The BBC's Jazz Book of the Year for 2008. Few jazz musicians have had the lasting influence or attracted as much scholarly study as John Coltrane. Yet, despite dozens of books, hundreds of articles, and his own recorded legacy, the "facts" about Coltrane's life and work have never been definitely established. Well-known Coltrane biographer and jazz educator Lewis Porter has assembled an international team of scholars to write The John Coltrane Reference, an indispensable guide to the life and music of John Coltrane. The John Coltrane Reference features a a day-by-day chronology, which extends from 1926-1967, detailing Coltrane's early years and every live performance given by Coltrane as either a sideman or leader, and a discography offering full session information from the first year of recordings, 1946, to the last, 1967. The appendices list every film and television appearance, as well as every recorded interview. Richly illustrated with over 250 album covers and photos from the collection of Yasuhiro Fujioka, The John Coltrane Reference will find a place in every major library supporting a jazz studies program, as well as John Coltrane enthusiasts.

これは単なる資料集ではない。ジョン・コルトレーンという聖人の足跡を、冷徹な事実と熱烈な探究心で編み上げた壮大な叙事詩である。編著者たちが挑んだのは、伝説に彩られた巨人の輪郭を、一日ごとの克明な記録と完璧なディスクグラフィによって再構築するという、気の遠くなるような作業だ。そこには、神格化の過程で削ぎ落とされた剥き出しの人間性と、真理を求める魂の研鑽が刻まれている。 本書の真髄は、膨大なデータの集積が生み出す圧倒的な熱量にある。藤岡靖洋氏のコレクションを筆頭とする視覚的証言と緻密な考証が交錯する時、読者はコルトレーンの思索と息遣いを間近に感じるだろう。これはジャズ史の解読であると同時に、真実を執拗に追い求めた者たちの執念が結晶した、学術書という名の崇高な芸術作品なのだ。