Anyone who knows me knows that I have a huge place in my heart for jazz. In high school, I was in jazz band, and your girl could improvise the heck out of the flute and trombone. John Coltrane’s extremely famous song called “Giant Steps” is something that I very often like to play when I am in the radio station on campus. The song is insane to listen to because it really does challenge the listener because of Coltrane’s ability to create “sheets of sound” with his saxophone. (He moves so quickly through notes that it is said to sound like a sheet of sound.) My band director would often play many pieces by not only Coltrane, but other artists mentioned in the introduction chapter of the SOS textbook, and I can honestly say that I’ve never thought of them in any way other than their musicianship. Therefore, I am curious to explore just how their music has such an impact to the fight for civil rights.
When looking into the music that Coltrane wrote that had a cultural and political influence and would also drive the Black Arts Movement to see him in such an important way, the first thing that came up was the song “Alabama”. This song was about the 1963 bombing of a church in Birmingham by the Ku Klux Klan, killing four little girls. This church was targeted because it was an extremely active location for the fight for civil rights and ending segregation. The real injustice to this comes from the fact that no one was arrested for the bombing until 45 years later, but 23 African Americans were arrested at the public funeral for the victims because of loitering and other small offenses. Coltrane really channels the somberness of the entire situation through his music, and a live performance of the piece is linked below.
Continuing throughout his career, Coltrane continued to blend his music with black aesthetics and channeled things such as slave spirituals in his music. Unfortunately, as the introductory chapter notes, Coltrane does not live through the entire movement, which is because he passes away in 1967 from liver cancer. Plenty of other musicians channeled this same political awareness and consciousness during the time period to aid the fight for civil rights, but Coltrane’s contribution is highly regarded because by the time that he’d released pieces such as “Alabama”, he was already an established artist in the height of his career.
L460: The Senior Capstone Blog at IUS 
Music has always been a big part of history. This is especially true for the Black Panther Party. It was interesting to hear the songs and singing in the documentary we watched in class. I also found that the singer song-writer, and black activist, James Brown made big waves with his bold music.
One such song “Say it loud, I’m black and proud,” shows the artists push for equality for black people.
Lyrics such as:
“Some people say we got a lot of malice, some say it’s a lotta nerve
But I say we won’t quit movin’ until we get what we deserve” this line is reflecting on the backlash the Black Panthers were getting
“We’ve been buked and we’ve been scourned
We’ve been treated bad, talked about as sure as you’re born
But just as sure as it take two eyes to make a pair, huh!” Brown is talking about the issues the country, and world, has had with slavery and oppression with black people.
“Brother we can’t quit until we get our share,” noting the demands the Black Panther Party wanted.
“Say it loud, I’m black and I’m proud
Say it loud, I’m black and I’m proud
One more time, say it loud, I’m black and I’m proud, huh!” This chant would have been sung at rallies as well as at home among black folk with the hopes that the song would uplift their spirits during this turbulent time.
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