The Legend of Teddy Edwards

Documentary on the undersung but quietly influential Mississippi-born LA tenorist Teddy Edwards. Despite recording perhaps the first tenor bebop solo in 1942, and his close friendships with Charlie Parker, Fats Navarro, Clifford Brown and Benny Goodman, Edwards never received the acclaim he deserved. McGlynn's sluggish, murky film clearly lacks Ken Burns' aesthetic touch, and it desperately misses an authorial voice-over. But there are some revealing moments: it opens up the oft-ignored LA scene, while Edwards openly says that heroin improved his playing by releasing his subconscious and removing his inhibitions. And, aged 77, his playing is still as garrulous and soulful as ever, as are his anecdotes.