trane_fanatic Posted May 28, 2004 Report Posted May 28, 2004 (edited) I am a veteran of the Blue Note (RIP) and All About Jazz boards and this is my maiden post. Hopefully, a nice way to start. http://villagevoice.com/issues/0421/sotc.php Village Voice - May 25, 2004 Trane Fair Home John Coltrane's house on Long Island rescued for history Folks packing Huntington, Long Island's Town Hall one late April evening were there to sing praise to John Coltrane. One woman actually did sing a reworked version of Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World." But most spoke softly to the five-member town council, supporting an effort to preserve the 2,500-square-foot brick ranch house on Candlewood Lane in Dix Hills, just south of the Long Island Expressway, that was Coltrane's final home. Coltrane lived there for three years, until his 1967 death. In 1964, in a dormered upstairs room, he composed A Love Supreme, a recording as famous for its spiritual heft as for its enduring appeal. A local developer had planned to remove the house, now condemned, and to subdivide the two-acre property for resale. Enter Dix Hills resident Steve Fulgoni, the recently elected head of his local historical society and an avid jazz fan. Fulgoni learned from a biography that Coltrane had lived in the town. Then he came across an Internet article making specific reference to the house. "I discovered that it was only weeks away from being torn down," he says. Fulgoni set up a website (dixhills.com), and put the word out. There was talk of the town purchasing the land and turning the home into a museum similar to the Louis Armstrong House in Queens. Letters of support flooded in, including one from Archbishop Franzo King, who runs the St. John Coltrane African Orthodox Church in San Francisco. At Town Hall, advocates spoke of Coltrane as "jazz's van Gogh," and of the house as "a sacred space" with "priceless educational potential." One of Coltrane's sons, Ravi, an accomplished saxophonist himself, arrived with his own young son in tow. "I thought this house would always be there," he said from the podium, "and I believe that it needs to stand." But there were naysayers too—chiefly neighborhood association members concerned that a museum would disturb their "sleepy residential community." "It was the most colorful hearing we've ever had," says Councilwoman Susan Berland. Not to mention convincing. By unanimous vote, the council declared Coltrane's home a landmark, protecting it from demolition. A separate June hearing will determine whether the town will purchase the building. On Long Island's North Shore, a real estate deal alluring was trumped by a love supreme. - Larry Blumenfeld Edited May 28, 2004 by trane_fanatic Quote
James Posted May 28, 2004 Report Posted May 28, 2004 I am a veteran of the Blue Note (RIP) and All About Jazz boards and this is my maiden post. Hopefully, a nice way to start. I'd have to say it was!! Thanks for the post! Quote
Hardbopjazz Posted May 28, 2004 Report Posted May 28, 2004 I know where his house is. I live not that far from there. It is in need for some repairs from years of neglect. Glad to see this happen. There was and can be only one Coltrane. Quote
catesta Posted May 28, 2004 Report Posted May 28, 2004 "It was the most colorful hearing we've ever had," says Councilwoman Susan Berland. Not to mention convincing. By unanimous vote, the council declared Coltrane's home a landmark, protecting it from demolition. A separate June hearing will determine whether the town will purchase the building. Good for them. B) Quote
Ed S Posted May 29, 2004 Report Posted May 29, 2004 Thanks for the post. Great photos at dixhills.com. Quote
JohnJ Posted November 11, 2005 Report Posted November 11, 2005 Meanwhile, in North Carolina. City Council to make offer on Coltrane's childhood house 11/8/2005 11:29 AM By: Associated Press (HIGH POINT) - High Point's city council will make an offer for the childhood home of jazz legend John Coltrane. The council authorized an offer Monday night of $42,500. Mayor Becky Smothers says several local nonprofit organizations have offered to renovate the dilapidated house if the city would purchase it. Smothers says the organizations also would run programs at the home. Coltrane was born in Hamlet in 1926 and later lived in High Point. He died at age 40. Quote
B. Goren. Posted November 11, 2005 Report Posted November 11, 2005 There was and can be only one Coltrane. Amen. Quote
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