Charlie Haden: Rambling Boy

Year: 2009
Country: SWITZERLAND, USA
Run Time: 86 minutes

"I want to expand jazz," Charlie Haden says in this riveting documentary that follows his career of more than 50 years. "I don't want to keep the audience limited. I want to reach people who have never come to a jazz concert before." Now in his 70's, Haden is one of the genre's living legends - a bass player who has influenced generations of jazz musicians and whose music today continues to break new ground. Behind-the-scenes interviews and mini-performances with jazz pianist Keith Jarrett, jazz saxaphonist Joe Lovano, and jazz guitarist Pat Metheny add to the richness of Haden's own story of how he creates music today. Historical photos and film clips, along with Haden's own words, give life to a past jazz scene filled with legends Hamton Hawes, Dexter Gordon, John Coltrane, and Alice Coltrane (Haden played bass for her). The story of CHARLIE HADEN: RAMBLING BOY begins in 1939 in Shenandoah, Iowa. Haden found his musical calling in jazz, and in 1957 he left Iowa for Los Angeles to study jazz at Westlake College. A few short years later he helped create the "free jazz" sound of the 1960s that influenced new generations of performers and listeners. Whether you're a long-time jazz lover or new to the genre, Haden's remarkable story will whet your musical appetite to hear more of his special sound. – C.K.

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