During Prohibition, Kansas City was wide open, and jazz was its music. Late in the 1970s, musicians of the Pendergast era gather at the union hall to play, sing, and talk. Some were part of Walter Page's Blue Devils, joined Bennie Moten's band, and stayed with Count Basie's Orchestra. Basie is on hand, as are Big Joe Turner, Jay McShann, and some of his big band. Highlights include Turner's vocals, McShann's sly piano playing, a drum clinic from Jo Jones and Baby Lovett, Jimmy Forrest solos, and remembrances of Lester Young and of how Charlie Parker got his nickname. Throughout is the Kansas City sound: cool and relaxed, blues meeting swing, an afterbeat that calls for dancing.
Aliases
- The Last of the Blue Devils
Prodotto e diretto da Bruce Ricker nel 1979, "The Last of the Blue Devils" contiene riprese d'epoca di alcuni dei più importanti musicisti di Kansas City come Big Joe Turner, Lester Young, Jay McShann, Charlie "Yardbird" Parker e la Count Basie Orchestra con Freddie Green, solo per citarne alcuni.
Il film può vantare inoltre clip dal vivo di Big Joe Turner assieme alla McShann Band. Insieme eseguono impressionanti versioni di classici quali "Honey Hush", "Rose Garden", "Chains of Love" e "Shake, Rattle and Roll".
A parte l'eccezionale qualità dei filmati, comunque, il migliore pregio del documentario resta il suo mostrare l'interazione tra i grandi personaggi presenti: Walder, Jay McShann, Curtis Foster, Speedy Huggins, Baby Lovett, Jo Jones, Buddy Anderson, Jesse Price, Richard Smith, Gene Ramey, Sonny Kenner, Paul Quinichette, Ernie Whitman, Eddie Durham, Charles McPherson e Claude William, tutti insieme nello stesso DVD!
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