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TOTAL JAZZby Blutch
(
Seuil. North Americans may want to try
The Beguiling.)
Reviewed by Henry Chamberlain Any discussion of sophisticated urbane comics would have to include the legendary French cartoonist, Blutch. Paul Pope calls him a major influence. As does Craig Thompson. As well as Jessica Abel, who has been inspired by his bold brush work and lead to pare down her work to great effect in
La Perdida. For me, as I continue working on my own series,
Alice in New York, I find great comfort in the master's latest work,
Total Jazz. We both adore the city and are moved to proclaim our deepest love for it. And I feel a kinship with just how he proclaims his love. His style, you could say, is a Jules Feiffer on steroids. A sketchy quality that always delivers a punch – whether thick or thin. He lets me know I should be proud of my sketchy inclinations but I also need to always get it right. And Blutch definitely gets it right.
Total Jazz continues his love letter to the city just, this time around, the focus is on Chet Baker, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, and all the other smooth operators who come to life after dark. His homage is as much to a way of life, a way of living, as it is to any particular musician. If you think of any Woody Allen movie, jazz is never just the soundtrack but embodies the soul of the city and all of its dwellers. So too with Blutch. He depicts those that live the jazz life: joyful, melancholic, world-weary, hardened by the city, with a New York edge and a Parisian charm. An edge and charm of a certain vintage – when jazz ruled some forty odd years ago.
Both fan and performer are treated equally by Blutch, almost interchangably, belonging to a special club. As its members age, their appreciation of jazz seems to ripen to perfection. And once reaching death, the jazz greats become jazz gods. It is no use to try to explain how great jazz is to a younger generation. Either they get it or they don't. In one story, Blutch depicts the agony a jazz fan goes through as his music is mocked by his own children. A tear rolls down his face. Jazz was meant for the true believers. In another story, however, an old couple sit down to listen to an old favorite album only to be jarred out of their nostalgic wits.
So,
Total Jazz emerged just as I was starting on my second installment of
Alice in New York and it has proven a great friend and guide as I write and draw and, in my own way, am influenced by Blutch. He is great because he transcends mere ambition and speaks from the heart. With heart-felt ease, he can make you hear a trumpet shout and a saxaphone cry.
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