We are excited to present the MONTREAL PREMIERE of
Garland Jeffreys. The King of In Between, an award-winning documentary about this genre-defying singer/songwriter.
Directed and Produced by Claire Jeffreys
Thurs, Oct 23
DOORS: 7pm
FILM: 7:30pm
Limited to 40 people
Upon purchase of ticket, your name will be at the door and a seat will be pre-assigned for you. YES! you can ask to have friends sit together.
Tickets available via the ticket link; interac transfer (
cmFscGggfCBib25nb2JlYXQgISBjb20=, please note the film in your message), or by phone with credit card (1-514-952-6190)
Giant 12ftx9ft screen.
Warm intimate vibe.
Cold beverages & coffee will be available.
We are an art gallery/record store and you are welcome to browse and hang out before and after the screening; meet new friends and enjoy the ambience.
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TRAILER:
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SYNOPSIS
Hubris, anger, prejudice...doo-wop, reggae, rock… expectations, heartbreak, transformation… Garland Jeffreys: The King of In Between examines the fifty-year career of this genre-bending, biracial singer-songwriter. An enigmatic performer since his start in the Greenwich Village clubs, Jeffreys never quite reached the success predicted for him. The film asks why, and explores how his commitment to writing about race in America is more relevant now than ever. During the course of this film, it was revealed that Garland Jeffreys is now in the late stages of Alzheimer's disease.
PROJECT SUMMARY
Jeffreys’ early songs melded Dylanesque folk, the doo-wop sounds of his Brooklyn childhood, and reggae (well before its global popularity) with his personal experience of race in America. The result was undeniably compelling, and though record deals followed, wider success eluded him. The film looks at what factors might have caused this (including possible systemic racism in the music industry) and seeks to understand them. Fellow artists Vernon Reid (leader of seminal black rock group Living Colour) and Alejandro Escovedo weigh in with their own experiences, and critics David Hajdu and Robert Christgau offer contextualizing takes on why Jeffreys did not garner more mainstream success.
Although he found popularity in a more receptive Europe, Garland’s trajectory, like that of many artists, was a series of triumphs and setbacks, periods of momentum followed by periods of depression and retreat. Eventually, fatherhood provided a fulfillment fame never could, sobriety helped him find more balance, and changes in the music industry allowed him new artistic and personal freedoms. The film offers insight into how artists define success through Garland’s journey to self-acceptance and humility.
The film is threaded with warm and funny verité scenes and extensive use of performance footage, domestic and international, the earliest from 1977. People from Garland's life offer their views: childhood friend Philip Messina on his early career and the racial tenor of their hometown Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn; longtime accompanist Alan Freedman talks about their early days running all over town playing clubs and some of the snafus with various record labels; avant-garde performer Laurie Anderson reflects on Lou Reed's affection and respect for Garland as well as the quixotic nature of success; actor Harvey Keitel speaks about the relationship between Claire and Garland. Actor/ writer Roger Guenveur Smith brings a unique perspective as a fellow biracial artist and makes connections between the music of Garland's youth and his later work.
We follow Garland through his early hustling days in the clubs in the late 60s and 70s to a burst of success in Europe in the early 80s, a long retreat, a major triumph with 1992's "Don't Call Me Buckwheat" and then a second hiatus, until finally roaring back in 2011 with The King of In Between album—a resurrection of sorts and the first of a trilogy of late career self-released records that some critics have called the best of his career. Our film closes with Garland at his retirement concert where fellow artists interpret his songs and celebrate his body of work.
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