[JPL] Jazz film

Mon Jun 9 15:01:17 EDT 2008

> The only problem with the films I've seen listed so far is they are all 
> about the world of jazz from at least 30 years ago. Anybody know of any 
> films that bring the music closer to our present time? Remember, this 
> was one of the criticisms that people had with the Ken Burns series and 
> our list does the same thing.
> 
> Eric Jackson

Eric,

This is from Margaret Davis's website www.newyorkjazz.org:

If you’re yearning to see some Marsalis-free, Burns-free 
        JAZZ DOCUMENTARIES of "ancient to the future" liberation musicians, 
        here are a few sources: 

        *    ZAKARYA SHERZAD has made videos 
        of the Vision Festival & Fire in the Valley 
        Festivals: 5O East 1st St., #3, NYC 1OOO3, (212) 375~9721, <zaklink at yahoo.com>. 

*    BILL WARRELL, head of the great 
        arts organization District Curators in Washington, DC, is completing a 
        one~hour documentary on JULIUS HEMPHILL/ FRED HERSCH/ BILL T. JONES/ 
        DON PULLEN & others, exploring the connections among music, dance, 
        & the inspiration that can move great artists to create huge, ambitious 
        works in the face of deadly illness; contact DCI Productions, P.O. Box 
        14197, Washington, DC 2OO44, (2O2) 723~75OO, <WWarrell at worldnet.att.net>, 
        <W.Warrell at att.net>. 

*    EDWARD O. BLAND 
        & 
        NELAM HILL's "THE CRY OF JAZZ" 
        ('59), now available on a 34~min. videodisc, is "an essay on the 
        politics of music and race and a forecast of what Edward O. Bland called 
        'the death of jazz,'" "a landmark moment in black film foreseeing 
        the civil unrest of subsequent decades; it also features the only known 
        footage of visionary pianist SUN RA from his beloved Chicago period," 
        with "ample images of tenor saxophonist JOHN GILMORE & 
        the rest of Ra's Arkestra in Windy City nightclubs, all shot in glorious 
        b&w." It is available from Atavistic's Unheard Music Series at 
        <www.atavistic.com/artist.cfm?action=2&ThisArtist=127&itemid=259>, 
        <info at atavistic.com>.

* "IMAGINE THE SOUND" by RON 
        MANN (Canada, '81, 91 min's), interview & concert footage of PAUL 
        BLEY/ BILL DIXON/ ARCHIE SHEPP/ CECIL TAYLOR, (www.sphinxproductions.com/pages/ron_bio.html, 
        mann at sphinxproductions.com).

* "BURNING POLES" w/ CECIL TAYLOR/ 
        WILLIAM PARKER/ TONY OXLEY/ HENRY GONZALES ('83?) is available from 
        Mystic Fire Direct, P.O. Box 2249, Livonia, MI 48151, (8OO) 292-9OO1, 
        www.mysticfire.com/index.html?cart=117367408912175, ordering at mysticfire.com, 
        $19.98 + tax & shipping charges.

*    LAURENCE PETIT~JOUVET offers 
        "CHICAGO IMPROVISATION" w/ PETER KOWALD, KEN VANDERMARK, 
        & many more, documentary coverage of a Chicago festival (‘OO), as 
        well as 

* "OFF THE ROAD," a PETER KOWALD U.S. tour documentary 
        (‘OO), w/ RASHIED ALI/ FRED ANDERSON/ HAMID DRAKE/ MARCO ENEIDI/ ALVIN 
        FIELDER/ EDDIE GALE/ EDWARD "KIDD" JORDAN/ GEORGE LEWIS/ WILLIAM PARKER/ 
        DONALD ROBINSON/ GUNTER "BABY" SOMMER/ ASSIF TSAHAR & others, 
        both documentaries available at <www.mildoc.com>, or Email <avril.films at wanadoo.fr>. 

*    MICHAEL LUCIO STERNBACH has made 
        a documentary called "DOWN TO THE CRUX" that includes MARSHALL 
        ALLEN/ PETER BRÖTZMANN/ ROY CAMPBELL, JR./ BILL DIXON/ HAMID DRAKE/ 
        SENSEI JOSEPH JARMAN/ RAPHÉ MALIK/ SABIR MATEEN/ THURSTON MOORE/ 
        WILLIAM PARKER/ ARCHIE SHEPP/ ALAN SILVA/ DAVID S. WARE/ REGGIE WORKMAN, 
        & more (‘OO): (732) 741~O9O4, <mucster77 at hotmail.com>, <freedomfilmsoc at hotmail.com>. 

*    STEVE GEBHARDT’s 83~min. film 
        of "ESCALATOR OVER THE HILL," CARLA BLEY’s jazz opera in rehearsal, 
        performance, & recording (filmed in‘7O, released in ‘99), w/ GATO 
        BARBIERI/ JACK BRUCE/ DON CHERRY/ CHARLIE HADEN/ HOWARD JOHNSON/ SHEILA 
        JORDAN/ JEANNE LEE/ JOHN McLAUGHLIN/ ROSWELL RUDD/ VIVA, others, is 
        available from him for $29.95 + $5 shipping: 22O W. 14th St., #1, Cincinnati 
        4521O, (513) 241~8866, <SteveGebhardt at yahoo.com>. 

*    "RISING TONES CROSS," EBBA 
        JAHN’s ‘84 documentary of WILLIAM & PATRICIA PARKER’s 
        & PETER KOWALD’s Sound Unity Festival (precursor of the Vision 
        Festival), includes BILLY BANG/ JOHN BETSCH/ PETER BRÖTZMANN/ 
        ROY CAMPBELL, JR/ DON CHERRY/ CHARLES GAYLE/ MASAHIKO KONO/ PETER KOWALD/ 
        WILBER MORRIS/ JEMEEL MOONDOC/ WILLIAM PARKER/ CHARLES TYLER/ DAVID S. 
        WARE/ REV. FRANK WRIGHT and features a cover illustration by CHARLES 
        GAYLE; it is available from Film Pals, 61O East 9th St., #1O, New 
        York City 1OOO9, (212) 614~O6O2, <EbbaJahn at aol.com>, or from Cadence 
        / NorthCountry (see above).  

*    ALAN ROTH’s film "INSIDE OUT 
        IN THE OPEN" (‘O1) is a documentary on the music that features intvws 
        w/ MARION BROWN/ BAIKIDA CARROLL/ DANIEL CARTER/ BURTON GREENE/ SUSIE 
        IBARRA/ SHAKU JOSEPH JARMAN/ WILLIAM PARKER/ ROSWELL RUDD/ MATTHEW SHIPP/ 
        ALAN SILVA/ JOHN TCHICAI & more; + musicians filmed in concert, 
        includ’g RASHID BAK’R/ PETER BRÖTZMANN/ ROY CAMPBELL, JR./ DANIEL 
        CARTER/ DENIS CHARLES/ SUSIE IBARRA/ WILLIAM PARKER/ GLENN SPEARMAN/ REGGIE 
        WORKMAN & more, available from Alan Roth, Asymmetric Pictures, 
        5O5 62nd St., #E3, Brooklyn, NY 1122O, (718) 567~8O52, <alanroth at mail.com>. 

*    "WOMEN IN JAZZ," a documentary 
        by GILLES CORRE (‘O1), includes JANE IRA BLOOM/ ELLEN CHRISTI/ JAYNE 
        CORTEZ/ MARILYN CRISPELL/ SYLVIA CUENCA/ BERTHA HOPE/ SUSIE IBARRA/ JEANNE 
        LEE/ MIYA MASAOKA/ MYRA MELFORD & others; also by GILLES CORRE 
        is "CITY OF THE WINDS" w/ FRED ANDERSON/ VON FREEMAN/ KEN VANDERMARK 
        & more (‘O2), both available from Doc Ad Hoc, 15 rue de la Concorde, 
        Toulouse 31OO, France, <Gil.corre at free.fr>. 

*    "DENIS A. CHARLES: AN INTERRUPTED 
        CONVERSATION" is a documentary by VERONIQUE DOUMBÉ (‘O1), w/ 
        BOBBY FEW/ SUSIE IBARRA/ STEVE LACY/ FRANK LOWE/ ZANE MASSEY/ JEMEEL 
        MOONDOC/ WILBER MORRIS/ WILLIAM PARKER/ ARCHIE SHEPP, others, <http://ndolofilms.com>, 
        <http://ndolofilms.com/denis/denis_charles.htm>, <vero at ndolofilms.com>. 

*    "DEWEY TIME," a comprehensive 
        & intimate documentary on the great DEWEY REDMAN by Canadian 
        filmmaker DANIEL BERMAN (‘O1), can be found at <www.bluetrainfilms.com>, 
        <www3.sympatico.ca/bluetrain/bluetrain>, <bluetrain at sympatico.ca>. 

*    "KARMEN GEI" by JOSEPH GAI RAMAKA 
        (Senegal, 'O1) based on "Carmen" by GEORGES BIZET, w/ DJEINABA 
        DIOP GAI/ JULIEN JOUGA/ EL HADJ N'DIAYE/ DOUDOU N'DIAYE ROSE/ YANDE COUDOU 
        SENE/ RASUL SIDDIK and many more, original soundtrack by DAVID 
        MURRAY w/ additional music by CHERIF DIOP/ JULIEN JOUGA/ EL HADJ 
        N'DAIYE/ DOUDOU N'DIAYE ROSE/ SECKA/ YANDE COUDOU SENE, is available 
        in Wolof & French w/ English subtitles from Euripide Productions, 
        15 rue Vezelay, 75OO8 Paris, France, phone (O11~33) (O)1 56 43 64 OO, 
        <euripide at euripide.com>.

*  "DON CHERRY" by Woody & Steina Vasulka, USA, ('7O, 
        Beta SP, 14 mins, b/ w), early video of Don Cherry playing on the streets 
        of Manhattan, available from the Vasulkas, 3686 Agua Fria St., Santa Fe, 
        NM 875O7-3225, 5O5-424-8786, www.vasulka.org. 

*    "CECIL TAYLOR: ALL THE NOTES" 
        is a 71~min. Beta color film w/ AMIRI BARAKA/ ELVIN JONES/ THURSTON 
        MOORE/ CECIL TAYLOR, producer/ director/ distributor CHRISTOPHER FELVER 
        ('O4), <www.ChrisFelver.com>, <Chris at ChrisFelver.com>, (415) 
        332~4499.

*    "MY NAME IS ALBERT AYLER," a 
        75~min. documentary put together by KASPER COLLIN and released in 'O5, 
        features ALBERT & DONALD AYLER, SUNNY MURRAY, GARY PEACOCK, 
        & others, & is available from www.mynameisalbertayler.com, <kaspercollin at chello.se>, 
        +46 O8 545 275 2O.

* 
         EDWARD WILKERSON, JR.'s SHADOW VIGNETTES:  
        "ODD EYE O MUMBO JUMBO" [DVD] w/ HARRISON BANKHEAD, MWATA 
        BOWDEN, ARI BROWN, ERNEST DAWKINS, VANDY HARRIS, AMEEN MUHAMMED, JAMES 
        NEWTON, REGGIE NICHOLSON, RITA WARFORD,
& 15 other Chicago musicians, director Jonathan Woods, Executive
Producer Edward Wilkerson, Jr., Sessoms Music, P.O. Box 6812, Chicago,
IL 6O680, sessomsmusic at gmail.com; also available from Downtown Music
Gallery, 342 Bowery (Third Ave. betw. 2nd & 3rd St's), New York
City 1OO12-24O8, 212-473-OO43, dmg at downtownmusicgallery.com, or by mail
from  http://tinyurl.com/48jjs2 .

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