Editing John Coltrane (section)

===1965–1967: The second quartet===
[[File:Rashied Ali.jpg|thumb|Percussionist Rashied Ali (pictured in 2007) augmented Coltrane's sound.]]

By late 1965, Coltrane was regularly augmenting his group with Sanders and other free jazz musicians. [[Rashied Ali]] joined the group as a second drummer. This was the end of the quartet. Claiming he was unable to hear himself over the two drummers, Tyner left the band shortly after the recording of ''[[Meditations (John Coltrane album)|Meditations]]''. Jones left in early 1966, dissatisfied by sharing drumming duties with Ali and stating that, concerning Coltrane's latest music, "only poets can understand it".<ref>{{cite book | last = Thomas | first = J.C. | title = Chasin' the Trane | publisher = Da Capo | year = 1976 | pages=207 }}</ref> In interviews, Tyner and Jones both voiced their displeasure with the music's direction; however, they would incorporate some of the intensity of free jazz in their solo work. Later, both musicians expressed tremendous respect for Coltrane: regarding his late music, Jones stated: "Well, of course it's far out, because this is a tremendous mind that's involved, you know. You wouldn't expect Einstein to be playing jacks, would you?"<ref>{{cite book | last = Porter | first = Lewis | author-link = Lewis Porter | title = John Coltrane: His Life and Music | publisher = The University of Michigan Press | year = 1999 | pages=267 }}</ref> Tyner recalled: "He was constantly pushing forward. He never rested on his laurels, he was always looking for what's next... he was always searching, like a scientist in a lab, looking for something new, a different direction... He kept hearing these sounds in his head..."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.jerryjazzmusician.com/mccoy-tyner-talks-about-john-coltrane-and-the-recording-of-a-love-supreme/ |title=The A Love Supreme Interviews: pianist McCoy Tyner |last=Maita |first=Joe |date=November 8, 2001 |website=Jerry Jazz Musician |access-date=September 20, 2023 }}</ref> Jones and Tyner both recorded tributes to Coltrane, Tyner with ''[[Echoes of a Friend]]'' (1972) and ''[[Blues for Coltrane: A Tribute to John Coltrane]]'' (1987), and Jones with ''[[Live in Japan 1978: Dear John C.]]'' (1978) and ''[[Tribute to John Coltrane "A Love Supreme"]]'' (1994).

There is speculation that in 1965 Coltrane began using [[Lysergic acid diethylamide|LSD]],<ref>Porter, pp. 265–266.</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=John Coltrane: Divine Wind|journal=The Wire |date=January 30, 2008 |first=Howard |last=Mandel |issue=221 |url=http://www.thewire.co.uk/articles/539/?pageno=5|access-date=June 29, 2009|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090929010714/http://www.thewire.co.uk/articles/539/?pageno=5|archive-date=September 29, 2009}}</ref> informing the "cosmic" transcendence of his late period. [[Nat Hentoff]] wrote: "it is as if he and Sanders were speaking with 'the gift of tongues' – as if their insights were of such compelling force that they have to transcend ordinary ways of musical speech and ordinary textures to be able to convey that part of the essence of being they have touched."<ref name="meds_liner">{{cite AV media notes |title=Meditations |author=John Coltrane |type=liner notes |year=1966 |publisher=Impulse! |id=A-9110}}</ref> After the departure of Tyner and Jones, Coltrane led a quintet with Sanders on tenor saxophone, his second wife [[Alice Coltrane]] on piano, Garrison on bass, and Ali on drums. When touring, the group was known for playing long versions of their repertoire, many stretching beyond 30 minutes to an hour. In concert, solos by band members often extended beyond fifteen minutes.

The group can be heard on several concert recordings from 1966, including ''[[Live at the Village Vanguard Again!]]'' and ''[[Live in Japan (John Coltrane album)|Live in Japan]]''. In 1967, Coltrane entered the studio several times. Although pieces with Sanders have surfaced (the unusual "To Be" has both men on flute), most of the recordings were either with the quartet minus Sanders (''[[Expression (album)|Expression]]'' and ''[[Stellar Regions]]'') or as a duo with Ali. The latter duo produced six performances that appear on the album ''[[Interstellar Space]]''. Coltrane also continued to tour with the second quartet up until two months before his death; his penultimate live performance and final recorded one, a radio broadcast for the Olatunji Center of African Culture in New York City, was eventually released as [[The Olatunji Concert: The Last Live Recording|an album]] in 2001.