Reviews (13)

Best jazz documentary there is.
The film tells the full story behind the famous photograph that first appeared in Esquire in 1958 showing all the musicians on the stoop of a brownstone on 125th St. and a fascinating story it is. The film includes stills taken by Milt Hinton that day and a lot of footage taken by Milt Hinton's wife with an 8mm movie camera and it is masterfully edited. In the film we learn how Thelonious Monk held up the whole production by taking so long to decide what jacket he was going to wear. We learn why Count Basie is sitting down on the curb next to a row of neighborhood kids. We learn how amazing it is that the shoot came off at all because it was scheduled for 10 AM. The video also includes a short in which Dizzy Gillespie, Milt Hinton and Jonah Jones tell the story of the famous spitball incident in Cab Calloway's band.

A great day in history
The brainchild of an Esquire magazine art director led to this wonderful moment in our cultural and national history -- almost 60 jazz musicians gathered on 120th Street in Harlem in 1958 for a photograph. This video draws on the memories of some of those who were there: Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Rollins, Marian McPartland, Art Blakey, Gerry Mulligan, Milt Hinton, Bud Freeman among them -- to recreate the moment. Lots of film footage of the gathering and many touching moments are included, from Count Basie sitting on the curb with the neighborhood youngsters to Thelonious Monk's surprise showing -- late as usual. This was a monumental task, getting 60 jazz musicians to gather at 10 a.m., the equivalent of 4 a.m. in our world, and they did it! This video needs to be re-released, now if not sooner, for all of us who love jazz or want to learn more about its practitioners.

very good.
yeah both these are good but its really all about the photo. great to see some of milt hinton's cine footage from the day and other fotos too. the stories are all good from the musicians interviewed even if the photographer does come across a bit of a pratt sometimes. well worth it if you are a jazz fan or appreciate modern history.

Harlem, the number one Jazz empire!
This is a documentary about the golden age Jazz greats. These are the stories and sounds of the legends in the Jazz industry. The famous Picture of the great Jazz musicians and singers combined on the sidewalk of a street in Harlem, N.Y.. The kids that were sitting on the curb with Count Basie, wasn't supposed to be in the shot; but was used to add a realistic setting to the picture. Then there was the spitball story, told by Dizzy Gillespie himself. Dizzy was always shooting spitballs on the stage when they would be doing a show. He coaxed another band member into shooting them also, and Cab Calloway knew Dizzy had been shooting the spitballs and gave Dizzy plenty of warnings to stop. In one show, while Cab was on stage singing and dancing with some girls, a spitball landed on stage in front of Cab and the girls; right in the spot light. Mr. Calloway stopped the show and yelled at Dizzy, but it wasn't Dizzy that time; it was the other band member. When the other band member admitted to the spitball, Mr. Calloway still claimed it was Dizzy's fault, and fired him. Mr. Gillespie and Mr. Calloway got into a heated argument. The argument turned into a fight, and Dizzy pulled a switch blade on Mr. Cab Calloway; slicing him on the hand. Mr. Calloway, lunged at Dizzy and banged his leg against a large luggage trunk; forming a large bleeding wound on his leg. Mr. Gillespie said in his own words, "That was the best thing that had every happened to me" The fact that Mr. Cab Calloway fired him from the band, Mr. Dizzy Gillespie went on and formed his own band, and created his own success. This is an historial documentary that shouldn't be ignored. I recommend it.

Informative and Interesting!
A Great Day in Harlem: This is a great documentary about one of the most famous jazz photos. With interviews from the photographer, musicians, and even one of the kids sitting next to Count Basie in the front, it gives you a nice background about the photo. Also, there is even some color film footage that was taken by Milt Hinton's wife, along with sequences of photographs that give the feel of motion.

The Spitball Story: A nice mini-documentary about the story behind the spitball that led to Dizzy Gillespie being fired from Cab Calloway's orchestra. Lots of commentary from Diz himself is included (plus Milt Hinton and Jonah Jones), and during the end credits, there's some film footage of Dizzy performing "He Beeped When He Should Have Bopped." ... Read more

Reviews (13)

Best jazz documentary there is.
The film tells the full story behind the famous photograph that first appeared in Esquire in 1958 showing all the musicians on the stoop of a brownstone on 125th St. and a fascinating story it is. The film includes stills taken by Milt Hinton that day and a lot of footage taken by Milt Hinton's wife with an 8mm movie camera and it is masterfully edited. In the film we learn how Thelonious Monk held up the whole production by taking so long to decide what jacket he was going to wear. We learn why Count Basie is sitting down on the curb next to a row of neighborhood kids. We learn how amazing it is that the shoot came off at all because it was scheduled for 10 AM. The video also includes a short in which Dizzy Gillespie, Milt Hinton and Jonah Jones tell the story of the famous spitball incident in Cab Calloway's band.

A great day in history
The brainchild of an Esquire magazine art director led to this wonderful moment in our cultural and national history -- almost 60 jazz musicians gathered on 120th Street in Harlem in 1958 for a photograph. This video draws on the memories of some of those who were there: Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Rollins, Marian McPartland, Art Blakey, Gerry Mulligan, Milt Hinton, Bud Freeman among them -- to recreate the moment. Lots of film footage of the gathering and many touching moments are included, from Count Basie sitting on the curb with the neighborhood youngsters to Thelonious Monk's surprise showing -- late as usual. This was a monumental task, getting 60 jazz musicians to gather at 10 a.m., the equivalent of 4 a.m. in our world, and they did it! This video needs to be re-released, now if not sooner, for all of us who love jazz or want to learn more about its practitioners.

very good.
yeah both these are good but its really all about the photo. great to see some of milt hinton's cine footage from the day and other fotos too. the stories are all good from the musicians interviewed even if the photographer does come across a bit of a pratt sometimes. well worth it if you are a jazz fan or appreciate modern history.

Harlem, the number one Jazz empire!
This is a documentary about the golden age Jazz greats. These are the stories and sounds of the legends in the Jazz industry. The famous Picture of the great Jazz musicians and singers combined on the sidewalk of a street in Harlem, N.Y.. The kids that were sitting on the curb with Count Basie, wasn't supposed to be in the shot; but was used to add a realistic setting to the picture. Then there was the spitball story, told by Dizzy Gillespie himself. Dizzy was always shooting spitballs on the stage when they would be doing a show. He coaxed another band member into shooting them also, and Cab Calloway knew Dizzy had been shooting the spitballs and gave Dizzy plenty of warnings to stop. In one show, while Cab was on stage singing and dancing with some girls, a spitball landed on stage in front of Cab and the girls; right in the spot light. Mr. Calloway stopped the show and yelled at Dizzy, but it wasn't Dizzy that time; it was the other band member. When the other band member admitted to the spitball, Mr. Calloway still claimed it was Dizzy's fault, and fired him. Mr. Gillespie and Mr. Calloway got into a heated argument. The argument turned into a fight, and Dizzy pulled a switch blade on Mr. Cab Calloway; slicing him on the hand. Mr. Calloway, lunged at Dizzy and banged his leg against a large luggage trunk; forming a large bleeding wound on his leg. Mr. Gillespie said in his own words, "That was the best thing that had every happened to me" The fact that Mr. Cab Calloway fired him from the band, Mr. Dizzy Gillespie went on and formed his own band, and created his own success. This is an historial documentary that shouldn't be ignored. I recommend it.

Informative and Interesting!
A Great Day in Harlem: This is a great documentary about one of the most famous jazz photos. With interviews from the photographer, musicians, and even one of the kids sitting next to Count Basie in the front, it gives you a nice background about the photo. Also, there is even some color film footage that was taken by Milt Hinton's wife, along with sequences of photographs that give the feel of motion.

The Spitball Story: A nice mini-documentary about the story behind the spitball that led to Dizzy Gillespie being fired from Cab Calloway's orchestra. Lots of commentary from Diz himself is included (plus Milt Hinton and Jonah Jones), and during the end credits, there's some film footage of Dizzy performing "He Beeped When He Should Have Bopped." ... Read more

Amazon.com

Already a veteran of such luminous bands as the Gerry Mulligan Quartet, Quincy Jones's orchestra, and his own trend-setting group with Benny Golson, ArtFarmer in 1964 was just beginning to help popularize the flugelhorn with thisband he co-led with guitarist Jim Hall.In the spartan TV studio setting ofJazz Casual, host Ralph Gleason gets in some interview time with thevisibly nervous Farmer after the first number, and after that it's all jazz.Supporting the lyrically swinging group of Farmer-Hall is bassist Steve Swallow,plunking away at the bass fiddle looking like a hip-cat scarecrow in a thin tie,and drummer Walter Perkins who gets in a groovy drum solo on the Charlie Parker-penned romp "My Little Suede Shoes." Tough, lyrical, swinging, and empathetic--this is Art Farmer, 1964. --Kristian St. Clair ... Read more

Description

Created by world-renowned jazz aficionado Ralph J. Gleason,the Jazz Casual programs were originally broadcast on the National Education Television Network from 1960-1968 to showcase the wild sounds of jazz. Presenting jazz music to American audiences in an intimate and informal setting, the series was unique in that the musical director of each episode was, essentially, the featured artist, an approach that generated the cooperation of the scene's most revered musicians.

Woody Herman, a favorite of Gleason's, was the only featured artist to appear on Jazz Casual more than once.Herman's bands included some of the best players in the field--this version of Woody's Swingin' Herd features Sal Nistico on saxophone, Jake Hanna on drums, Bill Chase on trumpet, Nat Pierce on piano, Chuck Andrus on bass and, of course, Woody on clarinet. This episode of Jazz Casual, which originally aired May 24, 1963, features "A Taste of Honey," "My Wish," "Deep Purple," "Early Autumn," "Satin Doll," "Mood Indigo," and "Blue Flame."

Ralph Gleason called Art Farmer's 1964 group "first rate jazz" and "lyrical, soft, quiet, reflective and delightful."The group features Farmer on trumpet, Jim Hall on guitar, Steve Swallow on bass, and Walter Perkins on drums. On this session, Farmer and group perform several ballad standards, such as "My Kinda Love," "Some Time Ago," and "Change Partners," along with Charlie Parker's "My Little Suede Shoes" and Milt Jackson's "Bag's Groove." This episode originally aired January 10, 1964.

Toby Gleason, Ralph's son, says, "My dad must have had a great deal of respect for Gerry Mulligan, as he virtually never had anything bad to say about him or his group in his columns."Here Mulligan plays baritone sax and piano (a relative rarity, as Mulligan made a point in 1962 of both performing and recording without piano) with Bob Brookmeyer on trombone, Gus Johnson on bass, and Wyatt Ruther on drums.They play Mulligan's compositions "Four for Three" and "Utter Chaos," and Brookmeyer's "Open Country," along with Mulligan's arrangement of "Darn That Dream" (Delange/Van Huesen).This episode originally aired July 18, 1962. ... Read more