The Coltrane Church The Coltrane Church Apostles of Sound, Agents of Social Justice Nicholas Louis Baham III McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers Jefferson, North Carolina All photographs are courtesy the St. John Will- I-Am Coltrane African Orthodox Church unless otherwise noted. Frontispiece and back cover:“Dancing Coltrane icon”: The Dancing St. John Coltrane icon, by the Rev. Mark Dukes, is from the “100 Dancing Saints” mural project in the rotunda of St. Gregory of Nyassa Episcopal Church in San Francisco (photograph by David Sanger). LIBRARYOFCONGRESSCATALOGUING-IN-PUBLICATIONDATA Baham, Nicholas Louis, III, 1965– The Coltrane Church : apostles of sound, agents of social justice / Nicholas Louis Baham III. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-7864-9496-5 (softcover : acid free paper) ♾ ISBN 978-1-4766-1922-4 (ebook) 1. Saint John Coltrane African Orthodox Church. 2. Jazz— Religious aspects. 3. Jazz—California—San Francisco—History and criticism. 4. Coltrane, John, 1926–1967. 5. African Orthodox Church. 6. African American political activists. 7. African Americans—California—San Francisco—Religion. I. Title. ML3921.8.J39B34 2015 289.9—dc23 2015013154 BRITISHLIBRARYCATALOGUINGDATAAREAVAILABLE © 2015 Nicholas Louis Baham III. All rights reserved No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Printed in the United States of America McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers Box 611, Jefferson, North Carolina 28640 www.mcfarlandpub.com Table of Contents Acknowledgments vii Preface 1 1. Apostles of Sound 13 2. The Self- Representation and Spiritual Teachings of John Coltrane the Saint 41 3. Jimbo’s Bop City 63 4. The Yardbird Club and the History of African American Jazz Entrepreneurship in San Francisco 77 5. The Dr. Huey P. Newton Experience 105 6. The Yardbird and One Mind Temple and New Church Movements in the 1960s and ’70s 115 7. The Alice Coltrane Experience 133 8. The African Orthodox Church 151 9. Anatomy of a Miracle 159 10. The Oscar Grant Movement 169 11. The John Coltrane University of Arts and Social Justice 180 12. The Battle Against Environmental Racism 192 13. The Ordination of Pastor Wanika Kristi King- Stephens 210 14. The Apostles of Sound Occupy SF 232 15. Answering the Prophetic Call 243 Chapter Notes 249 Bibliography 259 Index 263 v In this modern jazz, they heard something rebel and name- less that spoke for them, and their lives knew a gospel for the first time. It was more than a music; it became an atti- tude toward life, a way of walking, a language and a cos- tume; and these introverted kids … now felt somewhere at last. —John Clellon Holmes, Beatnovelist Acknowledgments “I will do all I can to be worthy of thee, O Lord”—St. John Will- I-Am Coltrane The Coltrane Churchis a humble offering to my father, Nicholas Louis Baham, Jr. (January 28, 1935—September 22, 1992), who introduced and nurtured in me a love for jazz music and the redemptive songs of my peo- ple, who taught me how to listen and what to listen for and who first intro- duced me to John Coltrane. This book is a humble offering to my mother, Betty Joyce Baham, who introduced and nurtured in me a love of the Holy Scriptures and Jesus Christ the Teacher, the Son of God, the Son of Man. I love you and hope to honor you with this work. This book is a humble offering to my dear wife and best friend, Angela Faith Dean- Baham, who trusted and assisted me in the realization of my vision. Thank you for lending the gift of your voice to St. John’s African Orthodox Church. Thank you for urging me forward through the days when my inner fire was waning. You taught me what it means to love and that this work could only proceed from love. For Nicholas IV, my dear son, watching your initial forays into jazz improvisation committed me to the vision of explicating the communal imperative of the Coltrane Church and gave me that last spark that took me over the finish line. For Elizabeth, my dear sister. Through you the circle is unbroken and the life and spirit of our dear grandmother, Mildred “Honey” Bacon, con- tinues. Your journey was a vital metaphor to everything I have written here about black womanist power. From the very beginning Honey could see how brightly the fire burned within you. vii viii Acknowledgments The Coltrane Church: Apostles of Sound, Agents of Social Justicewas written with a love supreme for the community of the St. John W ill-I -Am Coltrane African Orthodox Church. This book is dedicated to the vision of John Coltrane and the Holy Ghost shared by Archbishop King and Mother Marina on September 18, 1965. All of my love and gratitude to Archbishop King, Mother Marina King, and Pastor Wanika King- Stephens in particular for welcoming me as a member of their community and family. Your vision and its fulfill- ment have brought untold joy into my life. This document is an expression of that joy and a testimony to the victory that the music and sainthood of John Will- I-Am Coltrane has earned in my life. I hope that I have done justice to your extraordinary journey. I remain committed to your vision and I look forward to the future of Coltrane Consciousness optimistic- ally. For Pastor Wanika K ing-S tephens, I know that under your leadership we look forward to the future optimistically! A very special thanks to the Rev. Mark Dukes for allowing me to reprint your inspired Coltrane icons. Your work continues to expand my consciousnessand my capacity to embrace the contradictions and hetero- geneity of our experience as African Americans. I look forward to our future endeavors together. Thanks to David Sanger for allowing me to reproduce your amazing photo of the dancing St. John W ill-I -Am Coltrane icon from the Rev. Mark Dukes’ Dancing Saints iconography that adorns St. Gregory’s Episcopal Church in San Francisco. Thanks to Shahada Hull for allowing me to write about the miracle of the music that saved your life. Keep the faith! Thanks to Deacon and soon to be Father Max Hoff for assisting me with the selection of photographs contained in this book, for your parallel efforts in a Coltrane scholarship and your efforts in preserving the history of the St. John Will- I-Am Coltrane African Orthodox Church. Thanks to you Rev. Deacon Franzo Wayne King, Jr. Your powerful sound, the barrelhouse honks and growls of the s pirit-d riven John Coltrane, so moved my soul every Sunday. It was in the sound of your horn that I first heard the voice of God speaking to me in the services. Thanks to the St. John W ill-I -Am Coltrane African Orthodox Church Master of Music, Frederick Harris, for your brilliance on the keys as you took me through the entire history of the music in every inspired solo and musical testimonies. I so loved your preludes to “Lonnie’s Lament,” how your solos would traverse an entire history of jazz music; I think you’ve Acknowledgments ix been there before, Bro. Fred, playing stride piano in a tremendous cutting session with Fats Waller or Art Tatum. Thanks to the late Father Roberto De Haven (Blue Water) for the ministry of your powerful sound praise, for piercing the altissimo limits of my aural consciousness, for all the great conversations we had, and for being an example for me of a mystic and a seeker of the truth. The road trips to Stanford University and the Santa Cruz for the Zion Trane expe- rience as well as your consultation and encouragement in Paris were invaluable. I remember you encouraging me to solo and asking only that I “end it just right so that you can set me up.” Thanks to the entire community of worshippers and friends at the St. John W ill-I -Am Coltrane African Orthodox Church. Ohnedaruth. The Sisters of Compassion. Your work has been a tremendous blessing on my life. One Mind.