Josh Jackson

'Treme' Ep. 31: To Call It Quits

Josh Jackson and Patrick Jarenwattananon — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 19:14:00 +0000

At the end of Treme's season three, with only an abbreviated season four to come, we find many characters walking away from opportunities. Spoiler alert for what follows.

Lt. Colson leaves his job with an emphatic physical statement. The Lambreaux family walks away from the national jazz center project in Congo Square. Janette tries to leave her own restaurant. Antoine seems to be accepting that his calling is more in teaching than performing. Davis calls it quits on his music career. Annie is on the verge of quitting on Davis.

'Treme,' Ep. 27: Fat Tuesday 2008

Josh Jackson and Patrick Jarenwattananon — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 22:26:00 +0000

The three seasons of Treme have all found their way to Mardi Gras; appropriately, the day is always depicted with all the spectacle, vice and musical mayhem you might expect. Josh Jackson of WBGO returns to break down the many musical scenes in this year's go-round.

Patrick Jarenwattananon: So many flashes of live music this episode. Let's start at the beginning. Did you recognize the band where Lieut.

'Treme,' Ep. 27: The Fat Man

Josh Jackson and Patrick Jarenwattananon — Mon, 29 Oct 2012 14:31:00 +0000
Born in 1928, Fats Domino enjoyed the first of his many hits — almost all of which were created in New Orleans — when "The Fat Man" rose up the R&B charts all the way to No. 2. That was in 1950. Which explains all the records on the wall at his house, and the regal status he is afforded.
That, and other musical explainers, are in our latest Treme music recap, with WBGO's Josh Jackson.
Patrick Jarenwattananon: Davis, proclaimed "the luckiest white man in America," is finally getting some buy-in for his crazy R&B opera idea.

'Treme,' Ep. 26: That's What Buddy Bolden Said

Josh Jackson and Patrick Jarenwattananon — Mon, 22 Oct 2012 21:45:00 +0000
Certain episodes of Treme seem to wear their ideological hearts on their sleeves, and this was one. You open with Desiree's mother's house getting torn down in a city mix-up; you have Davis throwing around phrases like "preservation through neglect"; you see housing projects torn down amid protest with the implication of a corrupt deal; you get protagonists like the Bernette family being harassed by police; you witness clueless developers trying to build a national jazz center while waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Philip Dizack: What You Learn When You're Older

Josh Jackson — Tue, 16 Oct 2012 20:41:00 +0000
A lot can happen in six years. For Milwaukee-bred trumpeter Philip Dizack, it marked the passage of an era worth documenting in his own artistic chronology.
"End of an Era represents a moment when what you had is gone," he says about his new album during this session from WBGO's The Checkout. "For me, it's specific things like family relationships that ended. Both of my grandparents passed away. All those things were very personal, but I saw that everyone goes through something.

'Treme,' Ep. 25: Sugar Boy's Salute

Josh Jackson — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 17:31:00 +0000
If you're one of the few viewers still confused about what Treme is saying about art, do note this episode's "play-within-a-play" staging of Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot. The existentialist play revolves around two characters, Vladimir (nicknamed Didi) and Estragon (called Gogo), who wait interminably for a mysterious "Godot" by a desolate country road. It's clearly meant to parallel New Orleans residents' wait for essential social services, complete with the barren backdrop of the city post-Katrina.