Saw him a number of nights at the Plugged Nickel in '64/65 with the quartet - not sure if this was 2 different engagements or one long week. I think 2 dates 'cause I remember attending with JR Monterose and without him . I also heard him at the Down Beat festival with Archie Shepp added ('65). Last time I heard him was at the Nickel with the Pharoah, Alice, Jimmy, Ali band. Spoke to him at intermission and he said he was sorry it cost so much to hear the band.
Every gig was sold out set after set. Some folks walked out but their seats were quickly filled by people waiting in the street. The whole deal about the audience and Coltrane was exacerbated by the record marketplace at the time. Prestige and Atlantic were releasing old sessions at the same time Impulse was issuing recent dates. Prestige and Atlantic were old trusted friends to a segment of the record buying public and Impulse was a relative newcomer. As the result of this market penetration a number of people came to the gigs with a false impression of what the show would be like. As I said earlier, many folks were happy to find their abandoned seats.