The Connection - now on DVD

[Stefan Wood]

Saw this item this morning on the dusty groove web site. I can't say if the video quality is any good, but it is available!

Edited July 26, 2004 by Stefan Wood

[bertrand]

THE BASTARDS!!!

[sheldonm]

I'll be scootin' into Chicago this weekend to see Junior Mance and will also swing by DG to pick up a few items, can hardly wait!!!! Those bastards .

[JSngry]

I've had this on VHS for years, and believe me when I tell you that if it weren't for J-Mac, this would be one of the most laughable pieces of pseudo-hip bullshit in the history of the world.

Highly recommended to those who enjoy seeing clueless white (mostly) folks pretend to be super-cool junkies. Everybody else, get it for Jackie, and pray that the DVD is indexed accordingly.

[Chuck Nessa]

In 1962/3 I saw the play at a University of Iowa Theater Workshop. Good friends of mine (and very good musicians) had the playing parts. For an 18 year old freshman this was amazing. I'm sure I'd feel different now. Within the next year I saw Shirley Clarke's Cool World, Shadows and a bunch of shit. I have subsequently seen Shadows and still think it is strong. Back then I went on the first day of Shadows, sat through it 3 times and went once a day as long as it played.

[The Mule]

I have subsequently seen Shadows and still think it is strong. Back then I went on the first day of Shadows, sat through it 3 times and went once a day as long as it played.

I agree. SHADOWS still holds up. It's coming out on dvd via Criterion in September. Read about it here.

[JSngry]

I'd like to have seen the play when Cecil Taylor was in the cast and ad-libbing lines every night.

[Brandon Burke]

In 1962/3 I saw the play at a University of Iowa Theater Workshop. Good friends of mine (and very good musicians) had the playing parts. For an 18 year old freshman this was amazing. I'm sure I'd feel different now. Within the next year I saw Shirley Clarke's Cool World, Shadows and a bunch of shit. I have subsequently seen Shadows and still think it is strong. Back then I went on the first day of Shadows, sat through it 3 times and went once a day as long as it played.

At LC today I ran across two 1/4" reels of the Mingus score to Shadows. They were recently purchased from Sue, along with some other stuff.

Has this music ever been available on it's own (i.e. separated from the film)?

[bertrand]

Brandon,

This is an amazing find. How long ago were these purchased? I assume it is much more recent than the main collection, which they got in 1992/1993. What else is in there?

How much music would you say was on these two reels? The score was never issued on CD mostly because the story is that there's not so much music there to begin with. Mingus was slow and only got one or two tunes ready for the film. They fleshed out the rest with Shafi Hadi improvisations. Considering that his output does not exactly glut the market, I would love to see this released.

I may be able to get together this Saturday. I'll call you.

Take care,

Bertrand.

[Dmitry]

Here are the scans of the front and back cover of my "other" Connection soundtrack LP. This one is a Cecil Payne record on Charlie Parker Records, taped in March of 1962. Compositions by Payne and Kenny Drew. Personnel is listed on the back cover. Don't know if this one's on cd [remember reading something about Fresh Sounds coupling it w/something else].

Anyhow, very good hard bop album, with Payne and Clark Terry doing most of the soloing. Probably one of the earlier appearances of Ron Carter on record as well.

Side A is all Payne compositions, Side B is Kenny Drew, who's not on this Lp. Duke Jordan is on the keys.

Check out the front cover. Cool graphic design of the stylized syringe. I like this cover better than the BN Connection.

[jazzbo]

This IS on cd, from Fresh Sounds and possibly also on Collectables, cannot remember precisely. . . .

Great session. Payne! The sessions he led are always worth hearing.

[mikeweil]

with a cast like this it must be an excellent album!

[JSngry]

Anybody got the side w/Tina Brooks' Connection score ?

[ghost of miles]

Anybody got the side w/Tina Brooks' Connection score ?

Jim,

I have the one that came out on Felsted w/Howard McGhee... may still be in print. Are those actually Brooks compositions, though? I'm at work & will have to check when I get home.

Never heard of that Cecil Payne version... this is all very interesting, because I'm planning to do a show based around THE CONNECTION and am trying to track down as much material as I can find. Will probably get the DVD, though Jim is dead-on about its general gawd-awfulness...

Edited July 29, 2004 by ghost of miles

[JSngry]

Anybody got the side w/Tina Brooks' Connection score ?

Jim,

I have the one that came out on Felsted w/Howard McGhee... may still be in print. Are those actually Brooks compositions, though?

My bad. I meant to say "Tina Brooks' performance of the Connection score ". Sorry.

[ghost of miles]

Didn't some of Dexter's comps for this show up on one of his Blue Note albums? I'm thinking "Soul Sister" and "I Want More" from DEXTER CALLING... amazing, the number of musicians who went through this play. Hoping to do the show in mid-September & will post the link when I do.

Edited July 29, 2004 by ghost of miles

[ghost of miles]

Within the next year I saw Shirley Clarke's Cool World,

Very interesting, Chuck. You know, I've shied away from reading Warren Miller's novel because it came in for a lot of criticism as a white writer's distorted interpretation of Harlem... but I should check it out for myself. I'd also love to find Mal Waldron's original soundtrack for the movie, if it was ever actually released (I have the Dizzy Gillespie version that got re-issued a few years ago on CD).

[Chuck Nessa]

Very interesting, Chuck. You know, I've shied away from reading Warren Miller's novel because it came in for a lot of criticism as a white writer's distorted interpretation of Harlem... but I should check it out for myself

So........ we have a black director making a film of a novel by a white guy writing about the black experience in america. Why am I dizzy?

[Adam]

Very interesting, Chuck.  You know, I've shied away from reading Warren Miller's novel because it came in for a lot of criticism as a white writer's distorted interpretation of Harlem... but I should check it out for myself

So........ we have a black director making a film of a novel by a white guy writing about the black experience in america. Why am I dizzy?

Who's the black director? Shirley Clarke was white. Although there was a lot of input from her boyfriend, the actor who played the connection in The Connection, Carl Lee, who was black. they cowrote the screenplay of The Cool World, for example, and he also acted in it

The rights to The Cool World are owned by the film's producer, the documentary maker Frederick Wiseman. To the best of my knowledge, it hasn't come out on DVD or VHS, but one can rent a print for screening.

In April 1998 I organized a retrospective of the films of Shirley Clarke, the year after she passed away. Mal Waldron contributed the following comment to the program notes:

"Shirley Clarke was a pioneer in the early days before pioneers became plentiful. She was also a very loving person. This combination made her an interesting and easy woman to work with and for.

"She gave me the chance to write my first film score, and I will be eternally grateful to her.

"I, for one, will never forget you Shirley."

Also The Cool World came out in 1963; The Connection in 1961; Shadows in 1959. Shadows is great. The Cool World also holds up better, largely due (for me) for the more realistic "documentary" look of the film, which included a good amount of filming in Harlem. The Connection is obviously a filmed play.

Edited August 16, 2004 by Adam

[Michael Weiss]

New print available. Interesting article about the new Shirley Clarke Project in the NY Times today.

Coincidentally her sister lives in our building.

Edited April 29, 2012 by Michael Weiss

[medjuck]

In 1962/3 I saw the play at a University of Iowa Theater Workshop. Good friends of mine (and very good musicians) had the playing parts. For an 18 year old freshman this was amazing. I'm sure I'd feel different now. Within the next year I saw Shirley Clarke's Cool World, Shadows and a bunch of shit. I have subsequently seen Shadows and still think it is strong. Back then I went on the first day of Shadows, sat through it 3 times and went once a day as long as it played.

At LC today I ran across two 1/4" reels of the Mingus score to Shadows. They were recently purchased from Sue, along with some other stuff.

Has this music ever been available on it's own (i.e. separated from the film)? The Mingus Dial box set contains a composition written for the film but not used in it.

[bertrand]

Freddie Redd will be on NPR tomorrow.

Also in Baltimore (An Die Musik) on 5/27 and at the Smithsonian with Butch Warren (free concert) on 7/19 at 5:00 PM.

Bertrand.

[mjzee]

In 1962/3 I saw the play at a University of Iowa Theater Workshop. Good friends of mine (and very good musicians) had the playing parts. For an 18 year old freshman this was amazing. I'm sure I'd feel different now. Within the next year I saw Shirley Clarke's Cool World, Shadows and a bunch of shit. I have subsequently seen Shadows and still think it is strong. Back then I went on the first day of Shadows, sat through it 3 times and went once a day as long as it played.

At LC today I ran across two 1/4" reels of the Mingus score to Shadows. They were recently purchased from Sue, along with some other stuff.

Has this music ever been available on it's own (i.e. separated from the film)? The Mingus Dial box set contains a composition written for the film but not used in it.

What is the Mingus Dial box? Do you mean the Debut box?

[medjuck]

In 1962/3 I saw the play at a University of Iowa Theater Workshop. Good friends of mine (and very good musicians) had the playing parts. For an 18 year old freshman this was amazing. I'm sure I'd feel different now. Within the next year I saw Shirley Clarke's Cool World, Shadows and a bunch of shit. I have subsequently seen Shadows and still think it is strong. Back then I went on the first day of Shadows, sat through it 3 times and went once a day as long as it played.

At LC today I ran across two 1/4" reels of the Mingus score to Shadows. They were recently purchased from Sue, along with some other stuff.

Has this music ever been available on it's own (i.e. separated from the film)? The Mingus Dial box set contains a composition written for the film but not used in it.

What is the Mingus Dial box? Do you mean the Debut box?

Sorry. Yes. Debut Box.

[Adam]

New print available. Interesting article about the new Shirley Clarke Project in the NY Times today.

Coincidentally her sister lives in our building.

Which sister? The one I knew, Elaine Dundy, died a few years ago.