Slow-Trane, No Trane!
- Admin
- Sep 28, 2017
- 4 min read
How To Satisfy Your Jazz Documentary Appetite While Waiting For Chasing Trane!
The Jazz world is excited for the release of the new John Coltrane Documentary, “Chasing Trane: The John Coltrane Documentary.” The film was finished last year but the theatrical release began September 16th you can check upcoming screenings and locations here. This is not the first Coltrane documentary, a film released about 26 years ago called “The World According to John Coltrane.”
The recent movie features interviews with President Bill Clinton, Kasami Washington, (The highly venerable) Sonny Rollins and Wynton Marsalis. The 1990 flick includes interviews with Tommy Flanagan and Alice Coltrane, I look forward to seeing the new film to compare and contrast the film. However, for those who can’t wait till the screening date (seriously considering flying to Brooklyn to see it #tutitionremission) in their city, I will highlight some great Jazz documentaries that people can watch and learn more about different Jazz greats.
Elvin Jones: A Different Drummer (1979)
For this rare (and brief) documentary on one of the greatest drummers ever you can shell out 199$ (USD) or check out this link. All though far too brief for a musician of his caliber it’s about the closest we can get to a biographical narrative about Elvin. Also included are some fantastic drum solos, his thoughts on improvisation and recollections on John Coltrane. You can watch part one here.
Sun Ra: Brother From Another Planet
Often confused with an exceptionally well-done Blaxploitation film of the same name (Brother from another planet). The film I am referring to is the 2005 BBC documentary on Saturn’s finest Jazz musician and innovator of electronics in Jazz. Including interviews with Marshal Allen (Current leader of the Arkestra) and the unheralded Tenor Saxophone legend (and fantastically named) John Gilmore and other Arkestra members (a deliberate misspelling of the word orchestra). The film was available online but has seemed to disappear, but here is a link that will shed some light on what the film is about. Here is another film that gives you a pure look at Saturn’s finest with interviews and live Arkestra performances (1980’s Joyful Noise, to check it out click here).
Anita O’Day: The Life Of A Jazz Singer (2007)
You can check out the film here. Although, the film is not for the faint of heart. Much like the excellent (2015) “I Called Him Morgan,” the filmmaker does not set out to idolize O'Day but tells her story as she wanted, warts and all. Those warts include some dark stories about heroin addiction, domestic violence, rape, abortion and jail time. There's a clip where Bryant Gumbel wonders aloud how she survived all those experiences. She dodges the question ("It's just how it went down Bryant!"), but it’s an overarching theme throughout the movie, an in-depth portrait of an often under appreciated vocalist. Overall the film does a good job navigating the numerous stories that make up Anita's life. For a taste of Anita’s vocal prowess here is her legendary performance at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1958. Besides the melancholy, there are some interesting facts in the film, Anita helped discover (the legendary) June Christy (the clip is June's performance on the Playboy Penthouse TV Show with the recently deceased Hugh Hefner) to replace her while touring in Stan Kenton’s band (Occurs during the 15:40 mark) . Anita never had vibrato ( the result of a botched tonsillectomy), she had her uvula removed, so to achieve the vibrato sound she would shake her head while singing.
Art Pepper: Notes From A Jazz Survivor
This 1982 Documentary takes a look at the legendary Alto player Art Pepper. Which is not as simple as it seems because art was many things, alcoholic, liar, thief, drug addict, drug dealer to name a few. While this may scare some people away from the film or his book (1979’s Straight Life) but they don't try to justify anything he did in his past; instead, he embraces his past and tries to be a better person and musician. This is achieved by Art being honest, opening the film with a story about the first time he tried heroin, the film is filled with low points. However, the film is not without hope as Art has many high points in the film. Among them, the story of how Art and Laurie (Pepper, his last wife) met or how Art changed his style after discovering the music of John Coltrane in prison (The basis of his composition “My Friend John,”). What you’ll find is an honest portrait of a man who made a lot of mistakes but is succeeding in turning his life around. While being brutally honest about all his past mistakes.
These films will hold you over till you get to see the latest John Coltrane Documentary and is a great way to find new music or albums for your collection.
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