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I remember watching the entire series of videos (they were aired on one of our TV channels and I taped them to VHS) and I was truly impressed by the historic footage. And this is one of the reasons I've kept them and why I'd like to watch them again (but am not sure I'd want to find out how the VHS cassettes have stood the test of time and whether my VHS player might foul up  so somehow keep postponing it ). But the interviews and narrations? I dunno ... And the skewedness of how and why (as if ...) the entire history of jazz could be hinged on Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington ... Oh well ... (The same goes for the accompanying book IMO, BTW, although on a different level it is an interesting and rewarding one, though to be taken with a grain of salt when it comes to how balanced the presentation of the history really is.) Overall it really looks like one of those cases of someone succeeding in the media world by placing himself in the center of attention of "key players" and multiplicators in the business, regardless of how substantial and well-founded the KNOWLEDGE he has to offer really is. But isn't that what the media business has been all about for along time? Making waves and slinging easily digestible buzzwords is what counts above all. Something substantial? Not so much .... As in most specialist areas (particularly when history and knowledge of same comes into play) there are plenty out there who are way more knowledgeable but they are not the ones who have endeared themselves with and therefore are called upon by the deciders.

One of the things Burns does is ask all interviewees certain leading questions and get them to answer in much the same way.  This becomes the thread of his story and each of the interviews sort of confirms this thread.  Never mind that it's shallow and maybe even wrong.  In the jazz series he never really discusses what's different about this music, what's going on with each development, what's good about it, etc.  It's all just glossy panning of old photos and shallow generalizations... and praise, lots of praise!  Endless clips of various talking heads enthusing about some musician without any real attempt to explain why.

I have only seen bits and pieces of it and it is little wonder how little Ken Burns knew about jazz. What was bizarre to me was having Wynton Marsalis talking about what it was like playing with Duke Ellington, the question would have been better asked of Clark Terry. 

In understand that’s difficult but… it’s kind of inevitable isn’t it? What a bizarre story. 

Ha ... 2 out of 3 of your post will be lined up here too for Christmas Eve. They are what you might call "common ground" palatable to my better half and our son.  Will also spin "Kenton's Christmas" to myself during the day, though.