Where Shadows, Cassavetes's first film, was about riffing, Too Late Blues, his next effort, plays it on the inside, a Hollywood feature about a disillusioned jazz artist. Gritty in proper measure, this moody composition follows the descent of John “Ghost” Wakefield (Bobby Darin in his first notable role), a jazz pianist in pursuit of the purest note. This takes him to charity gigs and park engagements, far outside the haunts of the celebrated. But he and his band, whose members hang on his every word, would never sully their reps for a shot at success. That is, until Ghost meets Jess, a budding vocalist played with fragile vampiness by Stella Stevens. Then he's out on an octave all his own-just him, a piano, and a sold-out soul. Scorned when it was first released, Too Late Blues is a remarkably hip harangue about artistic ideals banging up against the instruments of commodity culture. This sounds like Cassavetes's own story-the defiant maverick finding himself unwittingly on the studio lot.