Black And White And Blues

Back in December, I jumped into a world about which I know (Bo) Diddley by writing a post about a movie, specifically Brando and Streetcar Named Desire. It was fun to branch out to another topic and get some comments in return, some of which decidedly took me to task for my opinions.

Last night, we finally got around to watching Baby Doll, another Tennessee Williams/Elia Kazan piece that was released in 1956. Based on two separate Williams plays, Movie Hound called it one of Kazan’s “least ambitious yet most effective works”. Though I’m no expert on their collaborations, I’d have to agree: I loved the economy words, the subtlety of the actor’s movements, the stark cinematography

For better or worse, I enjoyed it considerably more than Streetcar. I thought Karl Malden was brilliant, an amazing spinning mix of rage, jealousy and confusion. I guess some people think Carroll Baker was a one dimensional actress, but so what: the electricity between her and Eli Wallach was breathtaking. And the three of them were far more balanced in their roles than Brando, Leigh and Co. were in Streetcar.

Beyond the story, I really loved the musical interludes: the woman in the restaurant singing gospel, the man on the porch singing Baby Please Don’t Go. Not more than a few hours earlier, I was sitting in front of the TV, brushing the dog, watching a DVD of performances from the American Folk Blues Festival.

Even though I’d heard Skip James many times before, the beauty of his tenor grabbed me by the ears and sucked me in. Presented between Bukka White and Son House, the angelic delicacy of his singing stood out even more.

It wasn’t my intention, but last night ended up being a wonderful artistic convergence of black and white and blues.

Here’s a cut from James followed by the original trailer for the movie. (Was the theme song called Baby Doll? If anyone knows, please drop me a comment…)

Skip James – All Night Long