Tag Archives: documentary

Bob Dylan, Bob Dylan video, Film, Music Calendar

February 8: “Eat The Document” premiered at the New York Academy Of Music in 1971 (full movie)

5 Comments





eat

Eat The Document premiered at the New York Academy Of Music, February 8, 1971.

Eat the Document is a documentary of Bob Dylan’s 1966 tour of the United Kingdom with the Hawks. It was shot under Dylan’s direction by D. A. Pennebaker, whose groundbreaking documentary, Don’t Look Back, chronicled Dylan’s 1965 British tour. The film was originally commissioned for the ABC television series Stage ’66.

Eat the Document includes footage from the infamous Manchester Free Trade Hall concert, wherein an audience member shouted “Judas!” during the electric half of Dylan’s set. Dylan’s band during these shows were The Hawks (later to become The Band). Songs from various shows throughout the tour featured in the film include “Tell Me, Momma”, “I Don’t Believe You (She Acts Like We Never Have Met)”, “Ballad of a Thin Man”, and “One Too Many Mornings.”

Other scenes include Dylan and Robbie Robertson in hotel rooms writing and working through new songs, most of which remain unreleased and unpublished. Among these songs are “I Can’t Leave Her Behind”, which was later covered by Stephen Malkmus for the I’m Not There soundtrack.

The film also includes a piano duet with Johnny Cash performing Cash’s “I Still Miss Someone”.

Eat The Document (full movie):




front

– Hallgeir & Egil

Bob Dylan, Film, George Harrison, Tom Petty

Documentary: The True History of Traveling Wilburys 2007

1 Comment

The True History of the Traveling Wilburys

..The real prize of the collection, however, is the film included on the DVD, titled The True History of the Traveling Wilburys.  Watching it makes listening to the albums a totally new experience..
~Michael Franco (popmatters.com)

..a bonus DVD featuring an amazing 24-minute documentary showing unseen footage of the Wilburys and their five video clips, filmed largely on George Harrison’s home video recorder.
~amazon.com

Continue reading Documentary: The True History of Traveling Wilburys 2007 →

Great albums, Music Calendar, Punk, Rock

November 3: The Jam released All Mod Cons in 1978

4 Comments

“All Mod Cons, released to wide acclaim in 1978, firmly cemented the group’s rise to extraordinary heights. Indeed, for many it was the first essential Jam album and listening to it now its impact has not diminished over time.”
-BBC

When I think about English records I think of  The Kinks’ The Village Green Preservation Society, The Smiths’ The Queen is Dead, The Who’s Quadrophenia and The Jam’s All Mod Cons. To me all those albums are quintessential English.

All of them are fantastic albums.

All Mod Cons:

Released 3 November 1978
Recorded 4 July 1978 to
17 August 1978RAK (Upper London) and Eden Studios
Genre Punk rock, Mod Revival, Power pop
Length 37:28
Label Polydor
Producer Vic Coppersmith-Heaven
Chris Parry

It’s their third full-length LP. It took it’s title from a British idiom one might find in housing advertisements, is short for “all modern conveniences” and is a pun on the band’s association with the mod revival as well. Of Course it is also Paul Weller’s view on the music business as a ‘con’.

Continue reading November 3: The Jam released All Mod Cons in 1978 →

Great albums, Music Calendar

September 2: Bad Reputation by Thin Lizzy was released in 1977

1 Comment

Thin_Lizzy-Bad_Reputation-Frontal

Bad Reputation is Thin Lizzy’s eighth studio album, released in 1977. As the front cover suggests, most of the tracks feature only three-quarters of the band, with guitarist Brian Robertson only credited on three tracks. He had missed most of their earlier tour, following an injury sustained in a brawl, and this album turned out to be his last studio effort with Thin Lizzy.

phil2
Phil Lynott at Winterland 1977 Photo: Chris Bradford

Allmusic’s Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote:

“Teaming up with legendary producer Tony Visconti, Thin Lizzy managed to pull off a nifty trick of sounding leaner and tougher than they did on Johnny, yet they also had a broader sonic palette. Much of this is due, of course, to Visconti, who always had a flair for subtle dramatics that never called attention to themselves, and he puts this to use in dramatic effect here, to the extent that Lizzy sound stripped down to their bare bones, even when they have horns pushing them forward on “Dancing in the Moonlight” or when overdubbed vocals pile up on the title track. Of course, they were stripped down to a trio for most of this record: guitarist Brian Robertson (who’d injured his hand) had to sit out on most of the recording, but Scott Gorham’s double duty makes his absence unnoticeable. Plus, this is pure visceral rock & roll, the hardest and heaviest that Thin Lizzy ever made, living up to the promise of the title track. And, as always, a lot of this has to do with Phil Lynott’s writing, which is in top form whether he’s romanticizing “Soldiers of Fortune” or heading down the “Opium Trail.” It adds up to an album that rivals Jailbreak as their best studio album.”

My three favorite Lizzy albums are:

1. Bad Reputation
2. Johnny The Fox
3. Jailbreak

It is strange to listen to these albums now, they are so mellow and soulful. We regarded them as hard rock records in the late 70s, but now I will describe them as Hard-rock/soul albums. And how great is Phil Lynott’s singing, he’s a great soul singer!

Dancing In The Moonlight (Live and Dangerous, DVD):

Continue reading September 2: Bad Reputation by Thin Lizzy was released in 1977 →

Great albums, Music Calendar, Warren Zevon

August 26: Warren Zevon released his last album The Wind in 2003

5 Comments

warren zevon - the wind (front)

“Timor mortis conturbat me.
It’s from a medieval Scottish poem by William Dunbar,
It means, ‘The fear of death just fucks me up’”
– Warren Zevon (told to The Guardian, and roaring with laughter)

Warren Zevon died in 2003 aged 56, he was noted for his black humour and dry wit; he never had the big commercial success he deserved. He was highly regarded by critics and music lovers (and musicians), you could say he enjoyed a cult following. He should have been big.

“This was a nice deal: life.”
– Warren Zevon

Two weeks before he died of lung cancer, he released one of his best albums, The Wind.

“It’s hard to say if he’s being sincere or darkly witty with his cover of “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door,” though he manages to make it work both ways.”
– Mark Deming (allmusic)

When diagnosed with lung cancer, he said: “I feel the opposite of regret. I was the hardest-living rocker on my block for a while. I was a malfunctioning rummy for a while and running away for a while. Then for 18 years I was a sober dad of some amazing kids. Hey, I feel like I’ve lived a couple of lives.”

The diagnose did in his own words, lead him into one of the most intense and creative periods of his life. Many of his more famous friend came to lend a hand on the record, including Bruce Springsteen, Jackson Browne, Tom Petty, Emmylou Harris, Don Henley, Ry Cooder, Billy Bob Thornthon, Jim Keltner, David Lindley, T-Bone Burnett, Joe Walsh and Dwight Yoakam. None of them taking the show from Warren Zevon, he is so clearly in control of his last creation. It is not a big bombastic farewell, it is a guy who enjoys making a record with a bunch of his friends. It feels better, more right!

Here is a touching documentary about the making of The Wind and Warren Zevon’s last months alive:

Continue reading August 26: Warren Zevon released his last album The Wind in 2003 →