Jazz on a Summer's Day documents a selection of renowned performances at the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival in Rhode Island. The lineup includes The Thelonious Monk Trio (Thelonious Monk, Henry Grimes, Roy Haynes), Anita O'Day, and Dinah Washington. Chuck Berry appears, as well as Louis Armstrong, and Big Maybelle. Mahalia Jackson closes the event singing "The Lord's Prayer." Directed by New York photographer Bert Stern and Aram Avakian, the film is a step back in time for jazz lovers and music historians. Stern originally intended to make a short movie with voiceovers and juxtapose the differences between the wealthy, elite audience and the humble beginnings of jazz. To that end, Stern interspersed the music with shots of the audience, images of Narragansett Bay, and scenes from the concurrent offshore America's Cup yacht races. In 2001, the Library of Congress selected the film to be included in the National Film Registry of "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" works.moreless
