Rating: 
Summary: A View from Outside
Review:
I knew nothing about jazz.
Zero. Zip. Nada.
I had heard the word "jazz", of course; and, when my parents forced me to play the electric organ, I (with great difficulty) had to play "In the Mood" for a music exam. In the back of the music book was a piece called "Watermelon Man" by this guy called Hancock; there was something by someone called Duke, I can't remember what it was.
When this series came on, I, as a history student, was aware of Ken Burns' "The Civil War", which had moved me powerfully (probably, again, because I knew almost nothing about that particular war at the time). I therefore tried watching an episode or two.
What I remember most about this series is that it is a drama. That's all there is to it. It is not an attempt to summarise the music. It is as subtly crafted a drama as "The Civil War" was. It is possible to make any subject seem dull - even jazz and the American Civil War. But to make it seem interesting - nay, interesting enough that it remains in the mind as a supreme moviegoing experience - now that is difficult.
One thing I remember from the series is, in one episode, this guy saying that he had bought a Louis Armstrong disc when he was a kid, and listened just to one side over and over for six months straight. Then he turned the disc over - and the first thing on the other side was West End Blues. Which was a masterpiece beyond anything else on the disc, which he didnt know then. (Immediately the viewer is made interested). Then he describes taking it to a music professor, I can't remember where, and he says he played West End Blues for him. The professor said to play it again. He played it again. Then there was a long silence; and the professor says "I think that was the most perfect three minutes of music I ever heard". (By now the audience is gawking: wow!)
BUT - the ingenious thing is: Cut to an image of an old 78 player. What is this? Cut to a closer image of it. Can it be? And YES - we can read the label: WEST END BLUES. Holy Cow!!! Then a hand looms into the frame...the disc begins to spin...a stylus is lowered...
And the entire three minutes of West End Blues is played!!!
Yes indeed - this is truly dramatic bliss. Ken Burns builds up to this point over the preceding couple of shots, in order to bring the viewer almost to a fever pitch.
There is another moment, a little more personal here. I had watched about five episodes of the series, with very little interest in the music, frankly - even in Louis Armstrong - and by the time the swing era came I was drifting - I wasn't paying attention...
Then in the last scene of the last swing episode...an image of an atom bomb (Nagasaki, I think) comes up on the screen...And over the top of this horrible image is a sound I've never heard before - a sound that immediately caught my attention after hour after hour of corny swing tunes. I had never heard anything like this. Images begin to come up on the screen of small nightclubs and saxophone players. The name Charlie Parker is mentioned - never heard the name. A guy called Dizzy looks like a beatnik. The narrator describes in awed tones a great *revolution* happening in jazz. The audience is leaning forward. The sounds grow weirder - hard to define for someone untutored in music - the rhythms are all weird, and harmonies are all over the place. The sound of a saxophone is almost overwhelmingly fast and witty. What is this??!!
And the episode ends. To be continued.
The following week, I waited feverishly for the next episode. A word is mentioned; Bebop. Never even heard of it. But this is the episode that turned me on to jazz. The way it is made, the way the drama is created, and the newness of the sounds - new to ME, too, after hearing bland dance music for the preceding episodes - was stunning. I was in exactly the same position as the people in the 40s. All the jazz I had ever heard was contained in the preceding episodes. It was astoundingly powerful - I could *hear* the revolution, myself, in my lounge room.
I found a new obsession.
To people who already know about jazz, this series is filled with flaws - perhaps even fatal flaws. But to an untutored Australian, who knew zero about the music, it seemed like a pretty darned dramatic experience. In fact, I would be prepared to call it powerful. Maybe even great. I have rarely been so interested in a historical documentary, or so eager to see the next episode. I was humming St Thomas by Sonny Rollins for two weeks straight; I am now obsessively listening to Coltranes "My Favourite Things"; I am now a certifiable jazz fan.
Jazz is such a bitchy and divisive art form nowadays, that any documentary like this is bound to offend 75% of fans. Admittedly, too, I haven't seen the last episode, which supposedly dismisses everything anyone has done since 1967 including Herbie Hancock and Miles Davis' later works. That's a bit off.
But from all that I have seen of the series, I'd like to recommend this series to anyone who knows nothing about jazz; particularly the bebop episodes.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic!
Review: A brilliant and inspired rendition of the history of jazz. Although a long-time fan of "non-fiction" videos, I have never viewed a better documentary of any kind, ever. And, the music is absolutely first-class!
Rating:
Summary: "Jazz.. is the soundtrack of America"
Review: A sumptuously rich bite of jazz American pie. Ken Burns succeeds in documenting this impossibly large subject. Both audio and video thoughout the DVD version are beautifully rendered, the aspect ratio is standard TV format. Episode One is 90 minutes in length, the remaining nine episodes are 120 minutes each. Add generous bonus features on each disc and you realize this documentary is a real treasure. A true gold standard, this IS the jazz event of 2001 and will be remembered for many years to come. Enjoy the music!
Rating:
Summary: "Jazz"
Review: A tour de force. In Australia many reviewers unkindly referred to this 19 hour series as the world of jazz according to Wynton Marsalis. I say "So What?" There is no one better to guide us through the series, the history of jazz will be well-known to him. The reviewers are doubtless in the main ignorant that Wynton comes from an enormously big and musically knowledgable & talented family. So, who better?
The other criicism is that the series ceases in the early sixties. That's great I say! That's when Jazz arrested. As the narrator states, when Ornette Coleman et al came along, that was the most devisive thing for Jazz. That's where I arrested jazz-wise and I'm happy. There is such a poor output by most current "jazz" musicians, that the record companies are tearing their hair out at the lack of good, new material and are therefore dredging thorugh their vaults and reissuing all the wondrous stuff described in the series PLUS bonus tracks and alternate takes, all on digitally cleaned up CD's.
Rating:
Summary: An impressive, in-depth course on jazz history!
Review: After several days of marathon video viewing, I'm happy (and relieved) that, despite some inevitable imperfections, JAZZ: A FILM BY KEN BURNS is an amazingly broad and detailed exam of the music's history. Despite having read many excellent jazz-related books, I think that video rather than the printed word is the preferred medium to get initial or even remedial exposure to the music, because here you have as the centerpiece the actual audio and video of the art and artists. If you read a book about jazz, you don't have that essential evidence of the music itself, but merely descriptions of it. Why buy the DVD? There is a minor amount of extra footage. More significantly, the program can be altered so that whenever a piece of music appears, one can display the discographical info. As such, one never has to wonder what they are listening to. Furthermore, the sharpness of the DVD video picture and clearness of the audio is a selling point, particularly when you're looking at vintage photos, videos, and audio that are often not in optimal condition. Plus, with the DVD you can watch the series at your own pace. I might have thought beforehand that a series which takes six hours just to get to Armstrong/Hines' 1928 landmark recording WEST END BLUES might be a little too obsessive. Yet I remained riveted to the television screen as jazz's history unfolded, from Buddy Bolden to Cassandra Wilson. Jazz has a VERY compelling history on many levels--emotionally for one given the periodic mist in my eyes. I would have preferred a bit less commentary over the clips of jazz's great artists, but occasionally Burns does let the music speak for itself. I was impressed that we get to know a lot of the primary artists in a fair amount of detail. The likes of Armstrong and Ellington (but surprisingly not Miles Davis) are followed from the beginning to the end of their lives. My first significant exposure to jazz was in the 1970s, and I believe that if this series has an achilles heel, it is that jazz's impact on contemporary popular music could have been examined, which would have provided younger generations a logical entry point that we can relate to, irregardless of our prior degree of exposure to jazz. Instead, the impression-by-omission left here is that jazz has virtually no ties to contemporary pop culture, which I strongly dispute. I think the majority of the viewers of this program are ultimately going to be those who reached adulthood in the 1970s or later, and there is so much that could have been exposed to these generations to indicate that jazz is not a museum piece, but has significant links to contemporary popular culture. For example, I hear a considerable jazz influence on artists as diverse as Stevie Wonder, Sade, various "acid jazz" artists (particularly in Japan--one of many indications of jazz's global influence), early Earth Wind & Fire, Joni Mitchell, Steely Dan, and countless others. Many will compile their list of JAZZ's omissions (Toshiko Akiyoshi would lead mine). Yet even with these relatively minor quibbles, Ken Burns has done the music a great service with this project. I wouldn't be surprised if this series ignites a substantial increase in interest in the music by consumers who otherwise might have never given jazz music much thought.
Rating: 
Summary: All that jazz???
Review: After watching the documentary twice now and with the benefit of hindsight, I believe that I can give an honest and impartial opinion of this series by documentarian, Ken Burns. Good: The series does have a good entertainment factor that borders on sensationalism. The rare historical photographs and footage is extremely interesting. Because this was the first documentary I had seen by Ken Burns I still found the panning of photographs visually stimulating. The objective and insightful commentary from critic, Gary Giddons was the only one worth having in the film and if this had of been coupled with more muscianal commentary the documentary may have filled itself out more eloquently. Bad: Grouch and the Marsalis' brothers incesant pontification and romanticism. Burns' reliance on Wynton as musical director and historian destroys what could have been an impartial, albeit brief, history on jazz. To not include actual living musicians who took part in the evolution of jazz throughout the sixties and seventies is unthinkable. There are glaring omissions of seminal artists but the most slighted would have to be the jazz guitarist...after watching this one would think you would have to be, not only black to play jazz, but a horn or piano player as well. Overall, this is a racist, incomplete history of jazz. Three episodes of swing and ONE for the last forty years? Regardless of public opinion jazz did not die in the sixties and Wynton Marsalis certainly did not revive it. Which brings me to my last point. The list of conservative revivalists at the end of the film was sickening. Whilst it is questionable whether the avant garde artist plays what could be called jazz, they certainly had a background in it and their music evolved out of jazz. Why weren't they listed as carrying the torch. Jazz is an evolutionary artform, not a nostalgic, sentimental and classical ideal as some would have you believe.
Rating: 
Summary: Pleasantly surprised
Review: Although I am a Jazz-Rock fusion fan, and have been since discovering jazz in college, I was pleasantly surprised by the series up to now. Even though I've only seen the series up to Episode 5(I don't own the DVD set)the rich history and background of Ken Burns Jazz has made me aware of the importance of and significance of Jazz to American History and Americans, period. Jazz before the BE-bop era has been a unknown entity to me, you know, some stuff my parents listened to. But since viewing the Jazz series, heck, I think I'll go out and buy some Artie Shaw and Benny Goodman CDS!And this is coming from a hardcore fusion fan(MAHAVISHNU, WEATHER REPORT, RETURN TO FOREVER, TRIBAL TECH, PAT METHENY). Why am I only giving this series four stars? Well,Ken and Wynton only gave a small mention of the modern era(I read about the subjects covered in other articles)and they left a lot of important people(Stan Kenton, Eric Dolphy etc.)out of the series. But, what the heck, maybe somebody else can fill in the gaps. It would have been nice to see 1 or 2 Episodes devoted to jazz-Rock. But, anyway, thanks, Ken and Wynton(even though I disagree strongly with Wynton's opinions about jazz-rock).
Rating:
Summary: A must-see for any jazz musician or fan
Review: Although some of the criticisms of this series are valid, Ken Burns deserves accolades for this film!
Rating: 
Summary: Say WHAT??!?
Review: Apparently, my first review of this mockumentary got lost in the shuffle, so we'll try again. Without trying to duplicate much of what has already been said negatively about this series, I would like to add a few opinions to the mix for your consideration. #1: When we say that the series is racist, we are not just referring to omitted white musicians. We are referring to the fact that there were several white musicians who greatly influenced blacks, not just the other way around. Miff Mole and Jack Teagarden, for instance, set the standard of trombone playing for about a decade until Dicky Wells came along (and, after him, J.J. Johnson). Lester Young was influenced not by Armstrong and Benny Carter but by Bix and Frank Trumbauer. Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald based their styles of singing on Connee Boswell, not Ethel Waters (who they both detested, by the way). Benny Golson, who played with Art Blakey in the '50s and '60s, was most influenced by Glenn Miller saxist Tex Beneke. Now, this isn't to say that this kind of thing was always the case, but BE FAIR! #2: There is a definite sexist bias throughout the 19 hours of "Jazz." Except for Mary Lou Williams, female jazz musicians are ignored completely. Only the "girl singers" are praised. And, when women are mentioned at all, it is in a way that demeans their intelligence and says that they were too dumb to appreciate the subtleties of the music (i.e., "Women loved to have a copy of 'Miles Ahead' laying around because it was soft, sexy music"...not because they understood what Miles Davis was doing). And for that matter, where are the male jazz singers? Where were King Pleasure, Dave Lambert, Jon Hendricks (except for when he was talking about Bird), Mel Torme, Leo Watson?? #3: While it is true that "not everyone could be included," there were just too many major innovators left out - really important ones without whom certain jumps and links just don't make sense. Aside from my own personal prejudices, I think that most jazz fans and critics would have included Red Norvo, Nat King Cole, Woody Herman, George Russell, Lennie Tristano, Eric Dolphy and Ahmad Jamal (I would also have included Tiny Parham, Eddie Sauter, Boyd Raeburn, J.J. Johnson, Buddy DeFranco, Antonio Jobim and some actual sounds from Freddie Hubbard). And, of course, we have little or nothing of post-1970 jazz, which is totally unfair (where were Arthur Blythe, the World Saxophone Quartet, Rabih Abou-Khalil or Tania Maria?). What worries me most is that all previous jazz histories will now become obsolete. Only the Burns film and the Burns-Marsalis-Crouch agenda will be pushed. Schoolchildren will grow up believing that Louis Armstrong's "Hello Dolly" was a more important and influential record than Dolphy's "Out to Lunch" or that Ellington's "Afro-Eurasian Eclipse" was a major work while Mingus's "Black Saint and the Sinner Lady" was insignificant. Oh my, the list goes on and on. Valuable for some extremely rare photos and clips of performers (Bird talking on TV, Clifford Brown playing, etc.) Worthless as a history of jazz. Better to buy one of the many fine, compact jazz histories on the market. My favorite is "Discovering Great Jazz."
Rating:
Summary: An Excellent Series
Review: As a near-total jazz neophyte, I found this documentary to be a more than welcome introduction to jazz. Fascinating, accessible, filled with great music and film clips. I enjoyed the series immensely, and am forever in Mr. Burns' debt for introducing me to the joys of Thelonious Monk and Art Tatum, and for giving me a higher appreciation of jazz and the artists who create it. I'm sure there's a great deal more to be said than Ken Burns was able to say in this one documentary series, but what is said here is said with an admirable clarity and infectious enthusiasm. A very fine film, well worth watching. The DVD is well produced, and the transfer is excellent. There's a splendid special feature that allows you to see the name of whatever piece of music that happens to be playing at any given time. There are a couple of quibbles, to be sure. The series often seems in danger of becoming the Wynton Marsalis Show, as Mr. Marsalis appears in virtually every episode and gets what can feel like more than his share of screen time. Further, Mr. Burns has an irritating habit of bringing his films to a halt so that one of his experts can wax rhapsodic on Jazz as The Highest Single Accomplishment In The History Of Human Endeavor, The Most Significant And Sustaining Art Form Ever Created, Truly The Work Of The Angels and so on and so forth. As a whole, though, this is a fascinating and enlightening series. I can highly recommend it.
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