Tag: Jazz

LIVE AT MISTER KELLY’S – Review

View of Mister Kelly’s marquee featuring Joan Rivers and Adam Wade, Chicago, Illinois, circa 1968.

In the 21st century, it seems that a near-unlimited supply of entertainment is at our fingertips, or at least at the click of a mouse. That flow seems constant with a staggering variety of options. But what did folks do around 75 years ago? Sure, radio was still dominant, though this new “gizmo” called television was making inroads. And of, course the movies were there. As for live entertainment, many performers played at regional venues like state fairs and auditoriums. If you were looking for something more intimate, the big cities had nightclubs. And in between meccas like LA (with Ciro’s and Slapsy Maxie’s) and NYC (with the “Copa” and the Latin Quarter), there was the “Windy City”. When the vaudeville and burlesque venues began to shutter, lots of big-name talents, in music and comedy, could be seen at the bustling “classy joint” near Rush and Oak. But for those who couldn’t get there, they still enjoyed the feel of the place when those artists committed their routines and songs to vinyl, which they proudly proclaimed in the liner notes, and often on the cover, was recorded LIVE AT MISTER KELLY’S.

The story of that club actually begins a few years earlier with another club. And this empire, which would include a later entertainment spot, was established by two brothers, the Marienthals, Oscar and George. At the end of WWII, the men decided to provide an upscale eatery in the heart of Chicago, the London House, formerly the Fort Dearborn Grill. Inspired by the wartime meat rationing, they struck a “hungry” chord with their catchphrase “Make a date with a steak”.Eventually, they would offer the best of jazz music with the meals in 1955. Ah, but two years before that they opened Mister Kelly’s (named after the previous owner’s doorman/manager, who didn’t remain), which would have their own “house band” the following year. In 1959, the owners instituted a new policy of combining a comedy act and a musician (singer, band, etc.) on the same bill usually lasting a couple of days. Though the stage was tiny and the space limited, Kelly’s attracted the hottest acts of the early 1960s. For comedy, the audiences were laughing with Bob Newhart, Nichols & May, Mort Sahl, and Lenny Bruce. Plus they “tapped their toes’ to Laine Kazan, Peggy Lee, and a rising star that Oscar lured away from the “Big Apple”, Barbra Streisand. One of the most radical decisions by the brothers was their hiring of black entertainers with no segregation on stage or in the audience as Della Reese, Billie Holiday, and Sarah Vaughn packed the place along with Richard Pryor, Dick Gregory, and Flip Wilson (who recorded an album there). When audiences became interested in the more “radical comics” and zany improv groups, another venue The Happy Medium (which would prove a springboard for the comedy team of Stiller & Meara) opened its doors around the corner. Despite a couple of devastating house fires, Kelly’s remained a hot spot (oops, sorry) well into the 1970s. But by then the rising comic stars and many music acts, filled the late-night TV talk shows and they upped their fees, pricing out the smaller nightclubs for the big theatres and arenas. Before the end of 1975, Mr. Kelly’s was shuttered and, along with the London House and the Medium, became part of Windy City history.

Ah, but what a slice of lively and fun history (I didn’t want to end the last paragraph on a sad note). Considering that no film footage of the interior of the club exists, director Ted Bogosian has somehow found a way for us to feel as though we have a stage-side seat (and it was just 4 or 5 feet away from the action) to enjoy an incredible gathering of the world’s most iconic performers. Luckily there are lots of archival photos of the club’s exterior and interior along with countless ads and promotional materials. Big kudos to co-producer and editor Scott Dummier for assembling all of this art and for the massive amount of interviews. Some were a bit …challenging (Streisand gives only an audio recollection), others are archival, as we hear from many who are now workin’ the “main stage in the clouds”. We encounter Shelly Berman, Fred Willard, and Jerry Stiller ( he hints that a current comedy superstar was conceived during his Medium gig). But happily many are still here and very happy to look back, including Bob Newhart, Lily Tomlin, Dick Gregory, Shecky Greene, and Dick Smothers (hey, I still have the LP he and brother Tom recorded there). Speaking of the archives, we view bits of local TV news segments, Bill Murray on the Tonight Show, and the closest TV show to being at Kelly’s, “Playboy After Dark”, right from “Hef’s swingin’ pad”. Oh, and the jazz greats certainly get their due, in some great music excerpts. Aside from the Marienthal family members and the relatives of late stars (Kitty Bruce), there are some very witty stories from playwright David Mamet, who worked a variety of jobs, and even “tickles the ivories”. Most informative is an entertainment historian who scoops up dozens of albums recorded at Kelly’s at a massive used record store (Kelly’s has its own section), along with a radio DJ/show host. I guess the closest we have to this place is Vegas, though their big showrooms have none of the amazing intimacy. Until “Doc Brown” gets the “bugs’ worked out we can’t take a sixty-year jaunt back in time to catch Ella and Lenny, but the engrossing and highly entertaining feature documentary LIVE AT MISTER KELLY’S is pretty darn close. Now I’m itching for one of their big juicy steaks along with a fresh Green Goddess salad! Tasty!

3.5 Out of 4

LIVE AT MR. KELLY’S is now playing at select theatres and is Video-On-Demond streaming on most apps and platforms

SOUL – Review

So on the big day what do you plan on doing after the presents under the tree have been unwrapped (or as with my household, discovered as you enter the living room from your bedroom)? I mean after having breakfast or brunch, what’s next? How about opening a really wonderful gift via modern entertainment tech? In those pre-Pandemic days, Christmas afternoon and evening was one of the busiest times for the ole’ multiplex. Now several areas have shuttered their theatres, while many folks are still skittish about heading to ones still open (at least till those vaccines become more accessible). And so the fine folks at Disney are making the newest release from their subsidiary Pixar available to watch at home through their streaming service. But this is no “cutie-pie” family flick romp. No, this is one of the studio’s most ambitious efforts, pondering mortality, destiny, talent, and all that’s part of everyone’s SOUL.

The soul at the heart of this story belongs to temp inner-city grade school band teacher Joe Gardner (voice of Jamie Foxx), who really longs to be a jazz pianist. After the ear-splitting practice ends, the school’s principal gives him some good news along with his paycheck. He’s now a full-time member of the faculty. Joe half-heartedly thanks her and rushes off to share this with the one person who will be thrilled about this permanent job: his mother Libba (Phylicia Rashad), who runs a neighborhood dress/tailor shop. She’s been telling him to get “steady” employment for years. But just then Joe gets a momentous phone call from a former student, now called Curley (Questlove). He’s the drummer for the highly respected Dorothea Williams jazz quartet, which is now a trio after their pianist dropped out of tonight’s “gig”. Could Joe run down to the club for a brief audition? Of course, Joe is a blur as he dashes away from the shop. He’s a bit intimidated by Ms. Williams (Angela Bassett), but she’s impressed enough. Leaving the club, Joe’s floating on a cloud…until he falls…through an open manhole. When he opens his eyes he’s now a fuzzy blue blob on an inclined moving walkway ending in a bright white light. The other “whatzits” tell him that they’re “old souls” headed for “The Great Beyond”.  A now panicked Joe starts hurtling in the opposite direction because he’s got the big jazz “set’ that night. He makes his way to “The Great Before”, the home of “new souls” who can go to Earth and get a body once they’ve found their purpose or “spark”. Through the counselors (all named Jerry) he learns that each new soul is assigned to an old soul as a mentor. Hmm, maybe he could grab a “back to my body” pass that way. Joe grabs the ID badge of a Nordic professor and is given the oldest and most difficult of the new souls, number 22 (Tina Fey). After an encounter with some “mystics without borders” Joe finds a portal back home, but 22 accidentally takes the plunge. This begins a mortal mix-up causing calamity on both the physical and spiritual worlds.

A superb voice cast expertly compliments and even enhances the astounding visuals. Foxx is at his endearing best as Joe, a true everyman hero who often evokes the spirit of classic comedy icons. And he’s one of the few mature human protagonists of Pixar, though more excitable than Carl from UP and Bob Parr from the INCREDIBLES series. We hear the defeated resignation in his voice as he endures the band practice which quickly dissolves as one gifted trombonist momentarily lifts his spirit. Foxx conveys the quick shifts in Joe’s emotions, his nervous ticks, and unbridled joy in expressing his musical gifts. He has a surprisingly effective partner (who’d have thought of this comedic team) in Fey who balances her great “wiseacre” snark with a sour pessimism and a mischievous streak (you can’t turn your back on 22). There are some great supporting turns by two acting icons. Rashad and Bassett are tough taskmasters to Joe with Libba trying to bring him back to reality and Dorothea full of cool detachment as she demands his best. UK “chat show” host Graham Norton is a loony, loopy delight as the head “mystic’ always in the “zone”, Moonwind. Big kudos to the various versions of counselor Jerry (Alice Braga, Richard Ayoade, Wes Studi, Fortune Feimster, and others) and especially Rachel House as the “soul counter” Terry (“It doesn’t add up!”) who adds an extra layer of suspense and urgency to the frantic finale.

One of the frustrations of the Pandemic (although really minor compared to the loss of life and jobs) is the inability to see the incredible artistry of the various craftspeople projected on a huge screen (oh, for some IMAX please). Yes, it’ll look great in your home, I’m sure, but to be emersed in these created worlds would be pure film lovers’ bliss. Yes, both worlds are spectacular. The many scenes set on the city streets (thinking Brooklyn) capture the hustle and bustle in mind-blowing detail with crowded sidewalks and lurching traffic. But then the “soul scape” is truly out of this world with rolling hills and structures that defy space and gravity. Against these marvelous backgrounds are triumphs of character design. The “souls” (old and new) are part puffy clouds and cotton candy with a hazy “wispy” outline that still seems to have the proper “weight”. And somehow they work with the linear look of Terry and the Jerrys, two-dimensional beings that almost fold in on themselves who invoke the styles of Miro, Calder, and Picasso. But the human designs are just as delightful. Joe’s settling into “pear-shaped” middle age with his “bowling pin” body shape with little break between his head and neck except for this bump of a chin. We do get a funny animal character with the plump “support feline” Mr. Mittens who almost rolls from place to place. One particular standout character is Dez the barber whose head appears to be screwed into his buff T-shaped athletic build. All of these wonders are brought together by Pixar’s powerhouse Pete Doctor (of UP and INSIDE OUT) and co-directed by Kemp Powers, and both also wrote the nuanced script with Mike Jones, which delivers the laughs and “feels” while addressing so many adult (not “R” rated stuff) concerns and themes. Am I my talent? If I can’t get my dream job, then what? With the film’s setting in the world of jazz, the producers wisely got the piano superstar Jonathon Batiste to be Joe’s fingers and to augment the entrancing score from Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross. Some of the subject matter dealing with morality may be a bit heavy for the lil’ ones, but they’ll be entranced by the vivid visuals and the sweet playful “new souls”. At a time when lots of empty-headed slapstick promotes itself as family fare, Pixar again proves that true “all ages” entertainment doesn’t have to be “dumbed down” to the lowest denominator. It’s not merely a great animated film, but a great film, period. This is a gift that will propel your heart and SOUL.

4 Out of 4

SOUL streams exclusively on Disney+ beginning Christmas Day

MILES DAVIS: BIRTH OF THE COOL – Review

A still from MILES DAVIS: BIRTH OF THE COOL by Stanley Nelson, an official selection of the Documentary Premieres program at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Guy Le Querrec. All photos are copyrighted and may be used by press only for the purpose of news or editorial coverage of Sundance Institute programs. Photos must be accompanied by a credit to the photographer and/or ‘Courtesy of Sundance Institute.’ Unauthorized use, alteration, reproduction or sale of logos and/or photos is strictly prohibited.

Both jazz fans and those less familiar with the jazz legend will find much to like in Stanley Nelson’s fascinating, well-made introduction to Miles Davis, particularly the abundant use of Davis’ music and the evocative black-and-white photos. If you are not already a fan of Miles Davis’ music, the documentary MILES DAVIS: BIRTH OF THE COOL may change that.

We all know the popular image of Miles Davis, the angry man who would not compromise his music, but this thoughtful documentary goes well beyond that simplified image, peeling back layers of a gifted, complicated, flawed person devoted to music. Both jazz fans and those less familiar with the jazz legend will find much to like in this fascinating, well-made introduction to Miles Davis.

The documentary generally follows Davis’ career and life chronologically. It covers pivotal aspects of his personal life and adds historical context of the times but there is a strong emphasis on his music. The documentary spotlights his remarkable genius and his innovative impact on jazz, making it the height of cool and taking it to a wider popularity, but it also offers an honest portrait of a talented complicated, flawed man who lived for his music.

Miles Davis’ own words are a focus, read by actor Carl Lumbly in a gravelly voice that evokes Miles’ own. This well-made documentary is also filled with his Davis’ music and lots of gorgeous black-and-white stills and film footage that captures the man and his era in an immersive and enjoyable fashion.

Jazz is complicated, often difficult music, much admired by classically-trained musicians but sometimes difficult for other ears. Miles Davis’ particular genius was in transforming jazz with groundbreaking innovations while simultaneously making it into a wildly popular with a wider audience, an astonishing feat that this documentay explores skillfully.

Local connections abound in this documentary. Davis was born in Alorton, Illinois, and grew up in East St. Louis, the son of the second-wealthiest man in Illinois, a rare thing for a black man in early twentieth century America. The local debut of this film on Sept. 6 at the Tivoli theater was attended by members of Miles Davis’ family and the filmmakers.

Despite his father’s wealth, this was also a time of Jim Crow and open racism, and Davis’ childhood was also marred by his parents’ contentious relationship and his father’s abuse of his mother. Davis was a dreamy, odd child who was always enamored with music but his parents battled over his musical direction. His father insisted he learn trumpet rather than violin, but his mother saw to it that he attended Julliard. While studying at Julliard, Davis played in bands in Harlem, and haunted clubs searching for his musical idols.

His studies at Julliard were complicated when his high school sweetheart showed up, with his child in tow and another on the way. The demands on him were enormous, but he focused on music and his family suffered. By the end of the ’40s, at Julliard, he was working with his another musician on something called Birth of the Cool, a melding of jazz and classical. That work took him to Paris. Bebop was the jazz at the time, complicated brainy music and post-WWII Europe was particularly open to this new jazz. Miles Davis loved Paris, where he met French singer Juliette Greco and fell in love. She introduced him to French intellectuals and artists including Satre and Picasso, who treated him as an equal and who considered jazz the height of art. those experiences helped Davis realize not all white people were prejudiced, which had been his experience in America.

Coming back from France, was a hard adjustment, He lost his focus and developed a heroin habit living in NY. His father came to get him and take him back to East St. Louis. Eventually, he returned to music and beat the habit but addiction continued to haunt him at time throughout his life.

The documentary is affectionate and sympathetic but honest about Miles’ flaws and mistakes, his drug used and failed marriages. All the same, the major focus is, as it should be, on his music. There are interviews with several musician who worked with Miles dotted throughout the documentary, as well as commentary from musical experts and academics. Some of the best insights come from musicologist Tammy Kernodle. Among the interviewees are also Washington University professor Gerald Early.

Davis recognized early on that his classical-training gave him an edge over many other popular musicians, and he made use of that fully. A few albums get a special spotlight, particularly the groundbreaking “Kind of Blue,” which shot Davis to fame as well as bringing jazz new fans and a wider popularity. Samples of the music illustrate why in enjoyable fashion. The documentary also delves into Miles’ unique improvisational style, the creative freedom he gave his band members, and his generosity in mentoring other musicians, particularly John Coltrane.

This is a wonderful, insightful introduction to the man and his music, both complicated but worthwhile subjects. The film. MILES DAVIS: BIRTH OF THE COOL opens Friday, Sept. 6, at the Tivoli Theater.

RATING: 4 out of 4 stars

Review: ICONS AMONG US

One of the most significant concepts spoken in the documentary ICONS AMONG US regards how a musician learning to play jazz is nothing more than that musician discovering the answer to the question who am I… because, as is stated in the film, the core of how an artist approaches creating jazz music is all in the music coming from who they are. That sounds deep, but when you really think about and consider what that means… it says so much about jazz.

Immediately upon viewing ICONS AMONG US, the viewer will realize not only that jazz is a passion for musicians of all backgrounds, ages, men and women – it’s a way of life, not just something people do. What is also apparent is that jazz has, and is still, evolving constantly. Much of the jazz heard in this film is very different from the standards and greats from the past, but that’s not to say this music, as broad and vivid as it is, doesn’t have its place and purpose.

ICONS AMONG US is a journey through the “now” of jazz music, the story of how the sound and the structure – the heart and soul of the music – how it has grown with us as a culture of emotional human beings, each of us having lived our own lives yet all interconnected. On a very primal level, jazz is the musical interpretation of that experience.

Co-directed by Lars Larson, Michael Rivoira and Peter J. Vogt, ICONS AMONG US is a straightforward documentary. There’s no glitz or flair in the style of the film. Instead, it’s all about the music… whereas the typical response for many would be to focus on the musician. The creator/performer of jazz is not the catalyst for the music, but is the vessel for its birth into the world for others to hear and feel. With that said, this film is an intensely enjoyable audio/visual experience, especially for the enthusiastic — but ignorant — amateur lover of jazz, such as myself. It’s both an introduction and a retrospective nostalgia piece that takes the viewer from the origins of jazz (from the mouths of some of the art form’s veterans) to loose predictions and anticipation for where jazz music is headed… into the great unknown of infinite possibilities.

The full title of this documentary is ICONS AMONG US: JAZZ IN THE PRESENT TENSE. Fitting, given the clearly emphatic theme of current musicians and the essence of jazz as music of now. This is the film that needs to be shown to young students just developing an interest in music, whether it be jazz or classical or any kind of music. Jazz is like learning the rules and bending/breaking them all at once – in my mind at least, the core of the phenomena of music uninhibited.

For more information about ICONS AMONG US and to follow the progress and success of the film as it reaches more and more viewers, check out The Jazz Indie.

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 stars