The read
It runs a compact 34m.
Synopsis
Filmed in Chicago & finished in 1959, The Cry of Jazz is filmmaker, composer and arranger Edward O. Bland's polemical essay on the politics of music and race - a forecast of what he called "the death of jazz." A landmark moment in black film, foreseeing the civil unrest of subsequent decades, it also features the only known footage of visionary pianist Sun Ra from his beloved Chicago period. Featured are ample images of tenor saxophonist John Gilmore and the rest of Ra's Arkestra in Windy City nightclubs, all shot in glorious black & white.
Ratings
IMDb6.2/10
15 audience votes
Key crew
- Edward BlandDirector
Cast
- George WallerAlex Johnson
- Dorothea HortonNatalie
- Melinda DillonFaye
- Andrew DuncanJohn
- Leroy InmanLouis
- James MillerBob
- Gavin McFadyanBruce
- Carl DupreeCast
- Goldina RojasCast
- Alan LeavittCast
- Carl McCormackCast
- Lettie Mae RandolphCast
Themes
jazzjazz singer or musicianjazz agejazz bandfree jazzavant gardeavant garde jazz