly sought guidance directly from God. She believed her deep spiritual practices allowed her to communicate with the divine. During the 1980s and 1990s, Alice Coltrane published books through her company, Avatar Book Institute. These books shared her spiritual teachings, which came from her deep connection with the divine.

She also released several spiritual music cassettes: Turiya Sings (1982), Divine Songs (1987), Infinite Chants (1990), and Glorious Chants (1995). In 2017, ten years after her death, the label Luaka Bop released a compilation album. It was called World Spirituality Classics 1: The Ecstatic Music of Alice Coltrane Turiyasangitananda. It featured songs from her ashram recordings. In 2021, Impulse! Records re-released Turiya Sings as Kirtan: Turiya Sings. This version featured her vocals and Wurlitzer organ, without added synthesizers or strings.

In the late 1980s, Alice Coltrane had a spiritual insight. She believed that Sathya Sai Baba, a spiritual leader, was a divine figure. In 1994, she renamed her ashram 'Sai Anantam Ashram' in his honor. She remained a devoted follower of Sai Baba until her death. She often traveled with her students to India to visit him. After Alice Coltrane's death in 2007, fewer people attended the ashram. It closed permanently in 2017 and was later destroyed by the Woolsey Fire in 2018.

Later Years and Passing (1995–2007)

In the 1990s, people became interested in her music again. This led to the album Astral Meditations. In 2004, she released her new album, Translinear Light. After a 25-year break, she performed publicly again in 2006. She played three concerts in the U.S. One concert was on September 23, which would have been John Coltrane's 80th birthday. Her final concert was on November 4 at the San Francisco Jazz Festival. She performed with her son Ravi, drummer Roy Haynes, and bassist Charlie Haden.

Alice Coltrane passed away in 2007 at age 69. She died in Los Angeles due to breathing problems. She is buried next to John Coltrane in Pinelawn Memorial Park, Farmingdale, New York.

Alice Coltrane's Influence on Music

Alice Coltrane's music has inspired many artists. The English rock band Radiohead was influenced by her, especially for their song "Dollars and Cents." Paul Weller dedicated his song "Song for Alice" to her. The band Sunn O))) also named a song "Alice" after her.

Electronic musician Steve "Flying Lotus" Ellison is Alice Coltrane's grandnephew. On his 2010 album Cosmogramma, he honored Alice Coltrane. He used a sample of her harp playing in his song "Drips//Auntie's Harp." The song "That Alice" on Laura Veirs' album Warp and Weft is also about Coltrane. Orange Cake Mix included a song called "Alice Coltrane" on their 1997 album. Poet giovanni singleton wrote 49 poems about Alice Coltrane after her death. Pop artist Doja Cat spent some of her teenage years at the Coltrane ashram. This experience helped shape her expressive dance style.

Artist Cauleen Smith created an exhibition called Give It or Leave It. It featured two films that explored Alice Coltrane's music and ashram.

Discography

As a Leader

Studio and Live Albums

A Monastic Trio (Impulse!, 1968)
Huntington Ashram Monastery (Impulse!, 1969)
Ptah, the El Daoud (Impulse!, 1970)
Journey in Satchidananda (Impulse!, 1971)
Universal Consciousness (Impulse!, 1971)
World Galaxy (Impulse!, 1972)
Lord of Lords (Impulse!, 1973)
Illuminations (Columbia, 1974) with Carlos Santana
Eternity (Warner Bros, 1976)
Radha-Krsna Nama Sankirtana (Warner Bros., 1977)
Transcendence (Warner Bros., 1977)
Transfiguration (Warner Bros., 1978)
Turiya Sings (Avatar Book Institute, 1982; reissued by Impulse!/Verve/UMe/Universal, 2021)
Divine Songs (Avatar, 1987)
Infinite Chants (Avatar, 1990)
Glorious Chants (Avatar, 1995)
Translinear Light (Impulse!, 2004)
Carnegie Hall '71 (Hi Hat, 2018) also released as Live at Carnegie Hall, 1971
Live at the Berkeley Community Theater 1972 (BCT, 2019)
Kirtan: Turiya Sings (Impulse!/Verve/UMe/Universal, 2021; different mixes of Turiya Sings discovered by Ravi Coltrane in 2004)
The Carnegie Hall Concert (Impulse!, 2024)

Compilations

Reflection on Creation and Space (a Five Year View) (Impulse!, 1973)
Priceless Jazz Collection (GRP, 1998)
Astral Meditations (Impulse!, 1999)
The Impulse Story (Impulse!, 2006)
Universal Consciousness / Lord of Lords (Impulse!, 2011)
Huntington Ashram Monastery/World Galaxy (Impulse!, 2011)
World Spiritual Classics: Volume I: The Ecstatic Music of Alice Coltrane Turiyasangitananda (Luaka Bop, 2017)
Spiritual Eternal: The Complete Warner Bros. Studio Recordings (Real Gone Music 2018)