Off the Record: A weird, dusty party tape

Is it worth your time?

Honestly, only if you are a massive fan of bandleader B.A. Rolfe. If you just stumbled upon this, you will probably be bored out of your mind. It’s very much a product of its time—very stiff, very polite, and very much just a party filmed on a stage.

It’s not a narrative film. Don’t go in expecting a plot like The Texas Terror or some high-stakes drama. This is just a celebration. A long, long celebration.

The Vibe

The whole thing feels like you got invited to a party where you don't know anyone. Everyone is smiling at the camera, but they seem to be looking slightly past it. It has that *bizarre* quality of early variety shows where everything is scripted, but they want you to think it’s all just happening spontaneously. Spoilers: It is definitely not spontaneous.

There’s a weird amount of applause. Like, way too much. It happens in these rhythmic bursts that feel like someone off-screen is holding up a sign. It gets distracting after about five minutes. I started wondering if the audience was actually there or if they just dubbed it in later.

Rolfe himself is... present? He’s clearly the man of the hour, but he spends most of the time just sort of standing there while other people talk about how great he is. It reminded me a bit of the awkward forced positivity in Crossed Wires, but with more brass instruments.

• The lighting is very flat, like a basement office.
• The transitions between the speeches are painful.
• I’m fairly sure one guy in the back row fell asleep.

Watching this made me think about how we archive history. Sometimes you look at these old reels and it’s like looking at a ghost. It’s a bit lonely. There’s no big payoff, no dramatic reveal, just a bunch of people in suits clapping for a guy who played music for forty years. 🎷

If you’re looking for excitement, you’d be better off re-watching Westward Ho. This is strictly for the completionists who want to see every frame of film from that era, regardless of whether it’s actually a "movie" or just a glorified home video.