Still Cookin' After All These Years

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Listening to Cookin' With The Miles Davis Quintet is an epiphany of sorts. Even now, more than fifty years after its initial release, it remains a remarkable testament to the potency of jazz, and reminds us how fluid it really is. What makes Cookin' even more amazing is that was recorded as a contractual obligation.

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Columbia had recorded the Quintet in 1955, but since Miles was under contract to Prestige. they couldn't release the tapes. The two labels reached an agreement whereby would record the necessary sessions to fulfill his contract with Prestige, and, in return, Columbia wouldn't release anything until March 1957. Two marathon sessions, recorded in May and October, 1956, satisfied those obligations. The four albums that came out of those sessions--Cookin', Relaxin', Steamin' and Workin' became classics of cool jazz.

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Cookin', although it was recorded during the October session, was the first of the four to be released. It only takes one listen to understand why. This is the original Miles Davis quintet, with John Coltrane's sax playing against Miles Davis's trumpet, Red Garland's piano complementing the two of them, with Paul Chambers on bass and drummer Philly Joe Jones masterfully keeping the whole thing from slipping into utter chaos. There's an energy on these four tracks that strains to break free from all previous conventions, and ironically, set a new standard for the genre.

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Even though only four tracks make up Cookin', it can hardly be tossed off as an EP. These tunes brim with the immediacy of a live club performance, as well they should, considering they were all done in one take. More than that, they're the foundations for "cool jazz", in which Davis redefined the parameters of jazz, and inspired most of which would follow in the genre.

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Opening with the first recording of what would become Davis' signature tune, "My Funny Valentine" works as a sort of preamble for the rest of the set. It's powerful by virtue of its understatement, with Davis's muted trumpet delicately dancing with Garland's higher register piano musings, and the two setting a standard for lonely hearts yet to be surpassed. "Blues By Five," a Garland composition, is a freewheeling jam in the best jazz tradition, showcasing the talents of the bandmembers with solos that seamlessly integrate with the work's intent. "Arigin" ("Nigeria" spelled backwards, for the trivia buffs among you), a piece written by Sonny Rollins, is a complete reworking of the original, with Davis and Coltrane trading trumpet and sax licks like dueling heavy metal guitarists. The marathon thirteen minute combo piece "Tune Up/When lights Are Low" closes Cookin' with a jam that showcases all five musicians, with Coltrane and Davis strongly hinting at where their paths were heading.

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With few exceptions, recent years have not been particularly kind to the evolution of jazz. The current crop of players are more mired in theory than innovation, and the genre is stagnant as a result. Those not obsessed with theory have devolved jazz into a mainstream pop dance medium that has precious little to do with the soul of jazz. As a consequence, we get a lot of recycled runs that sound tired even to the least initiated. And while there exists an abundance of talented players, there's a dearth of musicians willing to stretch the boundaries of jazz.

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Miles Davis reinvented jazz, and then reinvented it again and again. With Cookin' we hear some of the early rumblings. They may have subsided a bit over the years, but somewhere out there, there's a young musician listening to the Miles Davis Quintet, and thinking. . . this could be even better, if. . .

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Cookin' could be that point of inspiration.

Why the Boomers Are a Big Noise

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From 1946 through 1964, America experienced a population growth unprecedented in human history. World War II had ended in 1945, and the country was collectively anxious to enjoy the new prosperity they now had, including rushing headlong into parenthood. Over the next eighteen years, Americans did just that-- with gusto. The result was a baby boom that increased the population by nearly 80 million. I was born right in the middle of that boom, and that may explain in part why I found the new PBS documentary The Boomer Century: 1946-2046 so fascinating.

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The Boomer Century is hardly a nostalgic romp, however. Instead, it looks at the boomer generation's past, present and future in an insightful and entertaining way. The result is a documentary that spans not only the the concerns of the boomers themselves, but addresses the impact they will have on future generations of Americans. Hosted by psychologist and gerontologist, Dr. Ken Dychtwald, The Boomer Century is a fast-paced story in three parts.

The first part focuses on how post -war American society shaped the generation, from the explosion of television culture (In 1946, only 6000 homes owned televisions; within a decade that number had mushroomed to nearly forty million.), to rock and roll, to the social upheaval of the sixties, to the student activism that followed. The second part delves into how this generation reshaped the workplace and redefined lifestyle, for better or worse. The third, and perhaps most important, part examines the impact aging boomers are having on society as a whole. The boomers are such a huge part of the populace, that every eight seconds, another one turns 60. The implications of that are enormous.

Produced and directed by Joel Westbrook and Neil Steinberg, and written by Oscar winner Mark Harris, The Boomer Century offers an incisive look at the generation that has redefined how Americans view themselves, both personally and as a culture. Interspersed throughout the documentary are interviews with a number of prominent boomers, including filmmakers Oliver Stone and Rob Reiner, satirist Lewis Black, novelist Erica Jong, White House press secretary Tony Snow, civil rights pioneer Julian Bond, and futurist Alvin Toffler, among others. They're seamlessly edited into the themes of the program, adding credibility and aiding the fast-paced feel of the program.While this is a program that has an airy aura about it, it challenges all viewers with its questions about what the future holds for American society as the boomers age. It also dispels popular myths about the so-called "Me Generation." Boomers are much more likely to contribute to charities than any other demographic, and have more than 50% more buying power than the coveted 18-39 aged bracket. Eighty percent of boomers intend to keep working after retirement.
On the downside, boomers face enormous challenges in the years ahead. More than a third live paycheck to paycheck, with net assets of less than $1000. Unless a cure or treatment is found, it's projected that 15 million boomers will be stricken by dementia by the middle of the century. And since boomers are living longer, strains will be put on retirement resources over the coming years.For the most part, The Boomer Century remains optimistic about the future of the boomers. While it doesn't shy away from the possibility of "age wars" due to the financial strain that they may put on future generations, it by and large is confident that the boomers will continue to redefine society well into this century.The Boomer Century premieres on PBS March 28, 9 PM EST. Check local listings for schedules. It's a fascinating program that will give you pause to think. Or at least smile.Produced and directed by Joel Westbrook and Neil Steinberg, and written by Oscar winner Mark Harris, The Boomer Century offers an incisive look at the generation that has redefined how Americans view themselves, both personally and as a culture. Interspersed throughout the documentary are interviews with a number of prominent boomers, including filmmakers Oliver Stone and Rob Reiner, satirist Lewis Black, novelist Erica Jong, White House press secretary Tony Snow, civil rights pioneer Julian Bond, and futurist Alvin Toffler, among others. They're seamlessly edited into the themes of the program, adding credibility and aiding the fast-paced feel of the program.While this is a program that has an airy aura about it, it challenges all viewers with its questions about what the future holds for American society as the boomers age. It also dispels popular myths about the so-called "Me Generation." Boomers are much more likely to contribute to charities than any other demographic, and have more than 50% more buying power than the coveted 18-39 aged bracket. Eighty percent of boomers intend to keep working after retirement.
will continue to redefine society well into this century.The Boomer Century premieres on PBS March 28, 9 PM EST. Check local listings for schedules. It's a fascinating program that will give you pause to think. Or at least smile.Produced and directed by Joel Westbrook and Neil Steinberg, and written by Oscar winner Mark Harris, The Boomer Century offers an incisive look at the generation that has redefined how Americans view themselves, both personally and as a culture. Interspersed throughout the documentary are interviews with a number of prominent boomers, including filmmakers Oliver Stone and Rob Reiner, satirist Lewis Black, novelist Erica Jong, White House press secretary Tony Snow, civil rights pioneer Julian Bond, and futurist Alvin Toffler, among others. They're seamlessly edited into the themes of the program, adding credibility and aiding the fast-paced feel of the program.While this is a program that has an airy aura about it, it challenges all viewers with its questions about what the future holds for American society as the boomers age. It also dispels popular myths about the so-called "Me Generation." Boomers are much more likely to contribute to charities than any other demographic, and have more than 50% more buying power than the coveted 18-39 aged bracket. Eighty percent of boomers intend to keep working after retirement.
On the downside, boomers face enormous challenges in the years ahead. More than a third live paycheck to paycheck, with net assets of less than $1000. Unless a cure or treatment is found, it's projected that 15 million boomers will be stricken by dementia by the middle of the century. And since boomers are living longer, strains will be put on retirement resources over the coming years.For the most part, The Boomer Century remains optimistic about the future of the boomers. While it doesn't shy away from the possibility of "age wars" due to the financial strain that they may put on future generations, it by and large is confident that the boomers will continue to redefine society well into this century.The Boomer Century premieres on PBS March 28, 9 PM EST. Check local listings for schedules. It's a fascinating program that will give you pause to think. Or at least smile.Produced and directed by Joel Westbrook and Neil Steinberg, and written by Oscar winner Mark Harris, The Boomer Century offers an incisive look at the generation that has redefined how Americans view themselves, both personally and as a culture. Interspersed throughout the documentary are interviews with a number of prominent boomers, including filmmakers Oliver Stone and Rob Reiner, satirist Lewis Black, novelist Erica Jong, White House press secretary Tony Snow, civil rights pioneer Julian Bond, and futurist Alvin Toffler, among others. They're seamlessly edited into the themes of the program, adding credibility and aiding the fast-paced feel of the program.While this is a program that has an airy aura about it, it challenges all viewers with its questions about what the future holds for American society as the boomers age. It also dispels popular myths about the so-called "Me Generation." Boomers are much more likely to contribute to charities than any other demographic, and have more than 50% more buying power than the coveted 18-39 aged bracket. Eighty percent of boomers intend to keep working after retirement.
On the downside, boomers face enormous challenges in the years ahead. More than a third live paycheck to paycheck, with net assets of less than $1000. Unless a cure or treatment is found, it's projected that 15 million boomers will be stricken by dementia by the middle of the century. And since boomers are living longer, strains will be put on retirement resources over the coming years.For the most part, The Boomer Century remains optimistic about the future of the boomers. While it doesn't shy away from the possibility of "age wars" due to the financial strain that they may put on future generations, it by and large is confident that the boomers will continue to redefine society well into this century.The Boomer Century premieres on PBS March 28, 9 PM EST. Check local listings for schedules. It's a fascinating program that will give you pause to think. Or at least smile.Produced and directed by Joel Westbrook and Neil Steinberg, and written by Oscar winner Mark Harris, The Boomer Century offers an incisive look at the generation that has redefined how Americans view themselves, both personally and as a culture. Interspersed throughout the documentary are interviews with a number of prominent boomers, including filmmakers Oliver Stone and Rob Reiner, satirist Lewis Black, novelist Erica Jong, White House press secretary Tony Snow, civil rights pioneer Julian Bond, and futurist Alvin Toffler, among others. They're seamlessly edited into the themes of the program, adding credibility and aiding the fast-paced feel of the program.While this is a program that has an airy aura about it, it challenges all viewers with its questions about what the future holds for American society as the boomers age. It also dispels popular myths about the so-called "Me Generation." Boomers are much more likely to contribute to charities than any other demographic, and have more than 50% more buying power than the coveted 18-39 aged bracket. Eighty percent of boomers intend to keep working after retirement.
On the downside, boomers face enormous challenges in the years ahead. More than a third live paycheck to paycheck, with net assets of less than $1000. Unless a cure or treatment is found, it's projected that 15 million boomers will be stricken by dementia by the middle of the century. And since boomers are living longer, strains will be put on retirement resources over the coming years.For the most part, The Boomer Century remains optimistic about the future of the boomers. While it doesn't shy away from the possibility of "age wars" due to the financial strain that they may put on future generations, it by and large is confident that the boomers will continue to redefine society well into this century.The Boomer Century premieres on PBS March 28, 9 PM EST. Check local listings for schedules. It's a fascinating program that will give you pause to think. Or at least smile.

'Blood Diamond': A Message in the Rough

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The conflict diamond trade--diamonds illegally traded to finance rebellions and terrorism--has come under international scrutiny of late, due at least in some small measure to the movie Blood Diamond. Set in 1999 Sierra Leone during its brutal civil war , this 2006 film raised the mainstream public's awareness of the problem. And while conflict diamond operations now account for less than 1% of the international diamond business ( by industry estimates), it remains a threat to global stability.

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While Blood Diamond may appear to have "social conscience" written all over it, it's by no means preachy. The illicit diamond trade instead serves as a backdrop for what emerges as a brilliantly executed action thriller threaded with themes of greed, honor and redemption. Produced and directed by Edward Zwick, whose previous credits include Glory and The Last Samauri, Blood Diamond is a relatively straightforward tale told in a circuitous, winding style.

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Leonardo DiCaprio portrays Danny Archer, a Rhodesian mercenary turned diamond smuggler whose whose life becomes inextricably bound with that of Solomon Vandy (Djimon Hounsou), as both seek to recover a very large, very valuable, very rare pink diamond. It's an uneasy alliance at best, as their motives for recovering the diamond are at polar extremes--Archer sees the diamond as his ticket out of Africa, while Solomon views it as a means of rescuing his family--particularly his son, who has been brainwashed by the RUF, from the horrors of war.

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It's hardly surprising that both DiCaprio and Hounsou were nominated for Oscars for their performances. Hounsou plays Solomon with an unswerving dignity tempered with quiet desperation, while DiCaprio's portrayal of Archer rivals Bogart's unflinching cynicism in his most memorable roles. .

The Decline and Fall of Musicopolis

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In the halcyon days of yore (or so the story goes), musicians and record executives lived in a relative state of symbiotic bliss. Musicians would ply their craft at various lounges, working their way through the ranks in their quest for the elusive recording contract, until being discovered by a savvy talent scout, who would launch them into the stratosphere of fame and fortune.

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At least, that's how it worked in the movies.

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The reality is a bit more harsh. The relationship between labels and performers has always been tenuous at best, with both sides wrangling over who owns the music. To the labels, it's product; to the artists, it's a piece of themselves. And for the consumer, it's both and neither. We hear in the music something that resonates inside us, and prompts us to want to own it in some way. Ultimately, it was the consumer, with ever-changing and fickle tastes, who unwittingly fueled the music business.

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As lame as it was, it was an uneasy triumvirate that more or less worked for decades.Particular in the sixties and on through the better part of the nineties, the music business was helmed by people who actually understood music and popular tastes. Sure, they cultivated artists with broad appeal, but they also took chances on artists that might have a narrower base of support, realizing the superstars were making the business enough profit to take those chances.

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Sometime around the turn of the century, it all changed. The corporate conglomerates, smelling new blood, completely reinvented the music business in their own image. Gone were the execs like Clive Davis and Ahmet Ertegun who shaped the benign empire that was the music business, replaced by a new breed far more familiar with spreadsheets than music, who transformed it into the music industry. It's an important distinction--when it began being referred to as an industry, rather than a business, it took on a faceless shape, a sprawling Musicopolis that had neither the energy or the inclination to attend to its core affairs.

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Musicopolis is an empire doomed to an ignomonious demise if it continues on its current course. See, the problem with empires is they grow fat and lazy, relying on their past glories, rather than plotting future strategies. By clinging tenaciously to outmoded models, they ensure their own extinction. Rather than embrace the voices emerging from the hinterlands, they seek to choke them.

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In Musicopolis, this problem is compounded by the fact that the new emperors come from backgrounds that have little, if anything, to do with music, and almost everything to do with faulty statistical projections based on hard goods sales. They've fallen back on the premise that if this sold well, then something almost identical to it, slightly tweaked, will sell even better. Selling music, however, is not the same as selling Toyotas.

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The sad thing is, in a society dominated by superficiality and soundbytes, music has become a byproduct imbedded between commercial spots, rather than the other way around. You're not going to find anything challenging in commercial radio. Since 1996, when the FCC lifted restrictions on the number of stations a single entity can own, radio has fallen into the hands of a few conglomerates such as Clear Channel, who mercilessly dictate popular taste based on what will sell advertising units. It doesn't matter what the particular format is--bland, inoffensive music sells ad blocks. And since airplay sells records, the labels sign people who are going to appeal to the lowest common denominator.

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Before the Music Dies is a DVD documentary that brilliantly explores some of these issues, and how they are systematically destroying American music as we know it.. Incorporating interviews with music notables like Branford Marsalis, Dave Matthews, Erykah Badu, Elvis Costello, Bonnie Raitt and Eric Clapton, among others, it makes a compelling case for a radical restructuring of the the bloated, decaying entity that is the music industry. Some will decry it as one-sided and naive, but those people are the lackeys who have put the business into its current state of affairs. It centers on the deterioration of American music in the pop mindset, but the problems of the industry have global ramifications.

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In his report to Britain's Economic Research Council, titled "Creative Destruction in the Music Industry: The Way Ahead," Andrew Ian Dodge focuses on what he considers the UK market's failure to fully exploit its strengths in a rapidly changing global market dominated by American technologies. That, coupled with the BBC's virtual monopoly of the airwaves, has led to a stagnation in which Brit bands find it increasingly difficult to compete. While his premises focus on the British market, and are debatable, his paper reaches the same conclusion as Before the Music Dies: the music business is on a slidetrough to self-destruction.

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Both of these works look at the core problems confronting the industry from the musician's viewpoint, rightfully pitting them as potential casualties in a business that has turned a deaf ear to public desperately seeking something, anything that will hold its interest. The labels spoonfeed the consumer measured doses of fifteen minute fame, and, by and large, they lap it up. Given that the average music consumer has a short attention span, why would the labels invest in an unknown commodity? The answer is, of course, they wouldn't. It's much easier to retread last week's hit with a new hairstyle and a new prefab voice. What they've failed to figure into the equation, however, is that the seeds of a revolution are taking root just beneath their status quo model. The very foundation of the music business is shifting plates, and the execs refuse to admit the towers are about to fall.

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It's a revolution that's been a long time coming. When musicians and fans alike discovered the uncharted lands of cyberspace, the first shots finally rang across the world. Musicopolis viewed cyberspace as a threat to its sovereignity, and responded, as empires inevitably do, with all the considerable force at its disposal. Calling up its armies of attorneys and enlisting the aid of some mercenary musicians, the music empire crushed the early Napster Uprising, reducing it to little more than a corporate lackey before utterly destroying it. If anything, the downfall of Napster became a rallying cry for both sides, and legal filesharing was born.

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Here's the problem as it now exists, and the blame has to be borne not only by the industry, but by the consumer and, to a certain extent, the musician, as well. The industry, rather than accept the indisputable fact that the Internet has inexorably altered the face of popular music and how it is delivered, instead continues to wage battle against it. A certain segment of consumers unwittingly aid the industry by bemoaning what they perceive as the extinction of the CD (which, ironically, exterminated the 12" vinyl album) if downloads become the dominant delivery method. And a number of musicians still cling to the belief they have to be signed to a major label to prove their worth.

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None of this is true. What is true is this--by not embracing technologies that can't even be considered "new" at this point, the music industry as we know it has already committed suicide. Cyberspace provided the industry with what could have been the greatest promotional tool that could be imagined. But because it was new, and because it required a rethinking of how the industry would evolve, the new execs chose instead to attempt to bully it out of existence. It was a strategy doomed from the start. Revolutions are like that.

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The music business will not die--it's been evolving since our ancient forebears discovered sticks and stones can make for interesting sounds. This notion of music as industry will wither and rot away, however. Technology, ironically, has made the process of delivering music more organic than at any time in history. With an investment of less than 5000$US and a relatively decent Mac or PC, anybody can essentially have a full fledged recording studio in their den. Social networking sites like YouTube and MySpace offer invaluable promo space at no cost, and have been instrumental in launching the careers of new acts that would have been ignored via the industry's rubber stamp methods.

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If the recording "industry" wants to survive in this climate, it has no choice but to make certain concessions and come to certain realizations. Downloading music is not going to go away, no matter how much the labels kick and scream. What they have to do is accept this core fact, and embrace it. Sure, it's going to force them to reevaluate what makes up an album's worth of music. It's also going to force musicians to give more of themselves, and actually make an album, rather than forty some-odd minutes of filler. The truth is, there are scant few albums that have more than a couple of good songs on them. If this doesn't happen, the furure of music will return from whence it came--the single. Attempting to blame declining album sales on the public's fascination with downloading songs is absurd. The consumer simply is no longer willing to shell out the bucks for mediocrity, regardless of glitzy packaging.

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Good music is out there, probably more of it than ever before. But now, the balance of power has shifted from the towers of Musicopolis to the street level. It's an uncertain future, perhaps, but one rife with infinitely exciting possibilities.

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The King is dead. Long live the king.

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The Final Conquest of Alexander

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Whatever else might be said of Oliver Stone, he's no quitter. His 2004 epic, Alexander, was a valiant attempt to detail the life of Alexander the Great, but the theatrical release was ultimately a sprawling mess of a film. Part of the problem was that it attempted to pack every detail of Alexander's life into a palatable running time, but the result was almost incoherent in its storytelling. Even at almost three hours running time, the film seemed garbled, with little sense of continuity.

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The 2005 DVD "Director's Cut" version didn't fare much better. Running at about 167 minutes, it still struggled with ponderous pacing and uncertain editing. Even Stone's commentary couldn't clarify exactly what story the film was attempting to explore. Was it historical epic? Psychological profile? Cross-cultural study? Whatever Stone was attempting to say was largely lost in an attempt to reach the widest possible audience.

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With the DVD release of Alexander Revisited: The Final Cut, Stone makes what he pledges will be his last attempt to get the story of Alexander right. This version is 3 1/2 hours long, and reportedly uses all available footage shot for the original film. It's been completely recut, so that this unrated version is more cohesive as a whole. According to Stone, this is the version he always envisioned, and here, he's unencumbered by box office expectations or social implications. If this is the movie he originally wanted to make, he's come very close to succeeding.

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I say "very close" because Alexander Revisited is still fraught with problems, many of which lie in the casting. Angeline Jolie and Val Kilmer, as Alexander's parents, are woefully miscast--she, as a Medussa-like sorceress with a Bond Girl Russian accent, and he, as a sodden buffoon living under delusions of grandeur. Then there's the problem of Collin Farrell in the title role. He lacks the depth to deal with the ambiguities of the monarch's psyche, and resorts to melodrama to undrescore the significance of his performance. Taken by themselves, these three performances might be overcome, but they serve more to drag the dialogue, leaving us with the notion that ancient Macedonians spoke with thick Irish brogues. Who knew?

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Despite the wooden performances of the principals--which no amount of recutting could have salvaged--Alexander Revisited is the most fully realized version of what has become Stone's obsession. Now told in rapidfire flashback-flashforward style and laced with Anthony Hopkins' mostly tedious narration, the film can be magnificent at some points, and confounding at others.

Too much is packed in to the movie, with little in the way of exposition to make the viewer sympathize with the characters. Hopkins' droning performance as Ptolemy, Alexander's biographer, serves as nothing more than a framing device that detracts from the epic scale of the picture.

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Visually, though, Alexander Revisited is a magnificent achievement, and it's here that the storytelling is most potent. Whether it's longshots of sweeping, foreign vistas or wordless closeups illustrating Alexander's sexual ambiguity or frenetic, claustrophobic, brutal battle scenes, the imagery carries the story to heights the often awkward script never fully realizes. Stone has always been a better director than writer, and his visual sense speaks volumes more than his scripting.

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It's unlikely this "final cut" is going to change anybody's mind, pro or con, about Alexander. It's almost equally unlikely that this will be the film's final DVD release. Blue Ray and HD versions are planned for later this year, and will almost assuredly offer all the "extras" that this release omits. Beyond a plaintive introduction by Stone, in which he almost begs us to give the film one last chance, there are no extras on this set. It's handsomely packaged, though with new slipcover art and attention to technical details. It's presented in a dual layer format, on two discs, complete with an "intermission." (That's what they called them back in the day, before "pause" buttons were invented.) Dolby 5.1 is the only sound option offered, but it's recorded in a way that richly fills all five channels. And it's presented in its original aspect ratio, a necessity given the scope of the film.

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Alexander Revisited is by no means a release that will fully rectify the flaws of the first two versions. The story of Alexander the Great, who conquered the known world before his mysterious death just two months short of his 33rd birthday, is perhaps too complex to be told in a single film, even one 3 1/2 hours long. That being said, this final cut is a valiant effort to recount his life. It won't be remembered as a classic, but it will be remembered.

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The Crystalline Vision of Soundies

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It was 1981, and the generation that was the first wave of yuppie culture was on top of the world. Everything was changing quickly--it was the beginning of the science fiction world. Times were good, at least from a material point of view. For 800$US, you could be the first kid on your block to have the crystal clear digital sound of a new invention called the compact disc player. Sony reigned supreme with the top-loading Betamax VCR and cable TV was making an impact that would have everlasting effects. A large part of that techie entertainment revolution was a music video cable station called MTV, which signed on with the appropriately titled clip "Video Killed the Radio Star."

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It was a world born fully flowered into existence by ex-hippies who had knelt dutifully at the twin altars of consumerism and short attention spans. They had reinvented the world in their own image, and it was good. This MTV thing, especially, offered all sorts of commercial potential possibilities. It could take what had heretofore been identified with teen angst and outright rebellion, and morph it into the mainstream mindset. Malls would be cool places to hang out, and every Buffy and Todd could disguise themselves as real-life stars. Record sales would boom, there'd be a Camaro in every garage and hair gel sales would shoot through the stratosphere.

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The thing is, though, there was nothing revolutionary about it. It had all been done before--over forty years before, in fact. Soundies: A Musical History (airing throughout March on PBS) proves beyond a doubt that our forebears were rockin' with their own version of MTV. It was 1940, and Americans, mostly recovered from the Great Depression, were feeling pretty good about themselves. The country was getting back on its feet and the thirst for entertainment had never been stronger. The time was ripe for the Mills Novelty Company to introduce an interesting machine called the Panoram.

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About the size of a refrigerator, the Panoram spawned a revolution in entertainment. A forerunner of the 16mm film projector, it allowed users to see for the first time the performers who they had idolized via sound recordings--and all for one thin dime. Loaded with eight 3-minute clips, the Panoram afforded viewers random opportunities to actually see performances by some of the country's most popular musicians. Duke Ellington, Louis Jordan, Les Paul, Cab Calloway, among others, are all featured on Soundies. The three minute performances are restored to pristine clarity, and provide us with not only a delightful timetrip into the entertainment of the day, but a glimpse into how quickly shifts in sociopolitical climates dramatically influence the landscape of popular culture.

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The early soundies--those made in 1941 prior to America's entry into WW2--were lighthearted, often boisterous romps that predated some of the styles associated with current music videos. They featured freewheeling dance sequences, mimed performances, minimal storylines and, of course, leggy eyecandy. Those made after America's entry into the war are still upbeat, but more conservative in style, and reflect the patriotic fervor that served the war effort. But throughout their reign, the soundies represented, however unintentionally, the flowing canvas of an ever-shifting culture.

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The last soundie was made mid-way through 1947. The soldiers were home from the war, people were spending more time at home and a new invention called television was just beginning to make its presence known. But from 1941-1946, the soundies reigned supreme as America's most accessible form of music entertainment.With over 1865 soundies produced in that time, they remain an invaluable link to what the culture was, and a hint as what was to come.

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Soundies: A Musical History is a vastly entertaining primer on the almost forgotten phenomenon of the soundies. Featuring commentary by Winton Marsalis, George Duke, Hugh Hefner, Leonard Maltin and others, this is a film that explores an era not that different from our own. Hosted by Michael Feinstein, and featured throughout PBS' March pledge drive,Soundies: A Musical History more than qualifies as "television worth viewing."