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Many music legends age poorly, riding the reputation they earned
as youngsters into an unfortunate twilight of nostalgia and sentimentality.
Still others turn their backs on the glory days and try to find dignity as elder
statesmen pursuing non-musical interests (politics and yachting are popular
options). Then there's Pete Seeger, a man in his 80s who lives today by the same
principles of commitment, inclusion and integrity that he embraced 50 years ago.
The living embodiment of folk music, Seeger appears to have a simple life,
surrounded by a large family, playing community concerts and tending to the
forests on his humble estate. But look a little closer at this fine documentary,
and you see how hard won that simplicity was, and the many sacrifices made by
Seeger, and by his family, to get there.
Unsurprisingly, the film is full
of Seeger's music, which spans most of the 20th century, from his bright college
days as a troubled young communist (the league opposed racial prejudice; it cost
him his scholarship to Harvard) to his work as Woody Guthrie's right (or should
I say left) hand man, to the blacklisting of his group the Weavers (hard to
imagine a less inflammatory pop folk quartet) and their triumphant return to the
Carnegie Hall stage, to his epochal performance of "Waist Deep in the Big Muddy"
on the Smothers Brothers' TV show, and onward, at benefits and rallies all
around the world. The footage and the songs are inspiring, and Bob Dylan, Joan
Baez, Bruce Springsteen, Dixie Chick Natalie Maines and other usual suspects are
on hand to testify to the man's importance. But the most telling sections are
when his wife and children discuss their admiration for the patriarch while
lamenting the fact that his success deprived them of time together. It's a
gentle irony, not overplayed, and it runs right through the heart of the film,
and the man.
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| ZZ Top: Live From Texas |
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It's tricky with a band like ZZ Top. On the one hand, they're a
bit silly with their beards and their hand gestures -- the gimmickry is their
signature element at this point. In 30-odd years of being a band, they don't
appear to have evolved in the slightest. On the other hand: They don't appear to
have evolved in the slightest in 30 years, because, frankly, it ain't broke.
Frank, Billy and Dusty are every bit as raunchy and rocking now as they were way
back then. And as this live DVD -- their first -- proves, they may not look
pretty, but they don't need to when they sound this good.
In a real
sense, this is ZZ Top by the numbers: open with "Got Me Under Pressure," close
with "Tush," hit "Gimme All Your Lovin," "Sharp Dressed Man," "Legs" (all in a
row!), "Cheap Sunglasses," "Pearl Necklace" and "Tube Snake Boogie" (among
several other classics) in between. Still, you don't come to ZZ Top expecting
surprises. Banter is minimal, solos are effusive and musical chemistry is
effortless. Few bands can pull off music this close to straight blues without
falling off the cliff into total cliché, but ZZ Top keeps it shockingly fresh.
Bonus features include a not-massively-revealing-but-interesting band history
session over a game of poker, a short doc that shows the guys preparing for show
day, a photo shoot (!) and a rendition of Hendrix's "Foxy Lady."
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| Rolling Stones: Shine A Light |
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The seriousness with which the Rolling Stones still take their
claim that they are "the world's greatest rock 'n' roll band" is undoubtedly the
biggest question posed by this behind-the-scenes documentary by that greatest of
rock show documentarians, Martin Scorsese. Other questions--Why them? Why now?
Why him?--arise throughout but are answered in the film's kinetic course. Why
them: They remain Mick, Keith, Charlie, Ronnie and the other 37 people who play
behind them onstage; the best of the songs ("Loving Cup," "Sympathy for the
Devil," the title track and many other great ones) are indisputably among the
best music of the 20th century. Why now: Because it's not the 20th century
anymore, to see these geezers (in the British and American senses of the word)
continue to move -- and in Mick's case -- to never stop moving
-- is inherently fascinating, even if they look quite bizarre and at times
(Keith) unpleasant. Why him: Scorsese approaches rock as the consummate
fan/outsider given unlimited access, though the conceit of this film is that the
access is limited by the band's fundamental slipperiness. So we see him fume and
plan. And then we see the results and I guess the best one can say, cameos by
Jack White, Christina Aguilera, Bill and Hillary Clinton (!) and others
notwithstanding (or withstanding), is that at least you didn't have to pay $200
for a seat. DVD bonus features are similarly slick (more songs, more
behind-the-scenes stuff), but not essential unless you're still a Stones
completist, in which case you're probably exhausted by now.
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| Joy Division |
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Director Grant Gee is best known for his stunning Radiohead tour
documentary "Meeting People Is Easy," one of the best deconstructions of the
rock star myth ever committed to film and tape. Given his mastery of the
alienation end of the British rock spectrum, it stands to reason that he would
turn his attention now to Joy Division, one of the most alienated bands in the
history of popular music, but one whose songs of emotional displacement echo not
only in the ears of its fans, but also in their hearts, nearly 30 years
later.
Exploring the same autobiographical corners as "Control" (Anton
Corbijn's biopic of singer Ian Curtis) did earlier this year, Gee expands the
color palette and draws on the memories of Curtis' band mates, Bernard Sumner,
Peter Hook and Stephen Morris, who continued making music as New Order after
Curtis committed suicide in 1980 on the eve of Joy Division's first American
tour. The survivors' reminiscences -- and those of their former manager, label
owner and girlfriend -- along with a heroic array of early photos, live footage
and music fragments, don't so much illuminate the band's story, which is already
legendary, as sanctify it, matching pictures to words and sounds in the most
authoritative and evocative way imaginable. If you're a fan, this masterful
documentary is essential. But even if you're just interested in music, or film,
or modern pop culture history, it's well worth seeking out.
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| Snoop Dogg: Drop It Like It's Hot |
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Though no one who remembers his emergence in the early '90s --
with the possible exceptions of himself and Dr. Dre -- would have thought it at
the time, Snoop Dogg has become not just a superstar (anyone could've seen
that), not just a major hip-hop icon (ditto), not just a survivor (some people
are just lucky that way), but a legitimate entertainment institution. Just about
anything you can say about Snoop -- he's lovable, he's a criminal, he's funny,
he's pathetic, he's great, he's over, he's a pimp, he's a ho -- has been
said, again and again, by thousands and even millions of people, yet he endures.
One thing you don't hear a lot of people say is that Snoop is a super-engaging
live performer. That's sure to change with the release of this DVD, which
captures a 2005 appearance in Brussels (just a stone's throw from Amsterdam,
really), and a couple of bonus tracks from Jamaica in 2001.
Running
through the set list, which is basically nothing but gems, including "Murder Was
the Case," "Tha Shaznit," "Deep Cover: 'G' Thang," "Snoop's Upside Ya Head,"
"Lodi Dodi," "Gin and Juice" and the title megahit, plus a guest appearance by
the Game on "Lay Low," the star works hard to make what he does look easy. He
strolls the stage, matching his laconic verbal delivery (amped up a couple
notches for the live audience, but still recognizably chill) with a rambling
physical ease. He looks like what he is: The Dean Martin of rap.
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