Woody Plays that Old-Timey Style

Late last week I got a phone call from my Dad...: "So, we want to know when you're coming up for Christmas. Can you make it on the 23rd? We have tickets to go see Woody Allen play in his jazz band at the Napa Valley Opera House - should I buy you a ticket? Can you make it that night?"

Um, yeah.

I have always loved movies, and started watching "the classics" at a young age, but it was not until I was quite a bit older that I started to appreciate Woody Allen films. The intelligence, the sarcasm, the academic references spun in witty rejoinders - all of it was lost on me until I became "of a certain age." Now, his films are among my favorites. Annie Hall, Hannah and Her Sisters, and Bullets Over Broadway continue to draw my laughter, even though I know exactly what line is coming next. What's Up Tiger Lily? is a complete scream, as are most of the early films, showcasing Allen's infatuation with Marx Brothers' slapstick and one-liners. When I moved to France, I really started to learn about Woody Allen - the French LOVE him. His films are played all across Paris in any number of little cinematheques, where one may garner a crash-course in film studies every night. The French too love the Marx Brothers, their absurdist humor and love of the ridiculous seems to appeal to the Gallic sensibilites; therefore it should only follow that Woody Allen be just as appreciated as his predecessors.

Everyone who's seen Allen's films knows his obsessions: beautiful women, art, sex, the sources of creativity, Bohemian life, neuroses, and relationships, just to name a few. But woven throughout all of the oeuvre (God, I love it when using that word is actually appropriate,) is the music. Woody Allen films will definitely teach you something about that great American art form: jazz. Layering standards over his photography and stories builds that dimension of "American classic" that he is famous for - especially during the 1970s and 1980s. The technique has been borrowed and adapted countless times, namely in the films of Nora Ephron, but what is given a light touch in an Allen film turns into a gooey sentimentality in it's borrowing. Last year's Match Point was positively genius in its usage of Italian opera in the soundtrack - it was not until mid-way through the film that I realized: "it's an opera!" It is because of the musical dimension that all is forgiven when the melodrama goes a bit too far.

Of course I had seen Wild Man Blues and The Sweet and Lowdown, but Woody Allen's actual playing of music always seems to be a bit of an urban myth, something heard about but never actually seen. Then all of a sudden I have a ticket to go see him play his clarinet at the Napa Valley Opera House with the rest of his New Orleans Jazz Band. Built in 1879, the Napa Valley Opera House holds only 480 seats, and almost all of them were full last night. The head of the organization announced the show, indicating all of the special guests in the audience, including the Mondavis and the Altmans. (I was expecting the Coppolas to appear at any moment, and then we'd really have an old-home week, but no dice.)

The band came out and played for a full ninety minutes, plus an encore of three songs. Allen came to the microphone a few times to say "Hi!" in that sweet little way he does in his movies, and to introduce the members of his band. Otherwise, he was just a guy playing in a band with his buddies - and playing damn well too. New Orleans Jazz is twangy, bouncey, and fun - it's soulful and bluesy, tells stories, and takes you on a long walk. It's whole-heartedly American, and for me, it made Woody Allen and his entire career stand in high relief. It was hard not to watch him: the bowed head listening and then leaning way back for a solo, the tiny frame in slouchy corduroy pants, the brown shoes jumping off the floor - his love and joy were contagious. When the band ended playing "We'll Meet Again" his closing remarks were kind and grateful. "We could go on all night..." he said with a half-shrug and a little giggle. It was nice to see Woody Allen enjoying himself, his friends, his talent - and having some fun in the bargain.