The name of this documentary film series, Icons Among Us, has been popping up on my radar, but I just recently took the time to investigate it. The subtitle is Jazz in the Present Tense, and it seems to be an interesting look at the current state of some of the music that comes from the lineage of jazz. Some of the available press samples have people like Nicholas Payton and Russell Gunn talking about the difficulties of the concept of genre, which is right in line with some of my own thinking of late. I need to figure out if I get the Documentary Channel…
For more info (airtimes, etc) go to http://www.iconsamongus.com.
If you are offended by the language sometimes used by musicians (and sailors, and soldiers, and salesman, and bankers, and golfers, and…) don’t watch the following clip. It is not real bad in terms of foul language, but it is honest. BTW Russell Gunn and I were roommates on a cruise ship in 1993, and he was just as outspoken and strong in his ideas then, before anyone knew who he was.