 SONNY ROLLINS: LIVE AT LAREN:
The Band opens by stoking a blazing swing. In jumps Sonny -- gutsy, sardonic, fanciful -- revving a stunning ride through 'There Is No Greater Love.' It's worth seeing a band (pianist Walter Davis, Jr., guitarist Yoshiaki Masuo, bassist Bob Cranshaw, drummer David Lee swing this band. Rollins rambles like an idiosyncratic genius, chasing melodies out of the womb, doubling back through odd harmonic byways, emerging like an old fox. This 1973 performance adds up to greatness and, in closeups, Sonny sweats hard -- genius only appears effortless. Other songs, Don't Stop the Carnival, Alfie, and St. Thomas.
BEN WEBSTER: BIG BEN IN EUROPE:
Johan van der Keuken, who made this film in Amesterdam in 1967, compresses into 31 minutes the life and times of the expatriate tenor sax giant (1909-73). In addition to poignant moments of Webster playing 'My Romance' and other standards, this odd montage shows him playing along with a Fats Waller record, talking to his Dutch landlady ('She's like a second mother to me.'), reminiscing about Duke Ellington's band ('You never get it out of your system.'), shooting pool, and visiting the zoo. Here is a masterful example of filmmaking that truly penetrates the heart of this big, sad, lonely bachelor. NOTE: THIS IS A DOUBLE-SIDED DISC WITH NTSC FORMAT ON ONE SIDE AND PAL ON THE OTHER. THIS IS ALL-REGION AND WILL PLAY ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD.
DVD (NTSC/PAL - ALL REGION)
67 Min. |