Willie Smith: Willie the Lion

Overview:

Mentor to Artie Shaw, Duke Ellington, and Thelonious Monk, pianist Willie "The Lion" Smith was truly one of the most vital and influential figures in jazz history. The purveyor of a stomping piano style known as the "Harlem Stride," the complex Smith was also a decorated war hero, a cantor in a Harlem synagogue, and a composer of over 100 classic jazz compositions. This biographical documentary examines the life of the legendary jazz great through interviews, narration, archival material, and rare performance footage.