JAZZ ON A SUMMER’S DAY

Director: Bert Stern and Aram Avakian, Cinematography by Bert Stern.

1959, 85

Cast: Louis Armstrong, Thelonius Monk, Gerry Mulligan, Anita O’Day, Chuck Berry, Dinah Washington, and Mahalia Jackson.

 

JAZZ ON A SUMMER’S DAY is a tribute to the amazing American music that is loved all over the world. This 4k Ultra High Definition Restoration of arguably the best collection of artists at a single concert (sorry, Woodstock). Filmed at the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival in Rhode Island, it offers up Louis Armstrong (with Jack Teagarden), Thelonius Monk, Gerry Mulligan, Anita O’ Day, Chuck Berry, Dinah Washington and more. As the concert ends after midnight, Mahalia Jackson’s sublime performance of The Lord’s Prayer has the power to lift hearts even in these challenging days.

“Bounds from strength to strength, immortalizing transcendently beautiful music on a glorious day, suggesting in the process that film might have no higher purpose.” – Keith Phipps, AV Club.