Jazz drummer and online friend, Sriram Gopal, wrote this DCist review of Terence Blanchard’s latest album A Tale of God’s Will (A Requiem for Katrina). In a recent email, Sriram confessed that this blog was one of the reasons he penned the review. It’s just what I need to hear, that we are getting through to the rest of America, even if the sounds of detractors and commenter silence are deafening. Thanks, Sriram.
… a somber and plaintive look back on how Mother Nature and the country at large betrayed a great American city.
… The music on A Tale of God’s Will was written for, and inspired by, Spike Lee’s exceptional documentary for HBO, When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts. Blanchard is a close collaborator of Lee, for whom he has scored several films.
… While many associate the music of New Orleans with a rich tradition, these songs are not historical documents; they are about a city that is presently in distress and faces an uncertain future. Blanchard, however, recognizes that improvisation is at the root of jazz and New Orleans’ musical heritage and so he wisely incorporates moments when the musicians get the chance to stretch out and blow.
