TRYING TO GET GOOD - the Jazz Odyssey of Jack Sheldon (2008)

Who is Jack Sheldon?

You may remember him as Merv Griffin' trumpet-wielding sidekick! Or as the indelible voice on SCHOOL HOUSE ROCK! Musicians know him as a jazz giant. Features historic footage with Benny Goodman, Stan Kenton and many others. "COMPELLING AND HIGHLY ENTERTAINING" Leonard Maltin, ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT Product Description

Jack is not only a bill, he's money

I had the good fortune of attending the premiere of this film. Doug McIntyre is a radio man by trade, as I am, and I also play the instrument Jack Sheldon works so hard to get good at, so I was thrilled to hear of the finished product and more thrilled to see it. I now have two copies (well, one, but Doug owes me another. You see, there was some confusion in shipping... but I digress). So I come at this review knowing Sheldon's work well while gaining a new perspective on a colleague whose work I already admire, but this film outstrips all preconceived notions of what I thought Trying to Get Good would be. It's tremendous.

Jack Sheldon's story is multi-faceted, like a diamond, really. You look at him from one angle and you see the comedian, the storyteller who will go as far as he wants to get a laugh, almost putting Merv Griffin in debt to the FCC (if that were possible). Turn him around and you hear a singer of amazing depth and warmth where the lyrics pour out like warm syrup and stick to your heart. Face him and you see the love of his life, his trumpet, where his skills, his true personality can glow on every level; you see his adoration of melody, his technical prowess, his individuality, yet in plain view is his dissatisfaction with performance, his desire to improve. It's as if he must, MUST get the proper response from every phrase and looks as a child might to his mother for approval. He'll seem to regard the end of a phrase as if just hearing it in full, as if someone else had played it. While on stage in one segment, he mentions to his teacher (yes, he takes lessons to this day) and says, "I know, Uan, I was sharp. I fixed it." Astounding coming from a legend like Jack, yet not terribly surprising. What artist doesn't strive to be better?

Tragedy punctuated his life with the loss of family members, a divorce, a bout with the bottle and drugs, and only a relatively short part of the film is devoted to this subject, but at 76 (or so), he's as good a performer as I remember him on Merv. He can be seen live here in Los Angeles most evenings. And his love of LA is covered beautifully in the film.

After the premiere, I approached Jack and told him how he had been an inspiration to me in my early playing days, and again with my recent reintroduction to music. He asked me, "What do you play?" I said, "Trumpet." Jack paused, grinned and said, "Hard, isn't it?" Great movie, Doug and Penny. Do more.

November 20, 2008

Finally Jack is getting the recognition he deserves

Jack Sheldon is one of the few remaining lions of jazz that speaks with a distinctive voice. This film,produced over 5 years truly captures all the elements of his life that go into the sound that Jack produces musically. Its so well crafted, some great footage of his early days in Los Angeles and his mothers swimming school. Lots of cameos by so many people, Clint Eastwood, Billy Crystal, Merv Griffin, Johnny Mandel, Dave Frishberg, and many others.

This film is must for every jazz musician and afficianado. A Winner. November 16, 2008

American Treasure!

I first new of Jack Sheldon from School House Rock when I was about 11 years old. "I'm Just a Bill, "Conjunction Junction", etc. His music taught me lessons in government as well as English and spelling. Cut to some 20 years later, I am at my uncles house listening to some of his big band music with him, and I hear a voice that is very familiar. I ask my uncle "Who is that"? "That's Jack Sheldon" he says.

After listening to "Forget About Me"...and that was it for me. He told me that Jack had played with every major Jazz & Big Band Artist from the last 30 years as well as being the band leader for Merv Griffin (which I would watch every day with my folks growing up) but I never realized how great this man's music is.

It's always great to hear the story of a jazz musician. Every musician's life has at some point had hard times, otherwise their music to me just isn't genuine when you hear it, and Jack has had his share of hard times. But what makes "Trying to Get Good" a great movie, is that unlike great musician's Like Chet Baker or Charlie Parker, Jack made it out alive...so if I sound selfish, we can have him around a bit longer.

The stories in this film are really fun to listen to, from Billy Crystal, to Clint Eastwood to Jack himself. After watching this film, what struck me the most was that Jack is Jack, he doesn't make any apologies for who he is, or how he lived his life, he just does his own thing....but does it so damn well that you think to yourself "Damn that looks like fun" and I think Jack will tell you..."Yeah, it is" October 2, 2008

Hard at Work

September 23, 2008
I saw this beautiful Peyser/McIntyre documentary about the great trumpeter "Trying To Get Good: The Jazz Odyssey of Jack Sheldon" on the big screen in an audience laughing so hard sometimes I missed the next remark.
In addition to interviews with the many famous and accomplished people who know Jack Sheldon, and music clips of his astounding performances, I was given something ephemeral and rare.

The careful choices of the filmmakers reveal a deeper sense of the artist and his journey. What Jack Sheldon clearly means by trying to get good is an expression of any artist's endless and futile quest. All artists able to articulate, talk about the constant labor required even to approach the way they imagine their work. They all talk about being only a channel through which the art emerges.

In the interviews about Sheldon, we get a picture of his deep commitment to the music, and the profound influence this commitment has on other artists. I particularly loved hearing another trumpeter explain Sheldon's masterful technique. Out of what seems to be a simple loving homage to a great musician, and complex difficult man, filled with wicked jokes and a glimpse of his wild life, emerges a valuable roadmap to anyone wishing to pursue art.

I spent time in the lobby listening to the happy exiting audience, and one in particular stood out: a white-haired woman who said she was inspired watching him, and was going to put time and effort into pursuing her own artistic life, that it was not too late, and she was ready to do the work. Like he did. September 25, 2008

It's Better Than Good!

Sometimes, not often, you walk away from a film late at night and by the next morning, you realize it is now your duty as a good human to call everyone you know and tell them about it. Friends, family...people you might even be on the fence about...just because you have to get out the word. The Peyser/McIntyre documentary "Trying To Get Good: The Jazz Odyssey of Jack Sheldon" is such a film. There is an intangible something about this work that is infectious in the best of ways. The music in quintessential and classic and the interviews vary between hysterical and tragically moving, but all are profound. The clips and stills provide the right amount of historical background to a jazz legend who should be lauded on a much larger scale. But it's the man himself, a saucy, bawdy, sad, brilliant artiste of a trumpet player who seeps into your consciousness and makes you want to see the film a second and third time. More to the point, it makes you want to collect every album he's ever played on and go have the Sheldon experience live (which you still can). "Trying To Get Good" is a savvy, lean, artfully constructed tribute to a great musician. If you don't live in the Los Angeles area, you might miss Jack Sheldon. You should not miss this film. September 22, 2008

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