Music & Performance

Born in 1895, Alberta Hunter first rose to fame as a blues singer in the early '20s; Louis Armstrong, Eubie Blake, and Sidney Bechet all played on her records, she headlined nightclubs in the United States and Europe, and starred with Paul Robeson in the British production of Showboat in 1928. In 1956, after almost 35 years in show business, Hunter decided to retire from performing, and took a job as a nurse. In 1977, the hospital where she worked, believing her to be 65 years old (they were off by 17 years), gave her mandatory retirement. With little to do, Hunter began performing at a night spot in New York's Greenwich Village called the Cookery; singing with even greater force and personality than she had in her youth, Hunter's shows wowed jazz critics, and she went on to record three successful albums for Columbia Records and score the film Remember My Name before she passed on in 1984. Alberta Hunter: My Castle's Rockin' is a warm and fascinating portrait of Hunter's personal and professional lives, featuring plenty of footage of the ageless diva performing for an enthusiastic audience. Billy Taylor narrates. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Thirteen of Marley's songs are included in this view of his life. ~ All Movie Guide

The first major breakdancing film, Breakin' stars Lucinda Dickey as a dancing student who dislikes the hidebound regimen of her demanding teacher. She breaks free from terpischorean tradition when she befriends a bunch of street kids devoted to breakdancing. Within a year of its release, Breakin' spawned a sequel, Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

View Video presents the late jazz sax player Grover Washington Jr. in a 1981 live stage performance. Grover Washington Jr. in Concert features the legendary musician joined by Richard Tee on keyboards, Eric Gale on guitar, and Steve Gadd on percussion. The songs include "Just the Two of Us," "Winelight," "Let It Flow (For Dr. J.)," "Come Morning," "Make Me a Memory (Sad Samba)," and "Mister Magic." ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide

This 1967 theatrical release comes to video via Warner Home Video. Live concert footage, rare studio glimpses, and interviews round out the contents of this collection. "Wild Thing," "Purple Haze," and "Hear My Train a Comin'" (acoustic version) were all recorded live on stage with the quality of sound and video that suggest they could be bootleg material. A break from live footage appears in "Foxy Lady," one of Hendrix's best-known hits, which is filmed more like a music video -- on location and in 8 mm. The program includes brief one-on-one interviews with Jimi Hendrix, Noel Redding, and Mitch Mitchell. Some of the material, such as "Hear My Train a Comin'," has appeared on other video releases. ~ Karen Solomon, All Movie Guide

Lady Sings the Blues was the dramatized life story of legendary songstress Billie Holliday. Ladies Sing the Blues is a documentary containing film footage aplenty of the real Holliday. In addition, the film offers rare clips of such blues greats as Dinah Washington, Bessie Smith, Lena Horne, Peggy Lee and Sarah Vaughan. Each performer is seen in her prime, backed up by such instrumental talent as Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young and Ben Webster. Though the pictorial quality varies throughout Ladies Sing the Blues, the soundtrack unfailingly hits all the right notes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

As part of his promotional campaign for the album Dangerous, Michael Jackson helped create a series of elaborate and lavishly produced music videos for songs from the set, and this video brings together the nine short films created to accompany songs from the disc. Videos featured include: "Black and White," the little-seen full-length version; "Remember the Time," featuring Eddie Murphy and Magic Johnson; "In the Closet," with Naomi Campbell; "Jam," including appearances by Michael Jordan, Heavy D., and Kris Kross; "Will You Be There"; "Heal the World"; "Give in to Me"; "Who Is It"; and "Gone Too Soon." Michael Jackson: Dangerous -- The Short Films also features behind-the-scenes footage on the production of several of the videos, as well as additional live performances of Jackson appearing at the 1994 Super Bowl and on the Dangerous concert tour. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

The world's longest running jazz celebration, The Monterey Jazz Festival has played host to some of the finest and best loved musicians in the history of the music, including Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughn, Count Basie, Thelonious Monk, Joe Williams, Dave Brubeck and Buddy Rich. This documentary video features rare concert footage of many of the greatest names in jazz, as well as vintage photographs and personal interviews with performers and behind-the-scenes figures who helped make Monterey a mecca for jazz players and fans. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

This concert film presents the legendary Neville Brothers performing before a live audience a the Storyville Jazz Hall in their hometown of New Orleans, LA. Joined by such famous faces as Dennis Quaid, Bonnie Raitt, and Herbie Hancock, the group presents renditions of such songs as "Sixty Minute Man," "Closer to You," "Ya Ya," "Brother John/Iko Iko," "30 x 90," "Yellow Moon," "Midnight Rider," "Tell It Like It Is," "My Blood," and four others. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide

In 1986, Paul Simon released his album Graceland, a ground-breaking collaboration with some of South Africa's finest musicians that brought the sensuous and expressive sounds of "Township Jive" to an international mass audience for the first time. Simon then mounted an international concert tour with several of the musicians that appeared on the album, and this home video release captures the final date of the tour in 1987, in which Simon, singer Miriam Makeba, trumpeter Hugh Masekela, and vocal group Ladysmith Black Mambazo brought the music back to Africa for a massive outdoor concert in Zimbabwe. Selections include "The Boy in the Bubble," "Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes," "You Can Call Me Al," "Homeless," "I Know What I Know," "Graceland," "Gumboots," and 11 more. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Two of the most respected artists in jazz, bassist Ron Carter and trumpet and flugelhorn player Art Farmer, appeared on stage together for the first time in 1990 during a show at New York's prestigious jazz venue Sweet Basil, and a camera and sound crew was on hand to capture this historic event for the ages. With drummer Billy Higgins and pianist Cedar Walton rounding out the ensemble, Ron Carter and Art Farmer: Live at Sweet Basil features this stellar quartet performing "It's About Time," "When Love Is New," "Shortcomings," "My Funny Valentine," and more. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

This documentary of the late jazz great Thelonius Monk) (1917-1982) uses footage taken from 14 hours of European concert performances filmed in 1967-68 by Christian Blackwood. From his childhood in New York City's San Juan Hill, Monk grew up to become one of the most innovative jazz pianists of all time. Monk ushered in the bebop era of the 1940s and influenced such contemporary greats as Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie. Interviews with Monk's manager Harry Colomby and Monk's son and namesake shed light on the character of the jazz giant. Executive producer Clint Eastwood got the idea for the project while researching the life of Charlie Parker for his film Bird. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

This docudrama celebrates the colorful lives of teens who live in the South Bronx. There they are seen break dancing, creating graffiti art, and listening to raucous rap. The slim story centers on Zoro, who likes to spray-paint subway cars. He gets a break when he is hired to decorate a platform for an upcoming rap concert. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide