Jazz Documentary Ita

The story of Blue Note Records, the jazz label that was home to such greats as Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Herbie Hancock, Thelonious Monk, Art Blakey, Dexter Gordon and Sonny Rollins.

The biggest names in the current, buzzing UK jazz scene play live in a special edition of this iconic BBC jazz TV show. Sons of Kemet, Nubya Garcia, Kokoroko, Poppy Ajudha, Matthew Halsall, Moses Boyd and Exodus and Ezra Collective all contribute to an incredible line-up. The show, hosted by drummer Moses Boyd and 1Xtra presenter Jamz Supernova, also includes short films exploring the roots of the current UK jazz scene.

UK rap legend Rodney P reveals how the first generation of British-born black kids was inspired by the avant-garde musical fusions of black America in the 70s to lay the foundations of modern-day multiculturalism by creating the first black British music culture with the jazz-funk movement. Jazz funk resists any simple description. It’s a scene, not a genre; an attitude, not a sound; a movement, not a fashion. In this film – the first to deconstruct, explain and contextualise this most British of underground music genres – we show the importance of jazz funk as the very first home-grown black British music culture, a world created by the first generation of British-born black kids who were determined to make a space for self-expression that they could truly call their own.

Kamasi Washington‘s score to Michelle Obama‘s Netflix documentary Becoming has finally landed. The documentary paints a candid picture of the former First Lady’s life, from her early childhood to her marriage with Barack Obama, and the soundtrack is a vibrant jazz-tinged accompaniment that offers a whimsical “musical palette” to the personal story.

A celebration of some of the greatest female jazz singers of the 20th century. It takes an unflinching and revealing look at what it actually took to be a jazz diva during a turbulent time in America's social history - a time when battle lines were being constantly drawn around issues of race, gender and popular culture. The documentary tracks the diva's difficult progress as she emerges from the tough, testosterone-fuelled world of the big bands of the 30s and 40s, to fill nightclubs and saloons across the US in the 50s and early 60s as a force in her own right.

If someone looks at them years from now, we feel these shows will give a genuine idea of what jazz was like in 1962." – STEVE ALLEN. JAZZ SCENE USA's broadcast over nationally syndicated television in 1962 was cause for joy among jazz fans, and acclaimed at the time by most critics as the finest program of its kind. The brainchild of life-long jazz devotee Steve Allen, the series showcases many of the very best California-based jazz performers, not to mention rare TV appearances by outstanding national acts as well.

A journey into the BBC archives unearthing glorious performances and candid interviews from the golden age of jazz. Featuring some of the greatest names in American music, including the godfather of New Orleans jazz Louis Armstrong, the King of Swing Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Oscar Peterson, Dizzy Gillespie and Ella Fitzgerald. Broadcasted as part of the Old Masters, Rising Stars: Jazz On BBC Four season, this film unlocks the BBC archives to explore the words and music of some of the greatest names in jazz.

Jazz Icons: Louis Armstrong is one of the only known complete Armstrong concerts from the 1950s to be captured on film. This 55-minute set, filmed in Belgium in 1959, features many of Satchmo's greatest songs including “Mack the Knife”, “When It's Sleepy Time down South” and “Stompin' at the Savoy,” backed by his stellar band the All-Stars, featuring Trummy Young, Peanuts Hucko, Billy Kyle, Danny Barcelona and Mort Herbert.