Abbott Elementary’s Mr. Johnson typically makes you laugh. This time, he made folks cry.
In the season three finale of the Emmy-winning series, the janitor and Quinta Brunson’s Janine Teagues have a short but serious talk about pursuing life and living with regrets. “It’ll be all right, trust me,” he reassures her.
“I got a lot of compliments from not only Quinta but from the producers and the writers, and some of them even got a little teary and got a little emotional about it,” William Stanford Davis tells The Hollywood Reporter. “You got to see a different side of [Mr. Johnson]. He’s a three-dimensional character. Every time we shot it, [Quinta and I] were like, ‘Wow.’ I’m hoping it affected the audience in the same way.”
Quinta Brunson and Willian Stanford Davis in ‘Abbott Elementary’
The moment for Davis, 72, was emotional for another reason: He says Brunson, who created the ABC hit,...
In the season three finale of the Emmy-winning series, the janitor and Quinta Brunson’s Janine Teagues have a short but serious talk about pursuing life and living with regrets. “It’ll be all right, trust me,” he reassures her.
“I got a lot of compliments from not only Quinta but from the producers and the writers, and some of them even got a little teary and got a little emotional about it,” William Stanford Davis tells The Hollywood Reporter. “You got to see a different side of [Mr. Johnson]. He’s a three-dimensional character. Every time we shot it, [Quinta and I] were like, ‘Wow.’ I’m hoping it affected the audience in the same way.”
Quinta Brunson and Willian Stanford Davis in ‘Abbott Elementary’
The moment for Davis, 72, was emotional for another reason: He says Brunson, who created the ABC hit,...
- 6/8/2024
- by Mesfin Fekadu
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Over the past week or so, Apple Music has slowly unveiled the titles included in its list of the “100 best albums.” Today, the top 10 albums were revealed, with Miss Lauryn Hill’s The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill claiming the No. 1 spot. Rounding out the top five are Michael Jackson’s Thriller; The Beatles’ Abbey Road; Prince’s Purple Rain; and Frank Ocean’s Blonde.
The top 10 also includes Stevie Wonder’s Songs in the Key of Life; Kendrick Lamar’s good kid, m.A.A.d city (Deluxe Version); Amy Winehouse’s Back to Black; Nirvana’s Nevermind; and Beyoncé’s Lemonade.
In all honestly, it’s a pretty safe top 10, especially considering the drama that unfolded when Apple unveiled picks 11-20 and slotted Adele’s 21 at No. 15 and Taylor Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) at No. 18 — ahead of albums like Dr. Dre’s The Chronic, The Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds,...
The top 10 also includes Stevie Wonder’s Songs in the Key of Life; Kendrick Lamar’s good kid, m.A.A.d city (Deluxe Version); Amy Winehouse’s Back to Black; Nirvana’s Nevermind; and Beyoncé’s Lemonade.
In all honestly, it’s a pretty safe top 10, especially considering the drama that unfolded when Apple unveiled picks 11-20 and slotted Adele’s 21 at No. 15 and Taylor Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) at No. 18 — ahead of albums like Dr. Dre’s The Chronic, The Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds,...
- 5/22/2024
- by Alex Young
- Consequence - Music
Michael Cuscuna, the three-time Grammy winner, Mosaic Records co-founder, historian and archivist who produced hundreds of jazz reissues and studio sessions during his career, has died. He was 75.
Cuscuna died Saturday of cancer at his home in Stamford, Connecticut, Grammy-winning recording artist Billy Vera, a longtime friend, announced.
Cuscuna produced the 1970 album Buddy & the Juniors, featuring Buddy Guy, Junior Wells and Junior Mance, for Vanguard Records, and 1972’s Give It Up, Bonnie Raitt’s lone gold album during her time at Warner Bros.
He produced reissues and studio sessions for Impulse, Atlantic, Arista, Muse, Elektra, Freedom, Novus and virtually the entire Blue Note catalog.
“Plainly stated, Blue Note Records would not exist as it does today without the passion & dedication of Michael Cuscuna,” execs from the label wrote on Instagram.
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A post shared by Blue Note Records (@bluenoterecords)
Readers of Blues & Rhythm magazine know his work in the blues field,...
Cuscuna died Saturday of cancer at his home in Stamford, Connecticut, Grammy-winning recording artist Billy Vera, a longtime friend, announced.
Cuscuna produced the 1970 album Buddy & the Juniors, featuring Buddy Guy, Junior Wells and Junior Mance, for Vanguard Records, and 1972’s Give It Up, Bonnie Raitt’s lone gold album during her time at Warner Bros.
He produced reissues and studio sessions for Impulse, Atlantic, Arista, Muse, Elektra, Freedom, Novus and virtually the entire Blue Note catalog.
“Plainly stated, Blue Note Records would not exist as it does today without the passion & dedication of Michael Cuscuna,” execs from the label wrote on Instagram.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Blue Note Records (@bluenoterecords)
Readers of Blues & Rhythm magazine know his work in the blues field,...
- 4/22/2024
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
At long last, Franklin Armstrong has gotten the spotlight. After 55 years, the first Black character inducted into the Peanuts gang gets to show off his complexities beyond his complexion in Apple TV+‘s latest Peanuts special, Snoopy Presents: Welcome Home Franklin. Right in time for Black History Month, no less.
The special focuses on the titular character depicted as a socially awkward kid who struggles to make new friends organically in the new neighborhood his family moves into. When he befriends hapless Charlie Brown, they instantly bond and enter a soapbox derby race. Franklin was never given this much attention or personality despite his long-running presence in Peanuts. As overdue as this special was, the significance of Franklin as a character cannot be overstated -not only to the Peanuts series but also to the diversity across the comic medium and the voices it inspired. One of whom was a co-writer on the special.
The special focuses on the titular character depicted as a socially awkward kid who struggles to make new friends organically in the new neighborhood his family moves into. When he befriends hapless Charlie Brown, they instantly bond and enter a soapbox derby race. Franklin was never given this much attention or personality despite his long-running presence in Peanuts. As overdue as this special was, the significance of Franklin as a character cannot be overstated -not only to the Peanuts series but also to the diversity across the comic medium and the voices it inspired. One of whom was a co-writer on the special.
- 2/16/2024
- by Alec Bojalad
- Den of Geek
The second half of 2022 was full of change for Mei Semones. The musician had just moved to a new city, New York. She was falling in love as she began a new relationship while also ending a close friendship, and she was adjusting to the unglamorous realities of adulthood after having graduated from Berklee College of Music that spring.
“It was a transition period of my life,” says Semones, who struggled to find time for creativity now that she had a full-time job at a Japanese preschool. “I was trying...
“It was a transition period of my life,” says Semones, who struggled to find time for creativity now that she had a full-time job at a Japanese preschool. “I was trying...
- 2/15/2024
- by Jonathan Bernstein
- Rollingstone.com
Wayne Kramer, who died Feb. 2 at the age of 75, lived a truly rock n’ roll life, from his gloriously unhinged guitar playing with influential proto-punk revolutionaries MC5 to a prison term, years of addiction, and a musical comeback in the Nineties. In this 2018 interview, previously available only in audio form on our Rolling Stone Music Now podcast, he looked back at all of it. (To hear the full episode, go here for the podcast provider of your choice, listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or just press play below.)
You wrote in your book,...
You wrote in your book,...
- 2/3/2024
- by Brian Hiatt
- Rollingstone.com
“The Belgians cut off my hands in the Congo,” Langston Hughes wrote in his poem “Negro.” “They lynch me now in Texas.” The year was 1922, and racial segregation was the norm in the United States. Anti-Black racism in the South was such a millstone that the U.S. Senate failed to pass an NAACP-sponsored anti-lynching bill in January of that year, a list of simple protections that was prevented from coming to a vote due to filibusters.
Hughes’s poem is one piece of ephemera that comprises the massive tapestry that is Soundtrack to a Coup d’État. Director Johan Grimonprez’s documentary is primarily focused on the Democratic Republic of Congo and its struggle for independence from Belgian colonialism, during which time our government was using Black jazz musicians to, in its diplomatic tango with the Soviet Union, paint a portrait of American liberalism as benevolent.
The documentary focuses on...
Hughes’s poem is one piece of ephemera that comprises the massive tapestry that is Soundtrack to a Coup d’État. Director Johan Grimonprez’s documentary is primarily focused on the Democratic Republic of Congo and its struggle for independence from Belgian colonialism, during which time our government was using Black jazz musicians to, in its diplomatic tango with the Soviet Union, paint a portrait of American liberalism as benevolent.
The documentary focuses on...
- 1/23/2024
- by Greg Nussen
- Slant Magazine
Margaret Glaspy was 17 miles into the race when she entered the pain cave.
It was always a question of when, not if, she would experience it. Her body was already jetlagged when she started, thanks to an international flight two days before. Tropical Storm Ophelia had been pummeling her with wind and rain throughout the entire race. (The message on the race’s website seems almost sadistic in hindsight: “Hopefully we are going to have a nice fall day!”) The course, which blended technical single-track trails, rolling hills, and double-wide gravel roads,...
It was always a question of when, not if, she would experience it. Her body was already jetlagged when she started, thanks to an international flight two days before. Tropical Storm Ophelia had been pummeling her with wind and rain throughout the entire race. (The message on the race’s website seems almost sadistic in hindsight: “Hopefully we are going to have a nice fall day!”) The course, which blended technical single-track trails, rolling hills, and double-wide gravel roads,...
- 11/11/2023
- by Jason Newman
- Rollingstone.com
Doja Cat, aka She of the Many Spiders, has sadly let the sun to set on one of the quirkiest album rollouts in recent memory — even by Doja standards — with the release of Scarlet, her fourth LP. The 15-track album, which includes the singles “Attention,” “Paint the Town Red,” “Demons,” and “Balut,” is out now.
But what a web she wove to get to this point.
In May, she started tweeting things like “scarlet was here” and “scarlet’s watching” and “let myself heal, scar finally sealed.” She topped that...
But what a web she wove to get to this point.
In May, she started tweeting things like “scarlet was here” and “scarlet’s watching” and “let myself heal, scar finally sealed.” She topped that...
- 9/22/2023
- by Kory Grow
- Rollingstone.com
It’s been almost a year since the ground-breaking jazz legend, Pharoah Sanders, passed away. Now, fans are getting a chance to dive into one of the most interesting albums from his nearly-six-decade career. On Friday, September 15th, the record label Luaka Bop shared the first official reissue of his 1977 LP, Pharoah. Stream it below.
With three tracks spanning over 40 minutes, Pharoah has earned a reputation as one of Sanders’ most creative works. It was recorded in 1976, nearly a decade after the death of his friend and collaborator, John Coltrane, and Sanders was at a crossroads of sorts. With a growing fascination with rock music, he put together a band for some kind of fusion project, but a miscommunication with producer Bob Cummins resulted in the sessions going poorly.
A disappointed Sanders left, reconvened, and returned to record with Cummins again, this time with a unique ensemble featuring spiritual guru Tisziji Muñoz on guitar,...
With three tracks spanning over 40 minutes, Pharoah has earned a reputation as one of Sanders’ most creative works. It was recorded in 1976, nearly a decade after the death of his friend and collaborator, John Coltrane, and Sanders was at a crossroads of sorts. With a growing fascination with rock music, he put together a band for some kind of fusion project, but a miscommunication with producer Bob Cummins resulted in the sessions going poorly.
A disappointed Sanders left, reconvened, and returned to record with Cummins again, this time with a unique ensemble featuring spiritual guru Tisziji Muñoz on guitar,...
- 9/15/2023
- by Jo Vito
- Consequence - Music
Editors’ Note: This guest column by former Luke Cage showrunner and Creed II writer Cheo Hodari Coker is part of Deadline’s series commemorating the 50th anniversary of Hip-Hop on August 11.
In 1999, Yasin Bey — then known as Mos Def – dropped the seminal album “Black On Both Sides.”
The first song, “Fear Not Of Man” still gets me every time I play it. It’s a classic – — just as powerful now as the first time I heard it two decades ago. A meditation on everything Hip-Hop is…and isn’t.
You know what’s going to happen with hip-hop? Whatever’s happening with us. If we smoked out, hip-hop is going to be smoked out. If we doin’ alright, hip-hop is gonna be doin’ all right.
We are hip-hop. Me. You. Everybody.
So the next time you ask yourself where is hip-hop going, ask yourself – where am I going?
Twenty-four years later,...
In 1999, Yasin Bey — then known as Mos Def – dropped the seminal album “Black On Both Sides.”
The first song, “Fear Not Of Man” still gets me every time I play it. It’s a classic – — just as powerful now as the first time I heard it two decades ago. A meditation on everything Hip-Hop is…and isn’t.
You know what’s going to happen with hip-hop? Whatever’s happening with us. If we smoked out, hip-hop is going to be smoked out. If we doin’ alright, hip-hop is gonna be doin’ all right.
We are hip-hop. Me. You. Everybody.
So the next time you ask yourself where is hip-hop going, ask yourself – where am I going?
Twenty-four years later,...
- 8/11/2023
- by Cheo Hodari Coker
- Deadline Film + TV
The single features renowned musicians Aaron Parks, Joe Sanders, and Brian Blade.
04 August 2023 – Joshua Redman has released “Baltimore,” the second single to be revealed from the acclaimed saxophonist’s forthcoming Blue Note debut where are we due out September 15. One of two instrumental tracks on the album, “Baltimore” was written by the classically influenced songwriter Gabriel Kahane and is given a transcendent performance by Redman’s quartet featuring pianist Aaron Parks, bassist Joe Sanders, and drummer Brian Blade.
where are we is a musical journey across the United States of America that also marks Redman’s first-ever album with a vocalist—the dynamic young singer Gabrielle Cavassa—who is featured throughout as heard on the album’s lead single “Chicago Blues,” a mash-up of Count Basie’s “Goin’ to Chicago” with Sufjan Stevens’ “Chicago.” Redman will be touring the project across the U.S. and Europe following the album’s release.
04 August 2023 – Joshua Redman has released “Baltimore,” the second single to be revealed from the acclaimed saxophonist’s forthcoming Blue Note debut where are we due out September 15. One of two instrumental tracks on the album, “Baltimore” was written by the classically influenced songwriter Gabriel Kahane and is given a transcendent performance by Redman’s quartet featuring pianist Aaron Parks, bassist Joe Sanders, and drummer Brian Blade.
where are we is a musical journey across the United States of America that also marks Redman’s first-ever album with a vocalist—the dynamic young singer Gabrielle Cavassa—who is featured throughout as heard on the album’s lead single “Chicago Blues,” a mash-up of Count Basie’s “Goin’ to Chicago” with Sufjan Stevens’ “Chicago.” Redman will be touring the project across the U.S. and Europe following the album’s release.
- 8/5/2023
- by Music Martin Cid Magazine
- Martin Cid Music
Doja Cat stayed true to her word of leaving pop to the side and opted for some hot rap verses on her new single “Attention,” which dropped Friday.
The song opens with the sound of a harp before she starts to sing softly and hauntingly over a drumbeat, while the accompanying music video features Doja roaming the streets of Los Angeles.
“Baby, if you like it, just reach out and pet it/This one doesn’t bite, it doesn’t get aggressive,” she sings in the pre-chrous. “Show you how to touch it,...
The song opens with the sound of a harp before she starts to sing softly and hauntingly over a drumbeat, while the accompanying music video features Doja roaming the streets of Los Angeles.
“Baby, if you like it, just reach out and pet it/This one doesn’t bite, it doesn’t get aggressive,” she sings in the pre-chrous. “Show you how to touch it,...
- 6/16/2023
- by Tomás Mier
- Rollingstone.com
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After Doja Cat‘s recent string of Twitter posts, we had to ask ourselves — would she be dropping new music soon? Was she actually quitting music? Would she be ditching her self-proclaimed “mid and corny” raps for good?
But Doja’s too busy doing her own thing to be beholden to anyone’s assumptions, throwing around album titles and sipping on tonic with limes amidst her new Patrón partnership this summer.
After Doja Cat‘s recent string of Twitter posts, we had to ask ourselves — would she be dropping new music soon? Was she actually quitting music? Would she be ditching her self-proclaimed “mid and corny” raps for good?
But Doja’s too busy doing her own thing to be beholden to anyone’s assumptions, throwing around album titles and sipping on tonic with limes amidst her new Patrón partnership this summer.
- 6/14/2023
- by Sage Anderson
- Rollingstone.com
A long-lost live recording featuring one of John Coltrane and Eric Dolphy’s 1961 sets at New York’s Village Gate has been unearthed for release this summer.
Evenings at the Village Gate, out July 14 via Impulse! Records, was recorded in the summer before Coltrane’s legendary slate of Nov. 1961 dates at the Village Vanguard, with a similar quintet lineup: The short-lived tandem of Coltrane and Dolphy alongside drummer Elvin Jones, pianist McCoy Tyner, and bassist Reggie Workman.
Ahead of the album’s release, Impulse! Records has shared the night’s...
Evenings at the Village Gate, out July 14 via Impulse! Records, was recorded in the summer before Coltrane’s legendary slate of Nov. 1961 dates at the Village Vanguard, with a similar quintet lineup: The short-lived tandem of Coltrane and Dolphy alongside drummer Elvin Jones, pianist McCoy Tyner, and bassist Reggie Workman.
Ahead of the album’s release, Impulse! Records has shared the night’s...
- 6/1/2023
- by Daniel Kreps
- Rollingstone.com
The late Scott Weiland’s solo debut, 12 Bar Blues, turns 25 on Friday (March 31st). In honor of the milestone, Rhino will release remastered and expanded versions of the album this spring.
12 Bar Blues will get its vinyl debut on Record Store Day (April 22nd), as a limited edition 2-lp set. It will be limited to 7,500 copies on 180-gram translucent blue and green vinyl and available only at select independent music retailers for $34.98. The package will feature the original album with newly remastered audio, as well as three previously unreleased recordings: an acoustic demo of “Barbarella” and session outtakes of “Lazy Divey” and “Chateau Mars.” The latter two songs were on the original promotional version of the album but not included with the commercial release.
Following the Record Store Day release, on May 12th, Rhino will release a deluxe version of 12 Bar Blues featuring more unreleased music. This collection, available digitally,...
12 Bar Blues will get its vinyl debut on Record Store Day (April 22nd), as a limited edition 2-lp set. It will be limited to 7,500 copies on 180-gram translucent blue and green vinyl and available only at select independent music retailers for $34.98. The package will feature the original album with newly remastered audio, as well as three previously unreleased recordings: an acoustic demo of “Barbarella” and session outtakes of “Lazy Divey” and “Chateau Mars.” The latter two songs were on the original promotional version of the album but not included with the commercial release.
Following the Record Store Day release, on May 12th, Rhino will release a deluxe version of 12 Bar Blues featuring more unreleased music. This collection, available digitally,...
- 3/31/2023
- by Anne Erickson
- Consequence - Music
Ten seconds is a long time when the clock you’re setting is ticking down to the end of the world. In January, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists announced that the Doomsday Clock – a symbol for how soon humanity can expect to meet its end as a result of our own unchecked advances – had ticked forward 10 seconds. We’re now only 90 seconds to midnight; the closest the minute hand has ever come to its final destination since the clock was unveiled in 1947.
It was news that arrived with stony faces and straight shoulders. While for some, the doomsday concept is dated by its associations with Cold War hysteria, the events apparently nudging humanity closer to its end – climate crisis, Covid, war in Ukraine – are anything but antiquated. And for those with an eye on preservation, the announcement has only served to steel their efforts.
Roughly halfway between Norway and the North Pole lies Svalbard,...
It was news that arrived with stony faces and straight shoulders. While for some, the doomsday concept is dated by its associations with Cold War hysteria, the events apparently nudging humanity closer to its end – climate crisis, Covid, war in Ukraine – are anything but antiquated. And for those with an eye on preservation, the announcement has only served to steel their efforts.
Roughly halfway between Norway and the North Pole lies Svalbard,...
- 3/29/2023
- by Will Pritchard
- The Independent - Music
Nandi Bushell continues to impress with her latest cover rendition of New Orleans Rhythm Kings’ “Tin Roof Blues.”
In the video shared via Bushell’s socials, the young British multi-instrumentalist delivers strictly saxophone-based performance of the leisurely, loose number. Though the typically exuberant performer fit the tone by mostly containing her excitement aside from a few knowing head nods between bars, she also busted out a seamless solo that she boasted in the caption as “all me.”
“It’s almost been 2 years since I got my #yamaha #saxophone,” she shared with the video. “I was inspired by watching Lisa on @thesimpsons. I #Love it. It’s helped me learn about #jazz and #blues opening my mind to lots of new #music.” Ah, if only Bleeding Gums Murphy could see this today. Watch the cover below.
Nandi Bushell’s cover of “Tin Roof Blues” isn’t the first time she has...
In the video shared via Bushell’s socials, the young British multi-instrumentalist delivers strictly saxophone-based performance of the leisurely, loose number. Though the typically exuberant performer fit the tone by mostly containing her excitement aside from a few knowing head nods between bars, she also busted out a seamless solo that she boasted in the caption as “all me.”
“It’s almost been 2 years since I got my #yamaha #saxophone,” she shared with the video. “I was inspired by watching Lisa on @thesimpsons. I #Love it. It’s helped me learn about #jazz and #blues opening my mind to lots of new #music.” Ah, if only Bleeding Gums Murphy could see this today. Watch the cover below.
Nandi Bushell’s cover of “Tin Roof Blues” isn’t the first time she has...
- 3/14/2023
- by Bryan Kress
- Consequence - Music
Burt Bacharach, the velvety smooth composer and orchestrator whose partnership with lyricist Hal David brought swanky sophistication to pop music in the 1960s, has died. He was 94.
Bacharach died Wednesday of natural causes at his home in Los Angeles, publicist Tina Brausam announced.
Bacharach composed the music for some 50 top 10 hits, including six that reached No. 1. Among his most celebrated efforts were “Walk on By,” “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head,” “What the World Needs Now Is Love,” “What’s New Pussycat?” “(They Long to Be) Close to You,” “Alfie,” “This Guy’s in Love With You” and “Do You Know the Way to San Jose?”
He and David were dubbed the “Rodgers & Hart of the ’60s.” Many of their songs were popularized by Dionne Warwick, whose singing style inspired Bacharach to experiment with new rhythms and harmonies, composing innovative melodies for such tunes “Anyone Who Had a Heart” and “I Say a Little Prayer.
Bacharach died Wednesday of natural causes at his home in Los Angeles, publicist Tina Brausam announced.
Bacharach composed the music for some 50 top 10 hits, including six that reached No. 1. Among his most celebrated efforts were “Walk on By,” “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head,” “What the World Needs Now Is Love,” “What’s New Pussycat?” “(They Long to Be) Close to You,” “Alfie,” “This Guy’s in Love With You” and “Do You Know the Way to San Jose?”
He and David were dubbed the “Rodgers & Hart of the ’60s.” Many of their songs were popularized by Dionne Warwick, whose singing style inspired Bacharach to experiment with new rhythms and harmonies, composing innovative melodies for such tunes “Anyone Who Had a Heart” and “I Say a Little Prayer.
- 2/9/2023
- by Duane Byrge and Lisa de los Reyes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Farewell to Tom Verlaine, for some of us the greatest American rock guitarist not named “Hendrix.” Verlaine, who died Saturday at 73, could hit cosmic heights that no other guitar virtuoso could reach. He made his bones in the 1970s with Television, the garage band who created a new kind of psychedelic sublime in the Cbgb punk scene. Television made two of the Seventies’ best guitar albums, Marquee Moon and Adventure, until they fell apart, just as they were hitting their musical peak. But the music Verlaine got out of his...
- 1/29/2023
- by Rob Sheffield
- Rollingstone.com
When Jean Deaux says she’s always creating, she means always. The rapper/singer/songwriter from Chicago has made it a goal to put out music every year after releasing her debut EP, Krash, in 2018. Jean Deaux has been like this her entire life in fact. As a kindergartener, she remembers trying to write chapter books. “It’s funny because it was about my Uncle Bo, but I said my uncle had a farm which was totally a lie. Even the teachers were like, ‘Uncle Bo’s Farm? That’s hard,...
- 11/14/2022
- by Nathan Mattise
- Rollingstone.com
Robbie Coltrane, who has died aged 72, arrived on television in the 1980s as one of the new breed of “alternative” comedy performers. A decade later, he was making an even greater impact as the flawed criminal psychologist in Cracker. Then, moving into a new century, he was a favourite with younger audiences as Hagrid in the Harry Potter films.
He came to the fore in The Comic Strip Presents satirical films for television alongside other new faces such as Peter Richardson, Adrian Edmondson, Jennifer Saunders and Dawn French.
From the first story, Five Go Mad in Dorset, the spoofs gave Channel 4, newly launched in 1982, the subversive edge it sought in being different from the TV establishment.
Coltrane was very much part of that establishment, but at its gritty, hard-hitting centre, when he was cast as Dr Eddie Fitzgerald – “Fitz” – in Cracker (1993-96), former Brookside writer Jimmy McGovern’s creation...
He came to the fore in The Comic Strip Presents satirical films for television alongside other new faces such as Peter Richardson, Adrian Edmondson, Jennifer Saunders and Dawn French.
From the first story, Five Go Mad in Dorset, the spoofs gave Channel 4, newly launched in 1982, the subversive edge it sought in being different from the TV establishment.
Coltrane was very much part of that establishment, but at its gritty, hard-hitting centre, when he was cast as Dr Eddie Fitzgerald – “Fitz” – in Cracker (1993-96), former Brookside writer Jimmy McGovern’s creation...
- 10/28/2022
- by Anthony Hayward
- The Independent - Film
Robbie Coltrane, the Scottish actor best known for portraying the lovable half-giant Hagrid in the “Harry Potter” film series, died October 14 in Lambert, Scotland, IndieWire has confirmed. He was 72.
Beginning his career as a theater and comic performer, Coltrane was a three-time BAFTA winner for his ’90s ITV drama series “Cracker.” After playing a memorable supporting role in the Pierce Brosnan Bond films “Goldeneye” and “The World is Not Enough,” he began his most well-remembered role in 2001, when he portrayed Hagrid in the first “Harry Potter” film. Coltrane appeared in all eight films in the series, and his portrayal of Hagrid won acclaim from fans. In 2006, Queen Elizabeth II honored him with an Order of the British Empire for his service to the arts.
As portrayed in J.K. Rowling’s original book, Hagrid is the half-giant groundskeeper of the magic school Hogwarts and a frequent and constant ally of Harry...
Beginning his career as a theater and comic performer, Coltrane was a three-time BAFTA winner for his ’90s ITV drama series “Cracker.” After playing a memorable supporting role in the Pierce Brosnan Bond films “Goldeneye” and “The World is Not Enough,” he began his most well-remembered role in 2001, when he portrayed Hagrid in the first “Harry Potter” film. Coltrane appeared in all eight films in the series, and his portrayal of Hagrid won acclaim from fans. In 2006, Queen Elizabeth II honored him with an Order of the British Empire for his service to the arts.
As portrayed in J.K. Rowling’s original book, Hagrid is the half-giant groundskeeper of the magic school Hogwarts and a frequent and constant ally of Harry...
- 10/14/2022
- by Wilson Chapman
- Indiewire
Robbie Coltrane, the Scottish actor with a wide-ranging career who was arguably best known to international audiences for playing Hagrid in the Harry Potter franchise, has died. He was 72.
According to The Guardian, Coltrane’s death was confirmed by his agent. No cause of death was given.
Coltrane’s career stretched several decades, and Hagrid was just one of many notable roles he had. Pre-Harry Potter, he was probably best known as Dr. Eddie “Fitz” Fitzgerald, the lead criminal psychologist on the popular British series, Cracker. He also worked with Hugh Laurie,...
According to The Guardian, Coltrane’s death was confirmed by his agent. No cause of death was given.
Coltrane’s career stretched several decades, and Hagrid was just one of many notable roles he had. Pre-Harry Potter, he was probably best known as Dr. Eddie “Fitz” Fitzgerald, the lead criminal psychologist on the popular British series, Cracker. He also worked with Hugh Laurie,...
- 10/14/2022
- by Jon Blistein
- Rollingstone.com
There’s less magic in the world this afternoon after word broke that Robbie Coltrane, the beloved Scottish actor, has passed away at 72. According to Coltrane’s agent, the Harry Potter and James Bond actor had been feeling worse for wear over the past two years. Coltrane passed in a hospital near his home in Larbert, Scotland.
Famous for playing the Hogwarts gamekeeper Rubeus Hagrid in the Harry Potter series, Coltrane also played Valentin Dmitrovich Zukovsky in the James Bond films Goldeneye and The World Is Not Enough. Taking his stage name from jazz saxophonist John Coltrane, Robbie made a name for himself during a theater production of Byrne’s The Slab Boys.
On the television side of the spectrum, Coltrane played forensic psychologist Dr. Edward ‘Fitz’ Coltrane in Cracker, an award-winning drama series. Coltrane won three consecutive BAFTA awards for the role, celebrating his consistency as someone who could captivate an audience.
Famous for playing the Hogwarts gamekeeper Rubeus Hagrid in the Harry Potter series, Coltrane also played Valentin Dmitrovich Zukovsky in the James Bond films Goldeneye and The World Is Not Enough. Taking his stage name from jazz saxophonist John Coltrane, Robbie made a name for himself during a theater production of Byrne’s The Slab Boys.
On the television side of the spectrum, Coltrane played forensic psychologist Dr. Edward ‘Fitz’ Coltrane in Cracker, an award-winning drama series. Coltrane won three consecutive BAFTA awards for the role, celebrating his consistency as someone who could captivate an audience.
- 10/14/2022
- by Steve Seigh
- JoBlo.com
Robbie Coltrane, best known for his roles in Harry Potter, James Bond, and the UK drama series Cracker, has died.
He was 72.
Deadline reports that he passed away in a hospital near his home in Larbert, Scotland.
The outlet reports that Coltrane had been in ill health over the last two years.
Coltrane was born Anthony Robert McMillan on March 30, 1950, in Glasgow, Scotland.
He was the son of a doctor and teacher.
Coltrane attended the Glasgow Art School before continuing his studies at Moray House College of Education in Edinburgh.
He decided to try stand-up comedy after his attempts to become an artist didn't work out.
His name was changed in honor of jazz legend John Coltrane when the star turned to acting.
Early roles included Flash Gordon, Blackadder, and Keep It in the Family.
His other credits included A Kick Up the Eighties, The Comic Strip, and Alfresco.
His...
He was 72.
Deadline reports that he passed away in a hospital near his home in Larbert, Scotland.
The outlet reports that Coltrane had been in ill health over the last two years.
Coltrane was born Anthony Robert McMillan on March 30, 1950, in Glasgow, Scotland.
He was the son of a doctor and teacher.
Coltrane attended the Glasgow Art School before continuing his studies at Moray House College of Education in Edinburgh.
He decided to try stand-up comedy after his attempts to become an artist didn't work out.
His name was changed in honor of jazz legend John Coltrane when the star turned to acting.
Early roles included Flash Gordon, Blackadder, and Keep It in the Family.
His other credits included A Kick Up the Eighties, The Comic Strip, and Alfresco.
His...
- 10/14/2022
- by Paul Dailly
- TVfanatic
We’ve learned the very sad news today that veteran Scottish actor Robbie Coltrane, best known for his role in the Harry Potter movies, has passed away this week at the age of 72.
Deadline reports that Coltrane “passed away in hospital near his home in Larbert, Scotland. The award-winning actor had been in ill health for the past two years.”
Robbie Coltrane became beloved to Harry Potter fans around the world thanks to his role as the lovable Rubeus Hagrid in the hugely successful live action film franchise, a role he first played in 2001’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and continued to play straight through to the final film in the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 in 2011.
Outside the world of Harry Potter, Robbie Coltrane amassed well over 100 additional film and television credits dating back to 1979, with notable projects including Krull (1983), National Lampoon’s European Vacation...
Deadline reports that Coltrane “passed away in hospital near his home in Larbert, Scotland. The award-winning actor had been in ill health for the past two years.”
Robbie Coltrane became beloved to Harry Potter fans around the world thanks to his role as the lovable Rubeus Hagrid in the hugely successful live action film franchise, a role he first played in 2001’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and continued to play straight through to the final film in the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 in 2011.
Outside the world of Harry Potter, Robbie Coltrane amassed well over 100 additional film and television credits dating back to 1979, with notable projects including Krull (1983), National Lampoon’s European Vacation...
- 10/14/2022
- by John Squires
- bloody-disgusting.com
Click here to read the full article.
Robbie Coltrane, the veteran comic and actor known for his star turns in the British crime series Cracker and the Harry Potter movie franchise, died Friday, The Hollywood Reporter has learned. He was 72.
Coltrane’s agent Belinda Wright called him a “unique talent,” whom she’ll remember as “an abidingly loyal client.”
“As well as being a wonderful actor, he was forensically intelligent and brilliantly witty, and after 40 years of being proud to be to called his agent, I shall miss him,” Wright added of Coltrane in a statement.
The boisterous and decidedly eccentric Scotsman, who began his career in comedy and theater, also commanded the screen in two James Bond films during an illustrious career on both sides of the Atlantic.
Coltrane was born Anthony Robert McMillan on March 30, 1950, in Glasgow, Scotland, as the son of a doctor and a teacher. After graduating from Glasgow Art School,...
Robbie Coltrane, the veteran comic and actor known for his star turns in the British crime series Cracker and the Harry Potter movie franchise, died Friday, The Hollywood Reporter has learned. He was 72.
Coltrane’s agent Belinda Wright called him a “unique talent,” whom she’ll remember as “an abidingly loyal client.”
“As well as being a wonderful actor, he was forensically intelligent and brilliantly witty, and after 40 years of being proud to be to called his agent, I shall miss him,” Wright added of Coltrane in a statement.
The boisterous and decidedly eccentric Scotsman, who began his career in comedy and theater, also commanded the screen in two James Bond films during an illustrious career on both sides of the Atlantic.
Coltrane was born Anthony Robert McMillan on March 30, 1950, in Glasgow, Scotland, as the son of a doctor and a teacher. After graduating from Glasgow Art School,...
- 10/14/2022
- by Etan Vlessing
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Pharoah Sanders, the revered tenor saxophone player who was part of John Coltrane’s band in the 1960s and helped popularize the spiritual jazz movement, died Saturday in Los Angeles, his label announced. He was 81.
Luaka Bop revealed the news on social media. “Always and forever the most beautiful human being,” the label wrote. See the full post below.
Hollywood & Media Deaths 2022: A Photo Gallery
Born Farrell Sanders on October 13, 1940, in Little Rock, Ak, he briefly studied music at Oakland Junior College before relocating to New York, where he played with Sun Ra — who gave Sanders the “Pharoah” nickname. The Sun Ra live album Featuring Pharoah Sanders & Black Harold was recorded on New Year’s Eve 1964, but not released until 1976.
After recording his debut solo album, Pharoah’s First, he began playing live gigs and recording with Coltrane. He went on to play on about a dozen of the...
Luaka Bop revealed the news on social media. “Always and forever the most beautiful human being,” the label wrote. See the full post below.
Hollywood & Media Deaths 2022: A Photo Gallery
Born Farrell Sanders on October 13, 1940, in Little Rock, Ak, he briefly studied music at Oakland Junior College before relocating to New York, where he played with Sun Ra — who gave Sanders the “Pharoah” nickname. The Sun Ra live album Featuring Pharoah Sanders & Black Harold was recorded on New Year’s Eve 1964, but not released until 1976.
After recording his debut solo album, Pharoah’s First, he began playing live gigs and recording with Coltrane. He went on to play on about a dozen of the...
- 9/24/2022
- by Erik Pedersen
- Deadline Film + TV
Click here to read the full article.
Pharoah Sanders, the legendary tenor saxophonist who performed alongside John Coltrane in the mid-1960s, has died. He was 81.
Sanders’ passing was announced on Saturday (Sept. 24) by his record label Luaka Bop, which released the influential jazz musician’s 2021 album, Promises, a collaboration with Floating Points and the London Symphony Orchestra. A cause of death was not provided.
“We are devastated to share that Pharoah Sanders has passed away,” Luaka Bop wrote on Twitter. “He died peacefully surrounded by loving family and friends in Los Angeles earlier this morning. Always and forever the most beautiful human being, may he rest in peace.”
Born in Little Rock, Ark., on Oct. 13, 1940, Sanders — whose real name was Ferrell Sanders — moved to the Bay Area in the late 1950s before relocating to New York City, where he met fellow jazz artist Sun Ra, who encouraged him to take the name Pharoah.
Pharoah Sanders, the legendary tenor saxophonist who performed alongside John Coltrane in the mid-1960s, has died. He was 81.
Sanders’ passing was announced on Saturday (Sept. 24) by his record label Luaka Bop, which released the influential jazz musician’s 2021 album, Promises, a collaboration with Floating Points and the London Symphony Orchestra. A cause of death was not provided.
“We are devastated to share that Pharoah Sanders has passed away,” Luaka Bop wrote on Twitter. “He died peacefully surrounded by loving family and friends in Los Angeles earlier this morning. Always and forever the most beautiful human being, may he rest in peace.”
Born in Little Rock, Ark., on Oct. 13, 1940, Sanders — whose real name was Ferrell Sanders — moved to the Bay Area in the late 1950s before relocating to New York City, where he met fellow jazz artist Sun Ra, who encouraged him to take the name Pharoah.
- 9/24/2022
- by Mitchell Peters, Billboard
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Pharoah Sanders, the saxophonist who helped John Coltrane explore the avant-garde and pushed jazz itself toward the spiritual, has died at the age of 81.
Record label Luaka Bop, which released Sanders and Floating Points’ acclaimed collaboration Promises in 2021, announced the jazz legend’s death Saturday; no cause of death was provided.
“We are devastated to share that Pharoah Sanders has passed away,” the label wrote on Instagram. “He died peacefully surrounded by loving family and friends in Los Angeles earlier this morning. Always and forever the most beautiful human being,...
Record label Luaka Bop, which released Sanders and Floating Points’ acclaimed collaboration Promises in 2021, announced the jazz legend’s death Saturday; no cause of death was provided.
“We are devastated to share that Pharoah Sanders has passed away,” the label wrote on Instagram. “He died peacefully surrounded by loving family and friends in Los Angeles earlier this morning. Always and forever the most beautiful human being,...
- 9/24/2022
- by Daniel Kreps
- Rollingstone.com
LL Cool J took to his Instagram on Thursday to teach a lesson on respecting hip hop history makers. The rapper was responding to comments made by media personality DJ Akademiks, who referred to some of the pioneers of hip hop as “dusty” and asked if any of the older rappers were “really living good” while streaming live on Twitch.
Although he never referred to the DJ by name, LL — a hip hop pioneer himself — responded to the stream during an Instagram Live, calling the belief that someone not having money means they don’t have any value is “a bad idea” and “misinformed.”
Read More: 2022 MTV Video Music Awards: LL Cool J Recalls His First VMAs Performance in Opening Monologue
“No one discusses Miles Davis’ bank account,” the 54-year-old said. “We don’t talk about John Coltrane’s bank account. We don’t talk about a lot of even...
Although he never referred to the DJ by name, LL — a hip hop pioneer himself — responded to the stream during an Instagram Live, calling the belief that someone not having money means they don’t have any value is “a bad idea” and “misinformed.”
Read More: 2022 MTV Video Music Awards: LL Cool J Recalls His First VMAs Performance in Opening Monologue
“No one discusses Miles Davis’ bank account,” the 54-year-old said. “We don’t talk about John Coltrane’s bank account. We don’t talk about a lot of even...
- 9/23/2022
- by Melissa Romualdi
- ET Canada
Pearl Jam were about halfway through their special concert for SirusXM at Harlem’s Apollo Theater on Saturday night when Eddie Vedder’s mind went to Bessie Smith’s residency at the venue way back in 1935. “She played here four weeks in a row at one point,” he told the audience. “She was the singer, so she was probably standing right where I’m standing. We never got to be in this room before. The fact that we get to be on this stage is just remarkable.”
Vedder’s reverence...
Vedder’s reverence...
- 9/11/2022
- by Andy Greene
- Rollingstone.com
Erykah Badu, executive producer of the forthcoming documentary about late jazz and R&b trumpeter Roy Hargrove, wastes no time in elaborating on the influence her collaborator and high school classmate exerted on her life and career.
“It started with Roy,” says Badu, who first met Hargrove in 1985, when she was a freshman at Dallas’ Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. “Roy was the first person I met in high school: he in the music department and jazz band, me in dance right next door. We danced to that band’s versions of John Coltrane, Miles Davis. That helped me understand what jazz was, and how to interpret it. It was a subtle rebellion. Roy was already a legend as a sophomore — truth is,” she adds, “Roy was actually a legend starting in junior high.”
Hargrove would go on to legendary peaks in both R...
“It started with Roy,” says Badu, who first met Hargrove in 1985, when she was a freshman at Dallas’ Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. “Roy was the first person I met in high school: he in the music department and jazz band, me in dance right next door. We danced to that band’s versions of John Coltrane, Miles Davis. That helped me understand what jazz was, and how to interpret it. It was a subtle rebellion. Roy was already a legend as a sophomore — truth is,” she adds, “Roy was actually a legend starting in junior high.”
Hargrove would go on to legendary peaks in both R...
- 5/27/2022
- by A.D. Amorosi
- Variety Film + TV
Harry Colomby, who made the unusual career transition from high school teacher to talent manager at the invitation of jazz great Thelonious Monk, died Dec. 25 from multiple causes at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles. He was 92.
Although Monk was his first client, Colomby’s career expanded to film and television, managing both comedian John Byner and actor Michael Keaton.
He was the producer or executive producer of 13 film or TV projects, several of them Keaton movies, including “Mr. Mom.” The brother of Bobby Colomby, founding member of Blood, Sweat & Tears and, and jazz trumpeter Jules Colomby, Harry also had six screenwriting credits, including the Keaton feature “Johnny Dangerously.”
In an Instagram post, Keaton paid tribute to his business partner. “Unlikeliest of matches, we thought the same, felt the same and laughed at the same things. He was kindhearted, curious, thoughtful and man, was he funny … I loved him and so did all who met him.
Although Monk was his first client, Colomby’s career expanded to film and television, managing both comedian John Byner and actor Michael Keaton.
He was the producer or executive producer of 13 film or TV projects, several of them Keaton movies, including “Mr. Mom.” The brother of Bobby Colomby, founding member of Blood, Sweat & Tears and, and jazz trumpeter Jules Colomby, Harry also had six screenwriting credits, including the Keaton feature “Johnny Dangerously.”
In an Instagram post, Keaton paid tribute to his business partner. “Unlikeliest of matches, we thought the same, felt the same and laughed at the same things. He was kindhearted, curious, thoughtful and man, was he funny … I loved him and so did all who met him.
- 12/29/2021
- by Geoff Mayfield
- Variety Film + TV
The Butthole Surfers, one of the bands that influenced some of the biggest rock bands of the 90s including Nirvana and Red Hot Chili Peppers, are getting their own deep dive.
A feature documentary about the band, which was lampooned on The Simpsons and Beavis and Butthead and appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman, is currently in the works from director Tom Stern.
Stern is a writer, director, producer and showrunner, whose credits include Netflix’s The Toys That Made Us and Kevin Hart’s Guide to Black History.
The Butthole Surfers Movie will tell the story of the Texas-based band that featured members including singer Gibby Haynes, guitarist Paul Leary and drummer King Coffey. The band hs released eight studio albums since they formed in 1981 including Locust Abortion Technician, Hairway to Steven and the Capitol Records-released Electriclarryland, which spawned a surprising hit single with the song Pepper.
A feature documentary about the band, which was lampooned on The Simpsons and Beavis and Butthead and appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman, is currently in the works from director Tom Stern.
Stern is a writer, director, producer and showrunner, whose credits include Netflix’s The Toys That Made Us and Kevin Hart’s Guide to Black History.
The Butthole Surfers Movie will tell the story of the Texas-based band that featured members including singer Gibby Haynes, guitarist Paul Leary and drummer King Coffey. The band hs released eight studio albums since they formed in 1981 including Locust Abortion Technician, Hairway to Steven and the Capitol Records-released Electriclarryland, which spawned a surprising hit single with the song Pepper.
- 12/10/2021
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
[This post originally appeared as part of Recommendation Machine, IndieWire’s daily TV picks feature.]
Where to Watch “Painting with John”: HBO Max
I don’t envy the person who has to write the episode descriptions for “Painting with John.” It is true that “John recounts how the obsession he and his brother had for John Coltrane’s ‘Live at Birdland’ resulted in an unfortunate Sunday breakfast” is an accurate statement about the contents of the third episode. But a few words summarizing a couple distinct anecdotes from the life of John Lurie is a drop in the lake of things that give this show its value.
Whether you know Lurie as an actor or a musician or a painter, “Painting with John” almost works best if you’re unaware of his other work or can pretend he’s some mystical forest-bound sage dispensing ideas about the nature of creativity to anyone who’ll listen.
There’s no set format for the show.
Where to Watch “Painting with John”: HBO Max
I don’t envy the person who has to write the episode descriptions for “Painting with John.” It is true that “John recounts how the obsession he and his brother had for John Coltrane’s ‘Live at Birdland’ resulted in an unfortunate Sunday breakfast” is an accurate statement about the contents of the third episode. But a few words summarizing a couple distinct anecdotes from the life of John Lurie is a drop in the lake of things that give this show its value.
Whether you know Lurie as an actor or a musician or a painter, “Painting with John” almost works best if you’re unaware of his other work or can pretend he’s some mystical forest-bound sage dispensing ideas about the nature of creativity to anyone who’ll listen.
There’s no set format for the show.
- 11/11/2021
- by Steve Greene
- Indiewire
At the premiere of HBO’s inimitable comedy “Curb Your Enthusiasm’s,” 11th season, creator and star Larry David dutifully, charmingly performed the requisite press line interviews with nary a hint of his onscreen alter ego’s curmudgeonly agitation, even gamely delivering a “Prettyyyyy, prettyyyyyyy, pretty good” byte to an Australian TV crew. But as he revealed to Variety at the Paramount lot premiere what he imagines TV Larry’s take is on the traditional Hollywood red carpet: “He hates it as much as this Larry.”
Preferring not to reveal too much about a given season’s episodes before they air – just know that the new episodes are set in a future time after Covid – David did offer some insight about his creative process, given that for the last 20 years he’s enjoyed the rare luxury of deciding, on his own terms, if and when he wants to deliver another season.
Preferring not to reveal too much about a given season’s episodes before they air – just know that the new episodes are set in a future time after Covid – David did offer some insight about his creative process, given that for the last 20 years he’s enjoyed the rare luxury of deciding, on his own terms, if and when he wants to deliver another season.
- 10/23/2021
- by Scott Huver
- Variety Film + TV
Has Jeffrey Wright worked nonstop since he fell in love with acting in college in the late 1980s? It seems like it. From indie hits to blockbusters to weighty TV series to Broadway, the actor, who can next be seen in Wes Anderson’s “The French Dispatch,” will justifiably be honored with Variety’s Legend and Groundbreaker award at the Newport Beach Film Festival, which this year runs from Oct. 21-28.
The actor’s early career includes such projects as Lorraine Hans-berry’s “Les Blancs” and Sean O’Casey’s “Juno and the Paycock” at the Arena Theater; “The Playboy of the West Indies” and “Search and Destroy” at Yale Rep; but it was 1993’s “Angels in America: Perestroika” and “Millennium Approaches” that really supercharged his career. He won Tony and Drama Desk awards for “Perestroika.”
Wright started out at Amherst College as a political science major. He grew up in Washington,...
The actor’s early career includes such projects as Lorraine Hans-berry’s “Les Blancs” and Sean O’Casey’s “Juno and the Paycock” at the Arena Theater; “The Playboy of the West Indies” and “Search and Destroy” at Yale Rep; but it was 1993’s “Angels in America: Perestroika” and “Millennium Approaches” that really supercharged his career. He won Tony and Drama Desk awards for “Perestroika.”
Wright started out at Amherst College as a political science major. He grew up in Washington,...
- 10/21/2021
- by Carole Horst
- Variety Film + TV
Many years in the making, Fire Music tells the many-stranded story of free jazz, a chronically misunderstood and often maligned expansion of the improvisatory African-American art form that exploded as a movement in the 1960s through the innovations of path-breaking titans like John Coltrane, Ornette Coleman, Cecil Taylor, Albert Ayler and Sun Ra. Although this avant-garde has been around long enough to become its own tradition – its oldest living exponents are in their 90s – the music still remains somehow outside the mainstream. Even this week, Twitter was abuzz over Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon’s mockery of the German […]
The post “…The Parts That Were Left out of the Ken Burns Documentary”: Tom Surgal on the “Historical Corrective” That is His Free Jazz Documentary, Fire Music first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post “…The Parts That Were Left out of the Ken Burns Documentary”: Tom Surgal on the “Historical Corrective” That is His Free Jazz Documentary, Fire Music first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 9/10/2021
- by Steve Dollar
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
Despite being John Coltrane’s most celebrated album, and one of the most beloved jazz albums of all time, A Love Supreme wasn’t a record that the saxophonist touched on much in the live setting. Up until now, most Coltrane enthusiasts have only ever heard a single live performance of the literally divinely inspired four-movement suite that makes up the LP, taken from a July 1965 performance at a French festival and first released on a 2002 reissue. That will change in October, when Impulse! will issue another full live version of A Love Supreme,...
- 8/26/2021
- by Hank Shteamer
- Rollingstone.com
It has not been an easy year for theater lovers, who have mostly made do with well-filmed performances of shows like “Hamilton” and “David Byrne’s American Utopia.”
In contrast to those projects, Liesl Tommy’s Aretha Franklin biopic “Respect” was created as an original film, but it works best when envisioned as a Broadway-style jukebox musical.
Tommy and writer Tracey Scott Wilson are making their cinematic debuts with this sturdy retelling of Franklin’s early life and career. However, they come to the project with impressive stage backgrounds, which inform every aspect of their approach. Any stage, of course, needs a star who can command the space. That the story intermittently recedes into the background might be problematic, were it not for the fact that the spotlight remains resolutely focused on a captivating Jennifer Hudson, who was chosen for the role by Franklin herself, before she passed away in...
In contrast to those projects, Liesl Tommy’s Aretha Franklin biopic “Respect” was created as an original film, but it works best when envisioned as a Broadway-style jukebox musical.
Tommy and writer Tracey Scott Wilson are making their cinematic debuts with this sturdy retelling of Franklin’s early life and career. However, they come to the project with impressive stage backgrounds, which inform every aspect of their approach. Any stage, of course, needs a star who can command the space. That the story intermittently recedes into the background might be problematic, were it not for the fact that the spotlight remains resolutely focused on a captivating Jennifer Hudson, who was chosen for the role by Franklin herself, before she passed away in...
- 8/9/2021
- by Elizabeth Weitzman
- The Wrap
Years ago, screenwriter-producer Peter Lord Moreland watched Straight No Chaser, the landmark 1988 documentary on bebop pianist-composer Thelonious Monk. Thus began a near-obsessive fascination with the jazz legend that “was already triggered by one of my favorite jazz ballads of all time: ‘Round Midnight.’”
As his career progressed, Lord Moreland began researching the musician and started on a working script to document his life and career. “My entire life, I have been an artist, a person, and a thinker who seems to have an alternative view of creating, hearing, and seeing the world,...
As his career progressed, Lord Moreland began researching the musician and started on a working script to document his life and career. “My entire life, I have been an artist, a person, and a thinker who seems to have an alternative view of creating, hearing, and seeing the world,...
- 7/21/2021
- by Jason Newman
- Rollingstone.com
Barnes & Noble may be known for their cozy bookstores and massive collective of great reads across all genres, but the retailer has also just announced the return of their fan-favorite “Vinyl Weekend,” which offers dozens of limited-edition records and exclusive in-store and online specials.
This annual event is a great time for both seasoned vinyl shoppers, collectors, and record-store newbies alike to get in on some deals from Friday, July 16 to Sunday, July 18. Over the weekend, you can shop from Barnes & Noble’s wide range of vinyl to beef up your own collection,...
This annual event is a great time for both seasoned vinyl shoppers, collectors, and record-store newbies alike to get in on some deals from Friday, July 16 to Sunday, July 18. Over the weekend, you can shop from Barnes & Noble’s wide range of vinyl to beef up your own collection,...
- 7/15/2021
- by Sage Anderson
- Rollingstone.com
Questlove’s new Summer of Soul doc is a trove of incredible footage, featuring extended clips of Sly and the Family Stone, Mavis Staples, Nina Simone, Stevie Wonder, and other icons at the height of their performing powers. But one of the film’s most striking sequences spotlights a lesser-known figure who shared the bill with these legends at 1969’s Harlem Cultural Festival: the guitarist Sonny Sharrock, seen convulsing and grimacing onstage as he wrings a gritty expressionist racket from his hollow-body ax during an appearance backing flutist Herbie Mann.
- 6/25/2021
- by Hank Shteamer
- Rollingstone.com
It is remarkable how few people know that the same person produced Bob Dylan’s three defining early albums (as well as “Like a Rolling Stone”), the first two Velvet Underground albums, Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention’s debut “Freak Out” and pivotal music by jazz legends Sun Ra and Cecil Taylor (including tracks with John Coltrane), among many others.
It was Tom Wilson, a visionary music producer who died in 1978 at the age of 47.
He was even the man who in 1965 overdubbed a folk-rock backing onto a song he’d recorded the previous year by an acoustic duo who had already split up and were living on different continents — that would be Simon & Garfunkel — resulting in the smash hit that ignited their career, “Sounds of Silence” (the duo quickly reunited and hastily recorded a new album). He also produced key songs by the Animals (the classic “Don’t Bring Me Down”), Nico,...
It was Tom Wilson, a visionary music producer who died in 1978 at the age of 47.
He was even the man who in 1965 overdubbed a folk-rock backing onto a song he’d recorded the previous year by an acoustic duo who had already split up and were living on different continents — that would be Simon & Garfunkel — resulting in the smash hit that ignited their career, “Sounds of Silence” (the duo quickly reunited and hastily recorded a new album). He also produced key songs by the Animals (the classic “Don’t Bring Me Down”), Nico,...
- 6/10/2021
- by Jem Aswad
- Variety Film + TV
The following is a piece in a four-part series highlighting all that Missouri has to offer in the worlds of food, art, music and adventure. Missouri – or “Mo,” as we refer to her – has no shortage of places to explore, so whatever you’re after, there’s a Mo for every M-o.
Savvy travelers know that the Kansas City music scene has a not-so-hidden wealth of destinations worth visiting. The barbecue-loving, middle-of-the-map metropolis has grown into a buzzing live music hotspot that is also known the world over for its storied place in jazz history.
Savvy travelers know that the Kansas City music scene has a not-so-hidden wealth of destinations worth visiting. The barbecue-loving, middle-of-the-map metropolis has grown into a buzzing live music hotspot that is also known the world over for its storied place in jazz history.
- 6/9/2021
- by Aaron Rhodes
- Rollingstone.com
Alice Coltrane’s early solo work has made her an icon on par with her husband and collaborator, John — last year, her 1971 LP Journey in Satchidananda earned a spot on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums list. But around 20 years’ worth of her musical output, dating from the time when she devoted herself to Hinduism and founded an ashram in California, still remains obscure. An upcoming release, Kirtan: Turiya Sings, will offer a fresh look at one exemplary album from this period.
Originally released on private-press cassette in 1982 via Coltrane’s ashram,...
Originally released on private-press cassette in 1982 via Coltrane’s ashram,...
- 6/2/2021
- by Hank Shteamer
- Rollingstone.com
Hollywood has long fostered a love affair with Westerns and cowboys, but traditionally the depiction of cowboys has been white - insert John Wayne, Clint Eastwood, and countless other white actors. However, Netflix's Concrete Cowboy brings the story of "urban" Black cowboys to life, shining a light on the significance of Black cowboy culture, a narrative rarely seen on screen, as well as Black fatherhood. The new film centers on the Fletcher Street Urban Riding Club, a community of Black cowboys that has existed in the North Philadelphia area for over a century. The story is told through the lens of father and son duo, Harp (Idris Elba) and Cole (Caleb McLaughlin), who are at odds with each other but find common ground through their shared love of horses.
The last time Black cowboys were the subject of their own movie was Mario Van Peebles's 1993 film Posse. To...
The last time Black cowboys were the subject of their own movie was Mario Van Peebles's 1993 film Posse. To...
- 4/12/2021
- by Ralinda Watts
- Popsugar.com
Chloe Zhao’s “Nomadland” may have been the biggest sensation to come out of 2020’s fall festival season, but it’s wasn’t the only film about a largely ignored community. In “Concrete Cowboy,” which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September and comes to Netflix on April 2, the community is a stable in North Philadelphia where Black men and women have been keeping and riding horses for more than 100 years.
Here, too, professional actors are surrounded by non-pros from the actual community being depicted, and here, too, the filmmaker — in this case Ricky Staub — finds uncommon empathy in the depiction of the world in which its characters live.
The film is partly a father-and-son story and partly a coming-of-age saga, but it expands to be more than that, using the real-life Fletcher Street Stables to explore a subculture that has been largely ignored outside of Philadelphia for generations.
Here, too, professional actors are surrounded by non-pros from the actual community being depicted, and here, too, the filmmaker — in this case Ricky Staub — finds uncommon empathy in the depiction of the world in which its characters live.
The film is partly a father-and-son story and partly a coming-of-age saga, but it expands to be more than that, using the real-life Fletcher Street Stables to explore a subculture that has been largely ignored outside of Philadelphia for generations.
- 4/2/2021
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
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