Beware Mr. Baker: (documentary about Ginger Baker)
12-10-2012
, 10:22 AM
I just saw this last night.
If you have any interest in classic rock or drummers, this is a must-see. The film-maker gathers a lot of great archival material. And Baker is a pretty fascinating character. I also think that the film makes some interesting choices that enliven the documentary format.
I don't think the reviews do the movie justice, but here are some snippets anyway:
http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117947335/
http://movies.nytimes.com/2012/11/28...s&emc=rss&_r=0
It may be hard to find this movie near you, but try to find it.
If you have any interest in classic rock or drummers, this is a must-see. The film-maker gathers a lot of great archival material. And Baker is a pretty fascinating character. I also think that the film makes some interesting choices that enliven the documentary format.
I don't think the reviews do the movie justice, but here are some snippets anyway:
http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117947335/
Quote:
When a documentary begins with its subject using his crutch to deliver a vicious blow to the director's nose, it's reasonably safe to expect less-than-smooth sailing ahead. And sure enough, the teasing possibility that other outbursts may disrupt the uneasy alliance between legendary drummer Ginger Baker and filmmaker Jay Bulger provides an underlying tension to the aptly titled "Beware of Mr. Baker." Winner of the docu jury award at SXSW, this fascinating portrait of the aging rock god as an angry old coot could attract ticketbuyers as well as homevid renters and buyers after fest exposure.
Quote:
"Beware of Mr. Baker" had its origins in a startlingly candid Rolling Stone interview Baker granted Bulger at the rock legend's sprawling enclave in South Africa. (The entrance to the spread is marked by a sign bearing the warning that gives the pic its title.)
Quote:
A physical wreck after decades of substance abuse and debilitating health issues, Baker nonetheless proved to be of sufficiently sound mind to share numerous anecdotes about his fleeting but enduringly memorable glory days with the supergroups Cream and Blind Faith, along with stories of his other colorful personal and professional misadventures throughout the world.
Quote:
For the production of the docu, Bulger returned to Baker's retreat, where the rock legend lives with his much younger African wife, her kids and 39 polo ponies. Throughout most of the oncamera interviews, Baker alternates between bemused introspection and acid sarcasm.
Quote:
Relying on the judgment of many experts notably a squad of veteran drummers that includes Lars Ulrich of Metallica, Max Weinberg of the E Street Band, Neil Peart of Rush and many others the film makes a persuasive argument that Mr. Baker was the greatest of all rock drummers.
Quote:
Mr. Baker was a rocker, in a sense, by accident of birth and association. If you were young, musical and British in the 1960s, rock n roll was an irresistible career path, and Mr. Baker certainly, at least for a while, lived out the rock star legend to its fullest. But he was by taste and temperament more of a jazzman, captivated at an early age by African polyrhythms and the expansive approach of American drummers like Max Roach and Elvin Jones.
Quote:
Rather than keeping the beat, Mr. Baker opened it up, adding layers and nuances without sacrificing his innate, unerring sense of time. He was wilder than steady rhythm players like Charlie Watts, and also far more disciplined and subtle than showboating wild men like Moon and Bonham.
And now, in his 70s, Mr. Baker is hardly in a mood for classic-rock nostalgia. That was the birth of heavy metal, he says of the Cream years. It should have been aborted.
And now, in his 70s, Mr. Baker is hardly in a mood for classic-rock nostalgia. That was the birth of heavy metal, he says of the Cream years. It should have been aborted.
12-10-2012
, 12:22 PM
12-10-2012
, 06:50 PM
12-11-2012
, 08:44 AM
12-11-2012
, 12:46 PM
Let's do it.
12-11-2012
, 12:47 PM
12-11-2012
, 06:34 PM
Fine, here are some worthwhile jazz documentaries.
Also, I saw an amazing documentary on Duke Ellington, but I can't seem to locate a link. My recollection is that the documentary was televised - perhaps on PBS - in the mid to late 1980s. Just searching now, I found reference to a Duke documentary on PBS, but it looks like it was televised much later, about 10 years ago. No idea if it's the same one. The one I watched had excellent footage.
Also, I saw an amazing documentary on Duke Ellington, but I can't seem to locate a link. My recollection is that the documentary was televised - perhaps on PBS - in the mid to late 1980s. Just searching now, I found reference to a Duke documentary on PBS, but it looks like it was televised much later, about 10 years ago. No idea if it's the same one. The one I watched had excellent footage.
12-12-2012
, 11:56 AM
