This week, we continue our summer festival of jazz films with five documentaries looking at the lives of legendary musicians, plus a vintage TV special from the 1970s featuring performances from a stellar lineup of musicians still active then.
First up is Art Tatum: The Art of Jazz Piano, the only documentary portrait of the great pianist.
Down below, you'll find More Than You Know, a documentary about tenor saxophonist Dexter Gordon.
Below that, it's Music in the Key of Oscar, about pianist Oscar Peterson; and Joe Zawinul: A Musical Portrait, a BBC film about the Weather Report keyboardist.
The final film is an all-star jazz show first broadcast on CBS in 1976 as The Original Rompin' Stompin' Hot And Heavy, Cool And Groove All Star Jazz Show. Hosted by Dionne Warwick, the Emmy winning film was directed by Gary Keys and recorded at the Ed Sullivan Theater in NYC.
Aired as part of the network's “Lively Arts for Young People" series, it traces the history of jazz from spirituals to fusion and jazz-rock, and includes performances from Lionel Hampton, Count Basie, Dizzy Gillespie, Herbie Hancock, Max Roach, Stan Getz, Gerry Mulligan, and Joe Williams.
