DVD Reviews

When Gary McFarland died in 1971, he had been praised as one of the 1960s most innovative jazz arrangers and vilified by the same critics for incorporating rock and Brazilian music into his scores. A new documentary, This is Gary McFarland, attempts to restore McFarland’s lost fame. In his DVD review, Thomas Cunniffe notes that the film takes too narrow of an approach to McFarland’s wide musical horizons.

Under the right conditions, jazz–like many other art forms–can take on a spiritual quality that can affect both the creators and audience. Charles Lloyd has communicated that spirit in performances spanning half a decade. A new film co-directed by Lloyd’s wife, Dorothy Darr, examines Lloyd’s career primarily through the effect he has had on fellow musicians and audiences. Thomas Cunniffe reviews the DVD edition, which includes notes from the filmmakers and a full Lloyd/ECM discography.

Now approaching the 40th anniversary of their first duo album, Crystal Silence, Chick Corea and Gary Burton are still making music together, with a new album due in September. Thomas Cunniffe reviews a recently reissued DVD featuring the duo in a 1997 concert from Munich.

By 1959, Duke Ellington had appeared in several films with his orchestra, but had never been commissioned to write a film score. So when an offer came from Otto Preminger to score “Anatomy of a Murder”, Ellington accepted the assignment. Thomas Cunniffe reviews Criterion’s new DVD edition which offers an audio option that makes the music stand out.

Nearly 60 years after his death, Clifford Brown is still regarded as one of the greatest trumpeters in jazz history. For the past two decades, Don Glanden has researched Brown’s life and music, and interviewed many of Brown’s friends and colleagues. The results have been gathered into a new documentary, Brownie Speaks, and as reviewer (and longtime Brownie fan) Thomas Cunniffe writes, the film is loaded with new information about Brown’s life and career.

At the beginning of Bruce Spiegel’s documentary, “Time Remembered”, Chuck Israels says that he is constantly asked “What was Bill Evans really like?” Israels, who spent five years as Evans’ bassist, shakes his head and replies “Damned if I know”. Thomas Cunniffe reviews the DVD, which attempts to uncover some of the mysteries surrounding this iconic musician.

Ella Fitzgerald was a regular presence on television during the 1950s and 1960s. Best of the BBC Vaults, a CD/DVD set just issued in the US, but released three years ago in the UK, collects four classic Fitzgerald TV appearances from 1965-1977. Thomas Cunniffe reviews the collection.

In the 1950s, Erroll Garner was ubiquitous: his recordings (on several different labels) were everywhere, and he frequently appeared in concerts and on television. But Garner’s style didn’t fit easily into accepted jazz genres and hardly any pianists played exclusively in his style. Atticus Brady’s new documentary No One Can Hear You Read attempts to revitalize the legacy of this self-taught wonder. Thomas Cunniffe reviews the DVD.