Band/artist documentaries.

 @bdp24 I forgot to mention that about ten years ago I bought a limited edition of 1500  in mono of the original cadence recording .Outstanding!

 Robbie Robertson looks kinda wired throughout the film.

"Kinda wired"?   @bdp24 , the whole time he is introducing Neil Young before Helpless he is sniffling and snuffling!  He looks lit up when he is playing with Clapton!

On edit6:  I am pretty sure I remember in Once Were Brothers Hawkins talking about a cocaine buy that was made prior to the concert and I am thinking he said that in his opinion it wasn't very good coke.  But they all looked like they were doing okay to me.

" [. . .] it’s such a fine  line, I hate to see it go [. . .]"  from Cocaine/Jackson Browne/Running On Empty/Electra Asylum 1977/"Recorded in room 124 at the Holiday Inn, Edwardsville, Illinois-8/17/77."  (I presume he was performong at MRF Edwardsville.)

@wharfy , when I read your post I thought maybe it was this performance that you were alluding to

Bing Videos

and I was going to say I kind of liked Nicks husky sound which I was thinking may have been attributed to the use of some cocaine, but I do see where this performance was from ’76, so I guess not.

How about Linda Ronstadt, the Simple Dreams album?  I always thought (and still think) that Linda’s voice had a nasal (but not objectionable quality) to it.

And Eric Clapton/Slowhand?  When he recorded that one his voice was definitely suffering from what I am thinking were certain excesses.  Cigarettes and what have you.  

Martin Scorsese developed quite a coke habit in the 1970’s (I believe when he and Robertson were at one point living together in L.A.), and on one binge overdosed, ending up in the hospital.

Martin Scorsese developed quite a coke habit in the 1970’s (I believe when he and Robertson were at one point living together in L.A.), and on one binge overdosed, ending up in the hospital.

It sure looked like both Robertson and Clapton had been into the happy powder pretty heavy when they were playing together. . . .

. . . and speaking of indulging in happy powder, check out Steve Earle in Austin (1988) doing San Antonio Girl for an encore:

Steve Earle - "San Antonio Girl" [Live from Austin, TX]

This is Linda Ronstadt on Glen Campbell’s Good Time Hour (1971), doing Long, Long Time solo and then a duet (Carolina In My Mind) with Glen.  When I first watched it several years ago on Tubi, my initial impression was that her voice was sounding on the nasal side, and then before she gets started singing with Glen the side of her hand goes up to her nose and there is that telltale "snarff." . . .

Linda Ronstadt & then Glen Campbell - Long, Long Time & Carolina in My Mind

@yogiboy: Speaking of mono Everly Brothers albums, when the brothers moved from Cadence Records to Warner Brothers, they rerecorded all their hit songs in stereo (the Cadence recordings were monaural), and Warners released those recordings on an album entitled The Very Best Of The Everly Brothers (WB catalog no. WS1554). That was the first album of theirs I acquired, in 1969. The fidelity of those recordings is fantastic! The front cover of the LP is emblazed with the proclamation "NEWLY RECORDED."

In the 1980’s I crossed paths with Rhino Records reissue engineer Bill Inglot in the Rhino storefront in Westwood Village. By that time I had numerous Everly Brothers albums that had been reissued by both Rhino and Ace, and found the Ace versions somewhat superior to the Rhino’s. I asked Bill if he had heard the Ace LP’s (and told him I thought the Ace sounded better than the Rhinos he had mastered. How rude!). He replied he had, and agreed with me about the Ace LP’s sounding better than the Rhinos. He attributed that superiority to the better electronic mastering chain Ace had in relation to that of Rhino.

@immatthewj 

@bdp24 

Another musician, of Beatle fame, George Harrison damaged his vocal cords with cocaine during his 1974 tour. I saw him at Nassau Coliseum, and I remember by the end of the show his intonation was non-existent and he was shouting the lyrics to "What is Life." And if I remember correctly, in Martin Scorcese's "All Things Must Pass", they mention the amount of coke George consumed on tour.

@immatthewj -

Thanks for the clips. Going forward, I don’t think I will be able to watch Stevie Nicks sing without focusing on her nose. LOL.

Has anyone watched "Pop Go the 60's"? It's on youtube. Matt Williamson does pretty forward, decently researched features/segments on bands from that era.

https://www.popgoesthe60s.com/

@bdp24 -

Wrecking Crew is a terrific documentary. This is one of my favorite parts-Tommy Tedesco ("the King of session guitarists").

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DVnW6SeOl4

Who is Harry Nilsson and why is everybody talkin’ about him? Highly enjoyable and informative.

Feel Like Going Home. PBS Documentary on the Delta Blues by Scorsese.

https://www.pbs.org/theblues/aboutfilms/scorsese.html

Documentary on Muscle Shoals; https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2492916/

Unbelievable what Rick Hall put together at Fame Studios in that Alabama town.

What the Hell happened to Blood Sweat and Tears.

Another interesting aspect.....

Don’t Look Back - Bob Dylan’s solo tour through England, 1965 - 

Festival Express 1970 is currently streaming. That's a hoot.

The Bogdanovich documentary on Petty was excellent.

Loved Ken Burns' "Country Music"

Beware of Mr. Baker is a must.

@scottya118 -

Beware of Mr. Baker-How many documentaries begin with the subject assaulting the director? LOL

Loved the animation on that.

“If You Could Read My Mind” about Gordon Lightfoot on Amazon Prime is really good. Gordon narrates most of it himself & is very honest about his life. He’s one of the greatest singer / songwriters ever. 

Though not acclaimed for his music, his art has long been "music-adjacent": R. Crumb. The documentary is entitled Crumb, made by his friend Terry Zwigoff. His record collection (shown in the film) appears to be entirely 78's (played on a Lenco table, iirc), recordings of "old timey" music from the early part of the 20th century. His view and opinion of the San Francisco bands he was surrounded by (expressed in the film) are really funny. He probably approves of Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks.

I’ve enjoyed many of the documentaries mentioned above. One documentarian not mentioned yet whose films are well worth tracking down is Les Blank. He’s done some really good work with blues musicians, particularly Lightnin’ Hopkins. Look for:

The Blues Accordin’ to Lightnin’ Hopkins

A Well-spent Life (Mance Lipscomb)

A Poem is a Naked Person (Leon Russell)

His catalog is vast and includes films about Tex-mex, Mexican, Cajun, Bluegrass and other music genres.

if you happen to be a fan of Werner Herzog, you might enjoy Werner Herzog eats a shoe, about a bet Herzog made with Blank and lost.

I don’t think anyone mentioned Song of the South: The rise of Duane Allman and the Allman Brothers Band, which I enjoyed and recommend.

And then there is classical music!  The Ken Russell 1962 documentary on Elgar made for the British Broadcasting Corporation's fine arts program Monitor was voted best TV program of the decade in the UK.  That is despite Monitor insisting that the actors were not allowed to speak, and the documentary being shot in black and white.  It kick started Ken Russell's film career and several other music documentaries.

Worth an hour of anybody's time, in my opinion.

Hall of Fame guitarist, John Cippolina, slipped under the radar of many, but deserves respect and consideration. RIP, Mr. Coppolina.

Here are a few links to documentaries about John’s life and music:

The first one is 4 minutes well spent if you want a short introduction to John’s personality, wit, and how he viewed the music industry.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aV8cm9x7NA

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11115712/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIw7NasZhmU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHeShg2zvvE

If it hasn't been suggested yet I would recommend the PBS documentary "Introducing Roy Buchanan" (also referred to as "The Greatest Unknown Guitar Player in the World")

I was planning to see Roy play a free outdoor show in Guilford, CT when I learned a day or two before the show that he had hung himself in jail. Such a loss.

Since Ken Burns' Country Music is mentioned, I'll add Ken Burns' Jazz documentary. Another one I just remembered is Louie Bluie. It's about Howard Armstrong, who was a member of the Black American string band, Martin, Bogen and the Armstrongs. It was directed by bdp24's friend Terry Zwigoff.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Qv9HEc2-EE

I agree with every post on here...a first! One outstanding film that is missing is 

Chuck Leavell: Tree Man

You can watch it on YouTube for free now. He's written some of the best, most recognizable keyboard solos in modern music history Check it out:

Check Leavell: Tree Man

Beyond the Lighted Stage - Rush

Jaco - Jaco Pastorius

Lemmy - Lemmy Kilmister

+1 Lemmy

I watched a few,about the Doors,on You Tube. 

Posted yesterday on YouTube, a nice little video the subject of which is one of Americana music’s two MVP’s: Larry Campbell (the other is Buddy Miller). Here tis:

https://youtu.be/29SPfLhJYaI?si=s6KzwVWggTakINCD

Here's a short (just over thirty minutes) video about Richard Manuel, the pianist/singer/drummer of The Band:

https://youtu.be/7r2w5ioGgqE?si=s7LUHImyLPSiBQQi