A Great Day in Harlem
by Jean Bach
from Homevision
And what a day it was: nearly 60 jazz musicians, gathered on a Harlem street one morning in 1958 for what photographer Art Kane rightly, if immodestly, calls "the greatest picture of that era of musicians ever taken" (incredibly, it was also Kane's first professional shoot). Like Ken Burns's Jazz, this 60-minute documentary, an Oscar nominee in 1995, is a mixed-media affair: still photographs and 8 millimeter color footage (shot by bassist Milt Hinton and his wife) of the day itself are combined with interviews, background music, and performance clips of some of the players involved (from legends like Lester Young, Count Basie, Charles Mingus, and Thelonious Monk to lesser-knowns like Maxine Sullivan, Red Allen, and Vic Dickenson) to tell the story. There are anecdotes about 35-cent dinners, all-night jams, and film loaded upside down; about pianist Horace Silver's vegetarian diet and trumpeter Roy Eldridge's high notes; about old friends reuniting and what Hinton calls "just sheer happiness." Looking at the photo years later, Dizzy Gillespie sums it up simply: "There's a whole lotta people I like on there!"
And speaking of Diz, the DVD also includes "The Spitball Story" (produced, like the Great Day documentary, by Jean Bach), an entertaining if slight tale about the trumpeter's days with bandleader Cab Calloway. Seems Gillespie, a renowned practical joker, delighted in launching spitballs at his fellow musicians. Calloway wasn't amused--especially when one particular projectile landed onstage near him. Although Gillespie for once was not the culprit, the two had a nasty confrontation, resulting in Dizzy's firing from the band. It was, he recalls, "the best move I ever made in music." --Sam Graham
In August of 1958, in front of a Harlem brownstone, first-time photographer Art Kane assembled 57 of the greatest jazz stars of all time and snapped a picture that would live forever. Narrated by Quincy Jones, this "irresistible" (Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times), Academy Award-nominated documentary examines the fascinating lives of the musicians who showed up that day to make history. Through remarkable interviews with nearly 30 jazz greats (including Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Rollins and Art Blakey), home movies shot by Milt and Mona Hinton, and rare, archival performance footage, A Great Day in Harlem tells the story behind a legendary photograph that is still alive and kicking - and jammin'!
Hours of New Special Features! "Art Kane" Featurette "Bill Charlap and Kenny Washington" Featurette "Copycat Photos" Featurette "Stories from the Making of A Great Day in Harlem" Featurette PLUS: Bonus 2nd Disc Includes Over Two Hours of New Video Profiles of the 59 Musicians involved in the photograph!
Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers - Live in '58 (Jazz Icons)
from Tdk DVD Video
The edition of drummer Art Blakey's protean Jazz Messengers featured on this DVD had been together for just a couple of months when Live in '58 was recorded in Brussels, Belgium. As it happened, this quintet would stay together for barely half a year--but what a lineup it was, with Blakey joined by pianist Bobby Timmons, tenor saxophonist Benny Golson, bassist Jymie Merritt, and the astonishing 20-year-old trumpeter Lee Morgan. All five were powerhouse musicians, but what made these Messengers, and this hour-long show, really special was the presence of two world-class composers: Golson (two of whose three contributions here, "I Remember Clifford" and "Whisper Not," are certified jazz classics) and Timmons (whose "Moanin'," recorded just a month earlier, is another classic and one of the signature tunes in the entire Blue Note Records catalogue). The 14-minute version of "Moanin'" may be the highlight of the night. The song itself, with its gospel-based, call-and-response verse alternating with an ineffably swinging bridge, is irresistible; add to that some wonderful individual soloing, especially by the ultra-funky Timmons, and you've got a performance of timeless brilliance. Not that the others aren't good as well. Morgan shines on "Clifford," Golson's tribute to the late trumpeter Clifford Brown; the entire group cooks like mad on the uptempo standard "It's You or No One"; and "A Night in Tunisia" showcases Blakey, the band's engine and one of the few drummers whose style, with its African influences matched by effortless swing, is instantly recognizable. While they may not be up to new millennium standards, the black & white visuals (it was a multi-camera shoot, unusual for its time) and digitally-remastered audio are surprisingly good, and although there are no bonus features, the fact that this is apparently the only known visual document of these particular Jazz Messengers makes Live in '58 a genuine treasure. --Sam Graham
Jazz Icons: Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers features what many consider to be one of the fi nest line-ups in the history of jazz—Bobby Timmons (Piano), Jymie Merritt (Bass), Benny Golson (Sax) and the legendary trumpet player, Lee Morgan. Lost for nearly 50 years, this historic 55 minute concert, fi lmed in Belgium in 1958, one month to the day after they recorded their masterpiece Moanin,Â' is the only known visual document of this infl uential band who were together for only six months.
Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers: Tokyo 1961 & London 1965
from Impro-Jazz Spain
Classic Drum Solos and Drum Battles DVD
from Hal Leonard
A must for students and fans of jazz drumming, Classic Drum Solos and Drum Battles should also be seen by those whose exposure to drumming has been limited to crash-and-bang rock drummers, most of whom couldn't play a real solo if their paradiddles depended on it. The solos here are from separate performances recorded between 1957 and 1978. Those by Rufus Jones (who makes clear why his nickname was "Speedy"), Louis Bellson (whose trademarks are flawless technique and two bass drums), Joe Morello (the superbly musical drummer of Dave Brubeck's best quartet), and Buddy Rich (the most blindingly fast and powerful drummer of them all) are alone worth the price of the video. But you'll also see Art Blakey, Gene Krupa, Sam Woodyard, Cozy Cole, and seven other top jazz drummers of the mid-20th century--15 in all.
The "drum battles" are interesting enough--except the nonsensical one between Buddy Rich and Jerry Lewis (yes, that Jerry Lewis)--but they're not the reason for getting the video. Classic Drum Solos is nothing less than a history of jazz drumming presented in a series of uncut drum solos on a single, 60-minute videotape. With many of these drummers now gone, here's a rare chance to hear them again, in all their irreplaceable greatness. --Charles Smyth
This 60 minute DVD features fifteen of the true "legends of jazz drumming" in astounding extended solos and in rare, never-before-seen drum duels filmed over the last five decades. Among the highlights are uncut solos from big band legends Sonny Payne, Rufus Jones, Buddy Rich, Sam Woodyard and Louis Bellson as well as small group giants Art Blakey and Joe Morello. Rare drum battles include meetings between Gene Krupa and Cozy Cole, Buddy Rich and Ed Shaughnessy, Chico Hamilton, Gene Krupa, and Lionel Hampton, and a once-in-a-lifetime battle between Buddy Rich and Jerry Lewis!
A Great Day in Harlem/The Spitball Story
by Jean Bach
from Image Entertainment
And what a day it was: nearly 60 jazz musicians, gathered on a Harlem street one morning in 1958 for what photographer Art Kane rightly, if immodestly, calls "the greatest picture of that era of musicians ever taken" (incredibly, it was also Kane's first professional shoot). Like Ken Burns's Jazz, this 60-minute documentary, an Oscar nominee in 1995, is a mixed-media affair: still photographs and 8 millimeter color footage (shot by bassist Milt Hinton and his wife) of the day itself are combined with interviews, background music, and performance clips of some of the players involved (from legends like Lester Young, Count Basie, Charles Mingus, and Thelonious Monk to lesser-knowns like Maxine Sullivan, Red Allen, and Vic Dickenson) to tell the story. There are anecdotes about 35-cent dinners, all-night jams, and film loaded upside down; about pianist Horace Silver's vegetarian diet and trumpeter Roy Eldridge's high notes; about old friends reuniting and what Hinton calls "just sheer happiness." Looking at the photo years later, Dizzy Gillespie sums it up simply: "There's a whole lotta people I like on there!"
And speaking of Diz, the DVD also includes "The Spitball Story" (produced, like the Great Day documentary, by Jean Bach), an entertaining if slight tale about the trumpeter's days with bandleader Cab Calloway. Seems Gillespie, a renowned practical joker, delighted in launching spitballs at his fellow musicians. Calloway wasn't amused--especially when one particular projectile landed onstage near him. Although Gillespie for once was not the culprit, the two had a nasty confrontation, resulting in Dizzy's firing from the band. It was, he recalls, "the best move I ever made in music." --Sam Graham
A Great Day in Harlem (1994, 60 min.) - The story and sounds behind the most famous photo in the history of jazz. In August of 1958, in front of a Harlem brownstone, first-time photographer Art Kane assembled 57 of the greatest jazz stars of all time and snapped a picture that would live forever. Narrated by Quincy Jones, this Academy Award-nominated documentary includes interviews with nearly 30 jazz greats like Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Rollins and Art Blakey, home movies, and rare performance footage. The Spitball Story (1997, 21 min.) - A short film about the firing of Dizzy Gillespie by Cab Calloway for one too many practical jokes.
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