Businesses in the capital pretty spark the government has dispatched police officers in neighborhoods across both cities in the last 3 days more than 90 people reportedly have been arrested in connection with the attacks the Dow is down 1.2 percent This is N.P.R. News and with K B C C News I'm Libby Tank Man rescue efforts have been suspended and 34 people are now presumed dead in Monday morning scuba diving boat disaster off Santa Cruz Island Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown says it's unlikely any one below decks survived the fire that tore through the Shard charter boat conception K.P.C. Sees Sharon McNary is at the Family Assistance Center in Santa Barbara and Sharon have you seen families coming to that center for help today. I have there is a stream of them but they're coming in a way that segregate them very carefully from reporters basically the idea here is that if people want to come out and tell about the person that they think they've lost they will make that choice but they have to take a different path to find us waiting outside and so we we understand that we want to be respectful of that but meanwhile the Coast Guard search for survivors they searched 160 square miles of the ocean in the 24 hours they were doing their search that has been called off that means no more helicopters no more boats going in that wider area looking for somebody who might have swam away or gotten the shore and what's left is to dislodge the remains of a few more of the victims from the boat which is you know settled on the ocean floor 64 feet underwater and then to continue with the D.N.A. Identification and there's a passenger list why not just use that to identify the dead apparently the bodies have such they call it stream of thermal damage there so badly burned they need to make that positive ID So families are providing D.N.A. Samples to help make that natural quickly we know now that most of the victims of from Santa Cruz in the San Jose area ages from the sixty's all the way down to a 17 year old high school student with a Sharon McNary with us live from the field at a. Recovery and Information Center for Victims Families in that horrific boat accident off the Channel Islands Santa Cruz Island and Sharon's been covering that since we got word yesterday morning thank you so much Sharon it's 212 o 7. Support for N.P.R. Comes from Progressive Insurance offering a way to buy home insurance with their home quote explore its will custom quotes and rates are available online learn more at progressive dot com or 1800 progressive now about progressive and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting This is FRESH AIR I'm Terry Gross 50 years ago Elvis Presley started performing in concert live on stage for the 1st time in 8 years 8 years of making movies and records the 1989 concert comeback was staged in the biggest showroom in Vegas 2000 seats at the Las Vegas International Hotel where he played 2 sold out shows a night 7 nights a week for 4 weeks he was accompanied by an orchestra as well as a 5 piece band which was assembled by my guest James Burton who also backed Elvis on guitar a new 11 CD set called Elvis live 1969 collects recordings from 11 of those Vegas shows James Burton continued to play with Elvis intil Elvis's death in 1977 James Burton is famous in the music world for his work as a sideman he was the guitarist and Dale Hawkins 1957 hit Susie Q and wrote the songs famous guitar lick then he played with Ricky Nelson on most of his hit records and in the T.V. Series Ozzie and Harriet Burton has played with many performers including Frank Sinatra Johnny Cash Merle Haggard Buck Owens Buffalo Springfield Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris he recorded sessions with Phil Spector and Brian Wilson let's start with a track from the new Elvis live 1969 box set this song suspicious minds became a number one hit Elvis's 1st in 7 years but he performed this version in Vegas before the single was released. James Burton welcome to FRESH AIR Thank you Terry honored to be here so these 169 Vegas concerts were recorded a year after his T.V. Comeback special and this is the Vegas concerts were the 1st time he was like back on stage in front of a lot of people live and he was nervous about getting on stage I think he told you that he was afraid that he wasn't going to be able to do it is that right. Backstage just before we went out on stage he was very nervous he came up to me and he said James I don't know if I can walk out there and show the Elvish you'll have no problem just when you come out on stage man just saying I'll sing maybe 3 or 4 songs just to that the band you know would just be off each other and forget the audience and I have to do that he just kind of relaxed inclusion and then started talking to the audience but he was very nervous yeah actually had been a stage in years just good movies for 9 years and when he called. Me and Ashmead put a band together and she could you know and he said that his favorite thing was to be on stage and saying to each and that's what he really missed most of all. Singing to the fans Was there ever a moment where you thought he's really not going to make it he's not going to be able to go on stage no not really he was always well and ready to go I mean all of his performances were fantastic you know the shoot he wore weighed like 5000 pounds never have issued a versioning I don't have a clue how he could jump around the stage in that shooting Well I mean it's not it's a white jumpsuit but it had like a zillion really large rivets on it like you know going down the side both sides of the jumpsuit and like instead of buttons they were rivets like Rivet buttons in the center and then it's like a heavy white material with a big collar not the huge collar that he later war but a pretty big color never. It was so heavy Tyria I got to tell you I picked it up one day to move it off because I couldn't pick it up it was so heavy I really don't know like you jump around like new kid on stage where in the shoot I read that he rehearsed with weights on his hands and feet so that he would yeah he would do that because. Where no shoot you never think he had to get ready for jumping the Reynolds stage and describe your pink Paisley guitar that you got for these concerts Oh wow. This is amazing my friend that was he was actually the vice president of Fender call me said I have a guitar here with your name on it and that's a really well send it to me and he said no no you had to come down check it out so I went down had had lunch with him that day and he said there's you toward the corner so I went over an open occasion as a no no no that's too too flashy too bright for me but in a way I took to guitar to Vegas with me the 1st 2 weeks I decided to only play my Telecaster that my mother and dad bought me and now played the records and 2 weeks later we had 2 weeks left in Vegas and I read where she came to me the minute fish mafia guy he came to me and he said James you got it you got to play the new Guitar Man so I was a little nervous about playing figured you know it's a little too flashy it was much say something on stage and you know might embarrass me but in a way I played the guitar that night we did 2 shows and. You never said anything and after the 2nd show. James I knows you're playing a different guitar tonight man it sounds very you know lose. And I said yeah I told my story as yes a little nervous about bringing it out on stage I don't know what you might think about it and he said no greatness sounds great so play it all you want to continue playing and it was great. So what was it like standing behind Elvis or to the side of Elvis on stage facing the audience watching the audience watching him. Because like you're on stage but like the eyes are mostly going to be like fixed on Elvis and you're taking in the halls back to. Yeah you know he he loved to talk or he always key Delf guitar and he'd always give me looks on stage you know was kind of follow me on guitar and we had to watch him every every 2nd because he would change in the middle of a song something we never knew what he was going to do so we we had to watch him every 2nd but it was amazing he was we couldn't get too close because he was moving in tears in and a little bit of karate there when you want to get a head shot. So you kept playing with us from 69 until his death so you weren't in a position to watch his health deteriorate do you think he understood that the pills he was taking were addictive and or really harming his health. Well you know I never saw him do anything or take anything. And I know that sometimes he would he would gain a little way and then he would say man I got to go back on my diet I gotta gotta slow down here and Lucius I seen him again quite a bit away and then lose it real fast which is not good but I never saw him do anything or take anything and all the all the time I worked with him I never saw any of that let's talk about you and how you got started and music you got your 1st guitar at age 14 describe that 1st guitar that you had. My 1st guitar as she was when I was 13 my mother and dad bought my 1st guitar and I just. I wanted to play so bad I had a friend in Louisiana that we can a group together and he was left handed I couldn't play his guitar but he played and when I got my 1st guitar we sat down and I'm a self-taught I taught myself to play and how much do you Jewish was God and he was the greatest teacher and were oh he taught me how to play guitar gave him my direction in music and I grew up on country music rhythm and blues gospel and we just my favorite music a country music my favorite guitar player my hero was Chet Atkins wrote Travers and there's Paul and I wanted to play like him which I could doctor play a little bit like him but I woke up one day and said there's only one she murdered Travis and one Les Paul so I have to do my own thing so that's when I started working on it and actually when I started playing I came up with a little style called chicken picking and a lot of which a lot of guitar players. I like to play that now but my 1st guitar at the age of 13 I went professional when I was 14 I played in Louisiana Hey Rudd when I was 14 in the shop band and all the great great entertainers and George Jones and Johnny and Jack and Billy Walker love those are country entertainers and that was pretty much how it got my start when I was 14 I wrote a little list metal and I was working with a blues band and a singer DIL Hawkins actually we recorded is foolish middle and it became choosy Q Which became a big hit so why don't we hear Susie Q And this features James Burton on guitar and Dale Hawkins singing and he wrote the lyric to this to write us like your lick and HENRICH. OK And other people have recorded this as well after after the Dale Hawkins. Recording which was so popular and influential So here is my guest James Burton on guitar Susie Q. That was Susie Q Dale Hawkins with my guest James Burton on guitar and James Burton wrote that famous guitar lick that you heard there so you mentioned that you developed this chicken picken style something else that you did to have your own distinct sound is to replace some of your guitar strings with banjo strings What gave you the idea to do that. Well you know when I got my 1st Fender Telecaster my mother and dad bought me strings were very stiff and I wanted to be an issue range but. I couldn't actually do stranger to shoe so I decided to. Try the banjo strange because banjo stranger lighter and I wanted to try to see if it would work and put the 1st 4 strings of 1st 2nd 3rd and 4th banjo strings own and 4 to feel 10 shakes during I usually put a string I used to nomo D. String for from the guitar and on the string I used a story so I just went down one and by doing that the 4 strings on the banjo a realized the 3rd string was actually on while. And it was different and dish on the guitar were just incredible a pleasure much easier you could play any style was I have a light touch and then it was it was for me it was it was great because it easier to bend the notes Tud to bend the string to bend the note though you've been string clear across. Well let me reintroduce you here if you're just joining us my guest is guitarist James Burton he played with Elvis during the last 8 years of Elvis's life starting with Elvis a stage come back in 1969 in Vegas 11 shows from that engagement have been released in a new box set called Elvis live 1969 will be right back after a break this is FRESH AIR tides make Roman while you're at work where work to covering all the national state and local stories you need to hear on all things N.P.R. Joining us for all things considered afternoon said for me 9.3 K. P.C.C. K.P.C. C. Supporters include Mindy and Jean Stein who support positive experiences for infants and toddlers because the brain grows. More from birth to age 3 than it does the rest of their lives learn more at 023 dot org This is FRESH AIR And if you're just joining us my guest is James Burton a guitarist who's influenced many rock and country musicians and has played with many iconic performers including Elvis Presley Sinatra Johnny Cash Merle Haggard he was in Ricky Nelson Band on the T.V. Series Ozzie and Harriet he played on many Phil Spector records he played with Elvis Presley from 69 until his death in 77 starting with Elvis's stage come back in 1989 in Vegas 11 shows from that Vegas engagement have now been released in a box set called Elvis live 1989. So you played on Harriet with Ricky Nelson and Harriet was a sitcom in the fifty's and sixty's that featured Harriet Nelson who had been big band singers I think she was a big band singer too wasn't she. Yeah she was. Actually hired her to sing in is OK so they were married and they played husband and wife and their 2 sons David and Ricky played their 2 sons and Ricky was an excellent singer and so when he became a teenager the show often ended with him and his band playing like for a school dance or the prom or some party or something and so it would be very exciting because there weren't a lot of shows particularly like sitcoms that had rock N roller on performing on the show and you were in the band you were in Ricky Nelson's band on the show and in real life how did that change your life to be on this really incredibly popular T.V. Show back in the days when there are basically 3 T.V. Stations so if you were a teenager you were watching that show. Went to work with. I was working with a guy named Bob Luman and Bob Luman was a great singer and we were in L.A. Doing some rehearsals on some songs to record the show we were rehearsing national call my gal is red hot and Ricky came in one day own business while we were rehearsing want to know who the band was in the next room playing and the next day we got a telegram from Ricky to go to the General Service studios where they do the T.V. Show and here it was amazing we took crash much we made an error David all the people on a T.V. Show and so Ozzy said when are you guys do a song for me so we did and Ricky goes Utah and my guitar in the bass player and we did mystery train some of the over songs man. Wildish is great you guys want to do want on a T.V. Show and so that was the 1st introduction to do and they all generic T.V. Show and. As these idea it was the father's idea for you to do that well he was he wanted to put a song on the show he said this is great you guys want to do this but later on we went back to Louisiana my hometown and. Call me maybe 2 weeks later Nash me to come and join Ricky B.S. Lee you torpor. My age 16 as an Sure I'd love to I went out to California and join Ricky and they invited me to come stay in their home. Show that became the 3rd son so I'm going to play the 1st song that you did with Ricky Nelson in which you played lead guitar and this is believe what you say. What are your memories of playing this for the 1st time. Oh I enjoyed the show I got to gesture stretch out a little bit being lower notes Yeah I enjoyed the solo too so. So let's hear believe what you say this is Ricky Nelson with my guest James Burton on guitar. You say. You know you've had such a big influence on the top players and I think part of that comes from being on Harriet which like you said like all teenagers watched that at the time Elvis watched it Elvis told you he used to watch it were you aware of that at the time that a lot of like up and coming guitar players including Keith Richards were watching us in Harriet and being influenced by what you were dealing with up found out later but call me Nash me to put the band together for $969.00 and come. And he said you know I watch. T.V. Show I watch Ricky sang and you play guitar he said It's my favorite show of what you do every week and that she got to be kidding the king of rock N roll watching me on T.V. Which me playing guitar. But he said he loved it he watched it every week. My guest is guitarist James Burton he's featured on the new 11 CD boxset Elvis live 1969 after a break we'll hear more of the interview Ken Tucker will review the 1st solo album by Chuck Cleaver one of the leaders of the band was he and just in China will review a new film comedy about a medical transport worker and his passengers I'm Terry Gross and this is FRESH AIR . Support for N.P.R. Comes from this station in from western hotels and resorts offering a range of wellness options for guests including their Eat well menu on demand fitness gear lending program and signature Heavenly Bed learn more at Weston dot com a member of Marriott bon voyage and from the Main Office of Tourism with wild landscapes and rugged coasts to inspire original lifestyles and authentic adventures Maine offers travelers an opportunity to discover their very own main thing at visit Maine dot com with K B C C News I'm Libby dank man divers are still trying to recover bodies from the wreck of a scuba charter boat that caught fire off the coast of Santa Cruz Island early Monday morning but as of this morning the Coast Guard has called off its search efforts and 34 people are presumed dead a charter school in Santa Cruz had a number of high school students aboard the conception Pacific Collegiate School confirmed more than 2 dozen victims attended the school school officials posted this voicemail right now our priority as a squat as to suppress our student staff at the family please respect our need for Christ. According to Pacific collegiate this was not a school sponsored trip we'll have live updates on the search efforts all morning right here on Cape E.C.C. Firefighters are warning hikers to take precautions before heading out on a hot day it comes after 1st responders were called out to the Malibu heals area yesterday where temperatures were in the mid eighty's when they got there one person was found dead and 5 others were transported to the hospital for heat related illnesses they are said to have been in stable condition when they were transported Battalion Chief Michael McCormick is with L.A. County Fire really encourage people to be prepared plenty of water planet also or go in and have a plan and know when to turn around he was speaking to our media partner N.B.C. 4 Fire officials say the hiker who died likely suffered a heat stroke illness and it is hot and humid again in Los Angeles today we're seeing coastal temperatures in the eighty's ninety's in downtown Los Angeles and hotter in the valleys in the Inland Empire where it's hitting the triple digits it's 1231. This is FRESH AIR I'm Terry Gross let's get back to my interview with guitarist James Burton he played with Elvis Presley from Elvis's 1969 comeback performances in Vegas until Elvis's death in 1907 Burton is featured on guitar on a new box set collecting performances from 11 of those 1969 shows in Vegas it's called Elvis live in 1969 Burton has played with many iconic performers including Frank Sinatra moral Haggard Buck Owens Gram Parsons and Emmy Lou Harris earlier we were talking about how he played on most of Ricky Nelson's hits and was featured in Ricky Nelson Band on the T.V. Series The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet. So I'm assuming that you left high school to become a professional musician you moved to L.A. To be honest and Harriet when you were 16 but you were playing a teenager on this teenage show that revolved in part around Ricky being in high school was the kind of teenage life that was being depicted on us and Harriet really different from anything that you had experienced personally. It was different all right when I had to call to join Ricky. My plan was to maybe come back and finish to that ship when I went out to work with Ricky. It got so busy for me I didn't have a clue it was much work in the world. And doing everything with Ricky till he. Don't know he just it was like 8 and a half years but I was doing what I wanted to do and live and play guitar and be able to make a living and it was fantastic but you know if you can do something you really love and for a livin edge that she even better I want to get to what you were doing in 1966 among other things you were featured playing guitar on a very famous very wonderful record by Meryl Haggard called the bottle let me down and you know moral hazard as one of the people who is considered to have originated the Bakersfield sound a California country music sound that was influenced by rock as well as as country what do you think of as being your contribution to what's known as the Bakersfield sound or to put it another way also power would you describe the Bakersfield sound . Well I played on probably almost all of the ordination Bakersfield a book on the Merle Haggard of Bonnie orange reception just a huge lineup of shingles from the air and. Merle called me a Jewish a vision she actually shared she was 7 when we recorded the 1st song play don't let me down but the Merle Haggard sang to Bob let me down Merle shut your great singer and I just love playing known this record and playing on all its songs I got a chance to play a little bit of. Order here the bottle let me down and Ralph money is featured on pedal steel and there's some really nice interplay between younger Tarr and him on pedal steel anything you want to say about that I just love Ralph just love love the way pleasure he just got it down he's got that sound and when he be injured no shit it just perfect What can I say if I play stupid tard will play just like him OK So here's Merle Haggard's the bottle let me down recorded in 1966 with my guest James Burton on guitar and Ralph Mooney on pedal steel guitar. different worlds. And one of the worlds you played in was the world of Phil Spector and everyone who has worked with Spector seems to have a story about how brilliant and how crazy he was. Do you have a story you can tell us well you know he was brilliant when he came to put things together but it was kind of crazy too because sometimes we go and do a session where he would have 3 organ players maybe 4 piano players to set your drum maybe 3 bass players and in 15 guitar players moves a little crazy you know it's funny sure wanted to sing and background and Sonny want to play the tambourine. But he had some great ideas and I couldn't imagine mixing a record with all their own you know. So what Phil Spector records you remember playing on oh boy I don't have a clue right now. I don't have clues so much you know I was doing like 4 sessions a day 7 days a week and it got pretty crazy because sometimes you know who the artist was you know but I know I go from one says you know like the monkeys and course the Beach Boys are going camel now played on a lot of big bush and I used to go up to Brian Wilson's house in Bel Air and we would play all weekend we we could have a record whole album in one weekend a would have all the studio guys come up here and stay he said nobody goes home a Pleasure Pier and we just play day and night and it was crazy Did you feel like a captive A Did you enjoy that you know Bill like I was you know kidnapped. No it was great we had fun doing it you know if we got tired he said You go and take a nap and when I need you call. Do you read music. Not well enough to hurt my play and really I'm very slow reader I did an album with him remained Sheeny and the 1st thing I asked him of the phone is a Henry if you're looking for somebody to read note for note what you write out you need to call one of my friends and he said you know no no no it just there's not that at all I want you or thing but they wanted my sound they wanted me for what do we create as what we like to do we come up with new ideas and different ideas and that's the best part about training your year to be you know self-taught train new year do everything you know so I few years ago I'm not sure what it was exactly you can you can let me know you were in an accident and you broke both your ankles and they were really bad breaks what happened. Well actually I have only broke one ankle on my left foot there was no problem the only thing is when I was in the hospital I don't do any drugs I don't do any anything to harm a body but ever did I got a little bit too much of a morphine when they put me to sleep and I had a bad reaction to it and it put me in a coma for 12 days but good Lord had me in a holding pattern and saved my life. What was elect to come out of the coma Do you remember your 1st memory I don't I don't remember anything my wife just told me a. Few days after we got home what happened but when I actually came out of the coma there were doctors in my room for me all kinds of questions because they didn't know where I would be some of the doctors would probably be a vegetable or something if you know that the good Lord had me in a holding pattern and brought me back thank goodness. So one of things you've been doing in the past few years you started a foundation to get guitars to schools and maybe churches Yeah you know I've always wanted to do my own show. Which in 2005 we actually came up with the idea to do the show invited all my friends that I worked with on my guitar player friends and singers as well and. By doing that told my wife pleasure their show God came to me and. Shopped and I needed to do I wanted to do something for the kids in music you know I got to thinking I would like to donate guitars to to kids you know get music back in. But the government took it out years ago and I still get letters from teachers and young kids or thank you me for this program that we do you know that's made is probably a lot of the kids couldn't afford guitars and like you said a lot of school music programs have been cut out your parents brought you your 1st guitar was out of financial hardship for them are they able to easily afford it well it was probably a hardship because at that time the guitar like $350.00 and you know that there was a little time for my my folks to do that but when I saw my 1st guitar the Fender Telecaster I wanted Mother took me down and she told one dad night that when he came home from work that I wanted you tar and he said we'll take him down to get one of the Have it was a good investment. Are you still playing. Every day every chance I get. My guitar Well James Burton thank you so much for talking with us thank you Terry James Burton is featured on guitar on the new box set Elvis live 1969 featuring 11 concerts from his 1969 Vegas comeback Here's Burton featured on guitar on a song about Vegas with Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris. With After we take a short break Ken Tucker will review an album he likes a lot the 1st solo album by Chuck Cleaver one of the leaders of the band whiskey This is FRESH AIR. It is the Coachella Valley Crenshaw we look at what's happening in and around and how it affects you next time and every time on take 2 weeks or 2 on a 9.3 K.P.C. . K.P.C. Supporters include the James Irvine foundation committed to a California where although income workers have the. So to advance economically more at Irvine dot org. Support for N.P.R. Comes from this station and from Life Lock Life Lock with Norton offers resources and advice to consumers on the steps they can take if their personal information is exposed in a data breach learn more at Life Lock dot com. And from Weston hotels and resorts offering a range of wellness options for guests including their equal menu on demand fitness gear lending program and signature Heavenly Bed learn more at Weston dot com a member of Marriott Bon boy. This is FRESH AIR rock critic Ken Tucker has a review of send aid the 1st solo album by Chuck Cleaver one of the leaders of Wiki the critically acclaimed cult rock band from Cincinnati Cleaver has described send aid as 10 songs about joy pain sorrow regret fascination wonder etc can says it can stand with the best of anything else Cleaver as done. As often as not Chuck Cleaver treats his singing as though it were something that needs to be buried in feedback double tracked into a dissonant echo or obscured by backing vocals from keyboardist John Hoffman and longtime bandmates Lisa Walker nevertheless cleavers singing on his new solo album sand A is a wonderfully expressive listen to the way it emerges from the gleeful intentional mess of melody that is the song terrible for LED. Police. To. Lead. Lead. Labor starts off send aid with terrible friend probably because with its vehement stomping fuzzy vocals and full throated lyrics it's the song that most quickly takes you into the sound and mood of this entire collection which is not called send aid by accident in song after song Cleaver is asking for help admitting defeat begging to be forgiven or to be left alone in the song called mess he's a guy who wants to communicate with someone he loves but also knows that as soon as he does he's going to regret. a truck Cleaver writes or co-writes much of the band's material alongside Lisa Walker who also helps out a great deal in the better voice department was the songs can certainly have a rough sound but in general they're more elegantly played and produced than the music on Cleaver solo project but that doesn't mean I'm enjoying Cleaver stuff any less I love the song bed with its lonely guy musing about getting old Cleaver recently turned 60 and it's line about that lonely guy sitting in a room listening to Patsy Cline saying I fall to pieces. a while the lyrics of all these songs are pessimistic whenever they're not despairing Cleaver sounds like he's having such a good time being downbeat you end up feeling comforted warmed up beat it may be that the whole collection can be summarized in one paradox tucked into the song flowers and the devil the couplet goes like this I'm so happy that I found you I can't stand to be around you like so much else Chuck Cleaver has to say who among us has not felt that way about someone we love. Ken Tucker reviewed by Chuck Cleaver after we take a short break Justin Chang will review a new film comedy about the driver of a medical transport van and. This is an N.P.R. Investigation finds neighborhoods. Are hotter than. The 9.3. Years including the California Craft Brewers Association presenting the California craft beer summit a beer festival with $180.00 California craft breweries on Saturday September 14th the. Craft beer summit. The independent comedy Give Me Liberty is now in theaters after having played to great acclaim earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival directed by the Russian American filmmaker. Who wrote the script with Alice Austin It follows the driver of a medical transport van and his passengers over the course of a busy 24 hours. Film critic Justin Chang has this review. Shortly after he moved from Moscow to Milwaukee in 1903 Carol make enough ski got a job driving a medical transport van shuttling people with disabilities to their appointments around the city he must of had some wild adventures and encounters along the way a few of which clearly inspired his exhilarating 2nd feature as a director Give Me Liberty set over the course of one very eventful day the picture follows in unruly group of passengers riding around wintry Milwaukee in a van much like the one making off he used to drive shot with a whirling handheld camera and a terrific cast of mostly nonprofessional actors the movie plays like a social realist screwball comedy a full blown farce on wheels it also feels wholly authentic in its portrait of poor marginalized individuals who are thrown together and forced to coexist for a few hours in one of the country's most segregated cities the driver of the van is a desperately overcommitted young Russian American named Vic beautifully played by Chris calloused his day is going disastrously even before he gets behind the wheel as he tries to keep his grandfather from destroying their shared apartment and help him get ready for the funeral of a dear old friend as Vic begins his pick ups and drop offs he finds that several streets are blocked due to local protests following a police shooting in a black neighborhood he transports a blind man who grumbles about the protestors and picks up a woman who is headed to a vocational center for the disabled where she plans to perform Rock Around The Clock in a talent show. But nothing goes according to plan and give me liberty becomes a master class in controlled chaos Vic learns that his grandfather and his fellow mourners never made it to the funeral so good helpful kid that he is he goes back and picks them up they pile into his van curse and complain play the accordion and sing Russian folk songs a dispatcher barks orders over the radio as Vic speeds over pothole riddled roads and even sideswipes another car. Things shift into high gear when Vic picks up Tracy a young woman with a LS Who uses a motorized wheelchair played with tough talking charisma by Lauren Lobo Spencer Tracy works as an advocate for people with disabilities and she gives Vic hell for his endless detours and delays but they soon realize that they have a lot in common including the fact that many people depend on them their back and forth dynamic becomes both the driving force and the emotional center of the movie here Tracy gently ribs Vic for keeping an enormous box of vinyl records in the van der what you were saying that I something about like the wreck you. As Tracy Moore and lolo Spencer all but pops off the screen like many of the actors in the cast she's a person with a disability playing a person with a disability it's one of the ways in which give me liberty sheds light on communities we too rarely see in American movies but the film never feels as though it's broadcasting its own integrity its too busy getting its characters from point A to Point B. And staging all manner of confusion and comedy along the way to waste time on self-congratulation. Even after the van mostly empties out Vick's day never seems to end and the movie 2nd half sustains the same level of comic attention but it also deepens emotionally we see puta full moments of human connection like when Tracy's family invites Vick and his grandfather to dinner the movie's most big hearted character is a Russian boxer named demon played by Max in the story and of with a boisterous charm that lights up his every scene Vick is a quieter presence someone who listens more than he talks which makes him an ideal guide to this particular story in this remarkable human parade Vick is just one more guy doing his best to survive and chasing the American dream the only way he knows how behind the wheel of a van and taking as many as he can along for the ride Justin Chang is a film critic for The L.A. Times. That's. Coming up on. A B C C in just a couple of minutes we'll have special coverage from the B.B.C. On the Breck sit debate in the British Parliament is the government about to lose control of the parliamentary process plus General David Petraeus weighs in on the peace process in Afghanistan then on take 2 we'll get the latest on the fire that consumed the dive boat conception off Santa Cruz Island and how investigators will try to figure out what happened a live update on that boat fire from K.P.C. Seas Alysa John Perry is right around the corner at 12 o 4 a little check on traffic for your Tuesday afternoon there's some trouble in Pico Rivera Piner Boulevard south between Washington Boulevard and Slawson Avenue is closed because of a big crash it's 1 o'clock. Cavies C.C. Supporters include Pacific symphony presenting Hail to the heroes a celebration honoring veterans military and 1st responders the heroes who make our community great audiences can enjoy the music of John Williams patriotic tunes and country singer league Crean would singing God Bless the USA and other hits Hail to the heroes September 8th at Pacific amphitheater at the O.C. Fair intervent center for tickets you can visit Pacific symphony dot org This is 89.3 K. P.C.C. Pasadena Los Angeles a community service of Pasadena City College offering over 50 free noncredit courses with flexible schedules come to learn more at Pasadena Tech Support for N.P.R. Comes from N.P.R. Stations welcome to me live from the B.B.C. World Service in London I'm TIM FRANKS showdown to Westminster British members of parliament are about to vote on a move which could severely constrain the government of the BRICS it that's what they want to force us to tell yet another thing this didn't. Happen is the progress that we have been make you go to being a doctor without all the money from the prime minister has fallen flat with at least one of his own M.P.'s who today quit the Conservative Party altogether there are very serious negotiations going to be serious for persons from the British government to become the current impasse I take that with the pictures so also in the Bahamas hurrican Dorian continues to wreak havoc as it stalls at the Land of the former U.S. Commander in Afghanistan and former CIA boss David Petraeus on the possibility of peace with the Taliban all that after this bulletin of the latest news. Ly from N.P.R. News in Washington I'm Lakshmi saying as hurricane Dorian slowly makes its way as a Cat 2 toward the U.S. Mainland where millions of people along the southeastern coast are under mandatory evacuation orders a picture of the unprecedented ruin it caused in the Bahamas is emerging Here's N.P.R.'s Windsor Johnston the storm parked itself over the Bahamas for more than a day uprooting trees downed power lines and leveling thousands of homes International Red Cross spokesman Michael Cochrane says the destruction across the Abaco and Grand Bahama Islands is devastating We believe that more than $13000.00 houses have been severely damaged or destroyed that's about 45 percent of all arms on the 2 islands trapper Reagans is with the American Red Cross will be partnered closely with the local Red Cross there in the Bahamas to make sure we're supporting as much as we can damage assessments across the islands are just getting underway the international chapter of the Red Cross has so far authorized a half $1000000.00 for the 1st wave of disaster relief Winsor Johnston N.P.R. News the U.S. Coast Guard says it suspending its search for any remaining survivors of the deadly diving boat fire early Labor Day morning off the coast of Southern California N.P.R.'s Kirk Siegler reports 20 bodies have so far been recovered from the sunken boat and wreckage U.S. Coast Guard Captain Monica Rochester's somberly took to a bank of T.V. Cameras and delivered the news that at this point seemed inevitable authorities were shifting from a search and rescue operation to search and recovery it is never an easy decision to suspend search efforts we know that this is a very difficult time for families and friends of the victims Authorities say many of the victims were part of a group of divers from the Santa Cruz and San Jose areas and included a 17 year old girl and several people in their sixty's state and federal investigators and dive teams are on the scene today investigating the cause of the fire Kirk Siegler N.P.R. News Santa Barbara Wal-Mart plans to stop selling ammunition for handguns in short bear. All right fals after 2 deadly shootings roughly a month ago added stores in Mississippi and Texas we have details from N.P.R.'s Well Mark has already stopped selling military style weapons and no longer sells guns and ammunition to people under $21.00 now the stores will also discontinue sales of ammunition for handguns and for short barrel rifles which can be used in large capacity clips and military style weapons Wal-Mart will also phase out the sale of handguns and the only state where it still sells them Alaska and note Wal-Mart is one of N.P.R. Sponsors the retailer is also asking shoppers to stop openly carrying firearms in its stores even if states allow it in a memo Wal-Mart C.E.O. Doug McMillan says Congress and the White House should act to strengthen background checks he writes quote The status quo is unacceptable Alina N.P.R. News this announcement comes just days after a mass shooting in West Texas in which 7 people were killed This is N.P.R. News and from K B C C News I'm Libby dank men as you just heard on N.P.R. Authorities continue to investigate what caused Monday's deadly fire.