I spent several weeks on a UK/European tour with Brian Jonestown, in 2006. I eventually intend to write that story and publish it here. Sadly, I have personally seen that side of Anton shown in 'Dig.' I love BJM and have seen them live more than any band, but when I left their show in Oct. 2023, I said to myself it was my final BJM show (and I have seen them a lot over the years). The audience's love for a mental breakdown is tragic and on par with a Circus sideshow and I will no longer spend money on it or the toxicity I witnessed on stage. Nobody's mental health or Addiction should be fodder for others' entertainment. That said, I am not criticizing 'Dig' as I believe the Director left it to the audience to decide how they felt about both of the main men. It also plays into that notion of what some have written about concerning the 90s accusatory power trip of 'Selling Out.'
I will add that the MC5 doc, "A True Testimonial," which sadly has never been released, is extraordinary. I hope that it one day does see a release.
And, while I respect them, I am not a Bee Gees fan, however, I really enjoyed 'How Can You Mend A Broken Heart.' I found it a brilliant story, that made me reassess them and Disco. Ultimately, I also found it quite a sad story.
Well, I’m old so I have to mention the documentary, Laurel Canyon. Wonderful interviews and incredible footage of my favorite bands as young adults. David Crosby looks like a little elf and Jackson Brown like a teenager. Echo’s in the Canyon by Jakob Dylan was good but not as good.
Also, Stop Making Sense, a Talking Heads up close concert film and Hitsville, The Making of Motown.
I also want to do a shout out for the PBS series on the history of country music. Not a big country fan but it was fascinating, none the less.
And Matty, you can never have too much Robbie Robertson.
Love to you and the family, and good luck on the road this summer!
I remember watching The Devil and Daniel Johnston for the first time years ago and thinking, "Wow, I know several folks in the business just like this". All musical prodigies/geniuses and all in that same circumstance, a terrific documentary.
I don't know how I have missed Dig! It's now on my watchlist.
I would cautiously recommend My Name Is Lopez (about Trini Lopez). About 30% of the movie doesn't add very much, but I found the remaining 70% really interesting.
The docs that are on my "intending to watch" list are
I'm ashamedly terrible at sitting down to watch a feature length something and choosing a music documentary. So many of the ones you listed have been on my "some day" watchlist and now all the ones mentioned here in the comments. I might need to dedicate a weekend to finally getting cultured.
Love it! Check out the Fishbone doc when you can as well.
Also, the Anvil one is great but with one problem - they are a HORRIBLE band. There are thousands of bands they could have picked instead of them. Now those guys are more popular than they should be. It's kinda funny and terrible at the same time.
Great list. I need to check out the ones of these I haven’t seen! The Kenny G documentary “Songbird” on HBO is actually really, really fascinating even though I’m not a Kenny G fan at all.
The Last Waltz
Summer of Soul
New Order Story
Stop Making Sense (maybe not a doc per se, but I'm counting it)
Sparks Brothers
Pearl Jam Twenty
Woodstock '99 and/or The Fyre Festival one
Classic Albums- Steely Dan's 'Aja'
Edit to add:
Don’t Break Down
How have I not seen Storefront Hitchcock?? And directed by Johnathan Demme?? Definitely going to hunt it up!
Fantastic list. I also highly recommend The Searcher, a two part HBO documentary on Elvis Presley.
The films that come to mind first:
The Go-Go's
Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck
Amy
Moonage Daydream
Nothing Compares
Score: A Film Music Documentary
Searching for Sugar Man
The Velvet Underground
History of the Eagles
I spent several weeks on a UK/European tour with Brian Jonestown, in 2006. I eventually intend to write that story and publish it here. Sadly, I have personally seen that side of Anton shown in 'Dig.' I love BJM and have seen them live more than any band, but when I left their show in Oct. 2023, I said to myself it was my final BJM show (and I have seen them a lot over the years). The audience's love for a mental breakdown is tragic and on par with a Circus sideshow and I will no longer spend money on it or the toxicity I witnessed on stage. Nobody's mental health or Addiction should be fodder for others' entertainment. That said, I am not criticizing 'Dig' as I believe the Director left it to the audience to decide how they felt about both of the main men. It also plays into that notion of what some have written about concerning the 90s accusatory power trip of 'Selling Out.'
I will add that the MC5 doc, "A True Testimonial," which sadly has never been released, is extraordinary. I hope that it one day does see a release.
And, while I respect them, I am not a Bee Gees fan, however, I really enjoyed 'How Can You Mend A Broken Heart.' I found it a brilliant story, that made me reassess them and Disco. Ultimately, I also found it quite a sad story.
Well, I’m old so I have to mention the documentary, Laurel Canyon. Wonderful interviews and incredible footage of my favorite bands as young adults. David Crosby looks like a little elf and Jackson Brown like a teenager. Echo’s in the Canyon by Jakob Dylan was good but not as good.
Also, Stop Making Sense, a Talking Heads up close concert film and Hitsville, The Making of Motown.
I also want to do a shout out for the PBS series on the history of country music. Not a big country fan but it was fascinating, none the less.
And Matty, you can never have too much Robbie Robertson.
Love to you and the family, and good luck on the road this summer!
Aunt Cathie
Great list!
I remember watching The Devil and Daniel Johnston for the first time years ago and thinking, "Wow, I know several folks in the business just like this". All musical prodigies/geniuses and all in that same circumstance, a terrific documentary.
I don't know how I have missed Dig! It's now on my watchlist.
In addition to the 2 mentioned here (Summer of Soul & Respect Yourself): https://whatamimaking.substack.com/p/13-films-to-get-to-know-nick-s
I'd add
Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice
32 Short Films About Glenn Gould
Standing In The Shadows Of Motown
This RadioLab story (it's only 20 minutes, and not film, but so remarkable it's worth including on the list): https://radiolab.org/podcast/148670-4-track-mind
I would cautiously recommend My Name Is Lopez (about Trini Lopez). About 30% of the movie doesn't add very much, but I found the remaining 70% really interesting.
The docs that are on my "intending to watch" list are
What Happened, Miss Simone
Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind
I'm ashamedly terrible at sitting down to watch a feature length something and choosing a music documentary. So many of the ones you listed have been on my "some day" watchlist and now all the ones mentioned here in the comments. I might need to dedicate a weekend to finally getting cultured.
Love it! Check out the Fishbone doc when you can as well.
Also, the Anvil one is great but with one problem - they are a HORRIBLE band. There are thousands of bands they could have picked instead of them. Now those guys are more popular than they should be. It's kinda funny and terrible at the same time.
Some Kind of Monster...mainly because it is funny.
Great list. I need to check out the ones of these I haven’t seen! The Kenny G documentary “Songbird” on HBO is actually really, really fascinating even though I’m not a Kenny G fan at all.
The four-hour long Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers documentary. It's incredible!
Great list. I definitely have a few things to watch now.
You know I almost chose this subject for my 13 Films to get to know me post...:)
I suppose one of my pics, Spinal Tap, was in that list...
My favorite is the wonderful parody of that genre, "This Is Spinal Tap".