American Patchwork: Jazz Parades--Feet Don't Fail Me Now

Alan Lomax is the host for this interesting look at jazz parades in New Orleans. Beginning with an overview of the birth and rise of jazz, drawing on the words of Jelly Roll Morton and jazz historian Bill Russell, the program compares the tribal dances in Africa with the predominant dance structures found in the modern jazz parades, and outlines notable similarities. A stop at the famous Preservation Hall offers the sounds and insights of elderly legends Willie Humphries, Emmanuel Sayles, Chester Zardis, and Kid Thomas Valentine, among others. Church bands, such as The Majestic Band, and Mardi Gras bands, such as The Young Men Olympians, are profiled here, and shown in full swing on the teeming streets (as one band member notes: "the only time you get a crowd like this together in New York is for a riot.") The program concludes with a look at the strong influence of the Native American culture on the Black Mardi Gras bands, and an intriguing examination of the phenomena of jazz funerals--a musical celebration, tied to Biblical scripture, in which the funeral crowd rejoices in the concept of "turning the body loose." Jazz fans will enjoy this program, as should most general audiences. Recommended. (Available from: PBS Video, 1320 Braddock Place, Alexandria, VA 22314-1698; 1-800-344-3337.)