TV REVIEW : ‘Jazz on a Rainy Day’ Has a Mix for Purists, Populists

Newport, R.I., where the first major American jazz festival took place in 1954, was also the site of the most memorable festival film, “Jazz on a Summer’s Day,” in 1960. Because conditions justified it, the title for this year’s show, due for airing tonight at 6 and 10 on A&E;, is “Jazz on a Rainy Day.”

Produced and directed by Norman Abbott, the program follows a pattern typical of its recent years, mixing legitimate jazz groups with concessions to popular taste. The first unit seen, billed as the New York Jazz Giants, sets a high standard, with admirable solos by Bobby Watson on alto sax, Lew Tabackin on tenor and Jon Faddis and Tom Harrell on fluegelhorns.

Among the other acts, many of them seen through a thin film of rain, the T. S. Monk Sextet stands out. The drummer son of the late Thelonious Monk leads a vibrant band with Don Sickler on trumpet and Willie Williams on tenor sax taking chief honors. Their set is followed by a short clip of Monk’s father in his heyday.

Another distinguished drummer, Max Roach, leads his quartet through a set notable mainly for the leader’s potent drive. The group billed as J. B. Horns is a throwback to 1940s R&B;, with excessive hollering and clapping as Maceo Parker and Pee Wee Ellis offer undistinguished sax solos.

Roberta Flack inexplicably talks her way through the first half of “Prelude to a Kiss,” revealing little of her potential warmth. Shirley Horn, showing how to play the piano while wearing gloves, comes across to good effect only in one song, “Don’t Let the Sun Catch You Crying.”

The show hits rock bottom, literally, with Tower of Power belying its name as the elements rain on its pathetic parade.

Sound and camerawork are fine. Producer George Wein, still the Sol Hurok of jazz, appears for a couple of brief interviews. The crowd shots, showing hundreds of umbrellas aloft, add an effective touch of local color.