After the frustration of the Proms Story of Swing concert - a BBC 4 program that promised much and delivered less it was with anticipation that I caught up with the Jazz Diva program that followed.
Billie Holiday; Ella Fitzgerald; Sarah Vaughan; Peggy Lee and Nina Simone. All singers who experienced highs and lows in their turrbulant careers. Claire Martin; Barbara Jungr; Melody Gardot; Carleen Anderson; Madeleine Peyroux and Annie Ross were present day divas talking about their idols. Ross, in fact, straddled both sides of the div(a)ide.
Interesting, but frustrating to get only short snippets of actual performances and, in the case of Lady Day, over familiar ones.
Still these were enjoyable albeit, at times, very poignant but what made it for me were the black and white shots of New York and other American cities.
Portraits of a concrete jungle - an urban landscape of stark reality.
Lance.
1 comment :
yes, agreed Lance, especially on the over familiar shots of Billie.
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