That Buddy Man, now 85, lives for the blues is an understatement, as anybody accustomed to his impulsive, magnetic manner with chords, lyrics and stage presence can attest. That the Chicago guitar legend additionally must see the blues dwell on is on the middle of “The Torch,” a documentary by Jim Farrell.
However to take the film’s phrase for it, that data — the affect of Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker, filtered into Man’s freewheeling, before-its-time fashion — will dwell on in a pale, sweet-faced, blues-loving teen named Quinn Sullivan from New Bedford, Mass. Sullivan was 8 when he was first invited onto a stage with Man, who was duly impressed by the basic licks popping out of a prodigy with old-soul chops. The 2 have toured regularly collectively ever since, and Sullivan is now a recording artist in his personal proper.
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It’s a pleasant story of grasp and protégé, and in lots of scenes the bond between the irrepressible, humorous Man and the quiet, observant Sullivan appears real. After all, there’s loads of music to get pleasure from too in moments of Man tearing up the stage at his Chicago membership. However Sullivan’s teenage development, a key thread, isn’t practically as fascinating as listening to Man inform tales in regards to the exhausting highway from Louisiana sharecropper’s son to recording with giants, and nonetheless having to carry down a job to make ends meet.
Plus, the contextual framing feels problematic when nearly all of non-Man display screen time addressing the legacy of this African American-created artwork kind, as personified in its oldest surviving customary bearer, is given to white interviewees. Nothing towards these Man worshippers’ dedication to the blues, however the dearth of Black voices in “The Torch” — as performers, specialists or followers — appears unwell thought-about, to say the least.
'The Torch'
Not rated
Operating time: 1 hour, 49 minutes
Enjoying: Begins March 28, Laemmle Royal, West Los Angeles
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