culture
Black History Month
Independent Lens focuses on gay composer,
homophobia in hip-hop
by Gary Morris
of his life. In Strayhorn, Ellington discovered a ver
itable angel, a quiet, amenable young man who
could churn out complex masterpieces that were
also hit tunes, practically overnight. Ellington in
some ways took advantage of Strayhorn’s talents
and seeming submissiveness, taking credit for his
friend's songs and sabotaging all attempts by
Strayhorn to leave his nest for more ambitious
projects or collaborators. But Strayhorn clearly
benefited, too: He gained a loving, admiring father
figure, one who stimulated his highest creativity
and allowed him the “lush life” he enjoyed, far
removed from his hardscrabble youth.
Their unusual relationship is at the heart of this
film and provides much of the drama. But
Strayhorn’s life was about more than Ellington. Lena
Home’s daughter calls him “soft” but also “a tiger,"
and friends soon learned not to trifle with him. He
Billy Strayhorn was stuck in Duke Ellington's shadow because of his sexual orientation.
had a rich social life away from the limelight. The
film shows him partying with friends like Home and
Most impressive, though, is the music. The
Channel, a major purveyor of hip-hop, prefer
Quincy Jones (who speaks of him in awe), setting up
samples—from the film scores and orchestral suites
images like rapper 50 Cent swiping a credit card in
housekeeping with boyfriends, drinking beer for
that filigree Lush Life, to Dianne Reeves singing the
the “shakin’ booty" of a “ho’ ” in the video “Tip
breakfast and going to Paris to work with Orson
extraordinary title tune, written when Strayhorn
Drill” or the bloody parade of black men “capping"
Welles or Hollywood to score movies.
was 16—confirm the portrait of a gay genius whose
each other. Because they’ve cornered the market,
complex, melancholy sound remains one of popu they’ve been massively successful in selling
lar music’s most distinctive.
grotesque images like these to consumers, mostly
Strayhorn died of cancer at 51 in the arms of his
white.
lover, Bill Groves. His death had a profound effect
The film covers a lot of ground in an hour, but
on those in his circle, not least on Ellington. The
some of the most interesting material is on homo
Duke’s eulogy is one of the most loving and respect phobia and homoeroticism. Lyrics like “it ain’t no
ful here, particularly in the terms in which he
fun unless we all get some” and the endless empha
describes this shy, shadowy gay man nicknamed
sis on tats, muscles and “my boys" show there’s
“Sweet Pea”: “He had the greatest authority,” he
plenty of queer vibe here. Some interviewees like
says, then pauses. “With Billy Strayhorn 1 had the
Busta Rhymes are so insecure, they run when direc
greatest security."
tor Hurt asks about anti-gay lyrics, but as always the
drag queens get the last word when one of them
t the opposite end of the black music spectrum
laughingly explains how easy it is to have sex with
from Strayhorn’s subtleties are the hammering,
even the most homophobic-seeming rappers, as
brutal sounds of hip-hop. Byron Hurt’s excellent
long as it’s “on the down low.”
documentary Hip-Hop: Beyond Beats & Rhymes
gathers an enlightening array of cultural commen
I ndependent L ens presents Billy Strayhorn: Lush
tators, media execs, rappers and wannabes to talk
Life 1 1 p.m. Feb. 6 and Hip-Hop: Beyond Beats
about the spiraling sexism, racism and homophobia
& Rhymes 11 p.m. Feb. 20 on OPB.
in the genre.
It’s a big subject, increasingly so in the past few
G ary M orris edits and publishes Bright Lights
years when media consolidation killed off hip-hop’s
Film Journal, located online at
Filmmaker Byron Hurt confronts insecure rappers like Busta Rhymes about anti-gay lyrics in his
social critique. Corporate monoliths like Clear
uww.brightkghtsfilm.com.
excellent documentary Hip-Hop: Beyond Beets ft Rhymes.
illy Strayhorn (1916-1967) was a major
20th century composer, compared by
some critics to Ravel, Debussy and
Stravinsky for the complexity and beauty
of his melodies. Yet he’s far from a house
hold name. He wrote jazz classics like “Satin Doll”
and “Take the A Train,” but most people associate
those tunes with Duke Ellington.
Strayhorn had one major strike against him ever
assuming the role of public entertainer that an obvi
ous showman like Ellington relished: He was gay. Not
closeted exactly, in the sense that we understand that
term today; private is probably more accurate.
Robert Levi’s fine documentary Billy Strayhorn:
Lush Life tells his story, and it’s a fascinating one of
an elusive subject cobbled together through archival
footage, musical performances and interviews with
friends, family, biographers and associates.
Born in dire poverty to an artistic mother and
a violent father, Strayhorn escaped into music.
A piano prodigy, he was writing brilliant songs and
even complex suites while in his teens. A fortuitous
meeting with Ellington in his 20s would bring him
to what most believe was the defining relationship
A
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