Man in the Sand | |
---|---|
Directed by | Kim Hopkins |
Produced by | Juliet De Valero Wills Christopher Frederick |
Starring | Billy Bragg Peter Jenner Nora Guthrie Jeff Tweedy Jay Bennett John Stirratt Ken Coomer Corey Harris Natalie Merchant Grant Showbiz |
Narrated by | Nora Guthrie |
Cinematography | Kim Hopkins |
Edited by | Simon Ardizzone |
Distributed by | BBC |
Release date |
|
Running time | 89 min. |
Language | English |
Man in the Sand is a 1999 documentary that functions as both a biography of American folk singer-songwriter Woody Guthrie and a chronicle of the creation of the Billy Bragg & Wilco Mermaid Avenue albums ( Vol. I (1998), Vol. II (2000), and Vol. III (2012)), which feature songs consisting of previously-unheard Woody Guthrie lyrics set to newly-created music. [1] [2]
In 1995, Nora Guthrie asked English singer-songwriter Billy Bragg to create music to accompany lyrics written by her father, Woody Guthrie, decades earlier, and record an album. Bragg invited American band Wilco to back him on the recordings, and Jeff Tweedy and Jay Bennett from the band wrote music for additional Guthrie lyrics.
Throughout the film, Nora narrates the story of her father's life, while Bragg is seen traveling to various locations relevant to Woody Guthrie's life, such as Okemah, Oklahoma (his hometown), Pampa, Texas (where he met his first wife), and New York City (where he made his home after leaving California). Much time is also spent at the recording sessions with Bragg and Wilco in Chicago (December 1997) and Dublin (January 1998), and with Bragg and Natalie Merchant in Boston (March 1998), that produced most of the tracks for all three albums. Corey Harris also participated in the recording.
The following songs are featured in the film (in order of appearance):
The VHS release of the film came with a CD titled 'Mermaid Avenue' Demo's, which consisted of five of Bragg's demo recordings for the project (these recordings were also included on the DVD release of the film):
(All songs: words by Guthrie & music by Bragg)
Woodrow Wilson Guthrie was an American singer-songwriter and composer who was one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American socialism and anti-fascism. He inspired several generations both politically and musically with songs such as "This Land Is Your Land".
Wilco is an American rock band based in Chicago. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo after singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup changed frequently during its first decade, with only singer Jeff Tweedy and bassist John Stirratt remaining from the original incarnation. Since early 2004 the lineup has been unchanged, consisting of Tweedy, Stirratt, guitarist Nels Cline, multi-instrumentalist Pat Sansone, keyboard player Mikael Jorgensen, and drummer Glenn Kotche. Wilco has released thirteen studio albums, a live double album, and four collaborations: three with Billy Bragg and one with the Minus 5.
Stephen William Bragg is an English singer, songwriter, musician, author and political activist. His music blends elements of folk music, punk rock and protest songs, with lyrics that mostly span political or romantic themes. His activism is centred on social change and left-wing political causes.
Natalie Anne Merchant is an American singer-songwriter. She joined the band 10,000 Maniacs in 1981 and was lead vocalist and primary lyricist for the group. She remained with the group for their first seven albums before leaving to begin her solo career in 1993. She has since released nine studio albums as a solo artist.
Yankee Hotel Foxtrot is the fourth studio album by American rock band Wilco, originally self-released on September 18, 2001. Recording sessions for the album began in late 2000. These sessions, which were documented for the film I Am Trying to Break Your Heart, were marred by conflicts including a switch in drummers and disagreements among the band members and engineers about songs. Despite this, the album would be completed in early 2001. The album showcased a more atmospheric and experimental sound than the band's previous work, and has been described as art rock and indie rock by music critics. It was the band's first album with drummer Glenn Kotche, and last with multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Jay Bennett.
Jeffrey Scot Tweedy is an American musician, songwriter, author, and record producer best known as the singer and guitarist of the band Wilco. Tweedy, originally from Belleville, Illinois, began his music career in high school with his band The Plebes along with Jay Farrar, also in the band. It became the alternative country band Uncle Tupelo.
Summerteeth is the third studio album by the American alternative rock band Wilco, released on March 9, 1999, by Reprise Records. The album was heavily influenced lyrically by 20th century literature, as well as singer Jeff Tweedy's marital problems. Unlike previous albums, Summerteeth was heavily overdubbed in the studio with Pro Tools. Tweedy and Jay Bennett wrote most of the album in the studio, a contrast to the band's previous albums, which were often recorded live by the entire band with minimal overdubs.
Mermaid Avenue is a 1998 album of previously unheard lyrics written by American folk singer Woody Guthrie, put to music written and performed by British singer Billy Bragg and the American band Wilco. The project was the first of several such projects organized by Guthrie's daughter, Nora Guthrie, original director of the Woody Guthrie Foundation and archives. Mermaid Avenue was released on the Elektra Records label on June 23, 1998. A second volume of recordings, Mermaid Avenue Vol. II, followed in 2000 and both were collected in a box set alongside volume three in 2012 as Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions. The projects are named after the song "Mermaid's Avenue", written by Guthrie. This was also the name of the street in Coney Island, New York, on which Guthrie lived. According to American Songwriter Magazine, "The Mermaid Avenue project is essential for showing that Woody Guthrie could illuminate what was going on inside of him as well as he could detail the plight of his fellow man". It was voted number 939 in Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums 3rd Edition (2000).
Mermaid Avenue Vol. II is a 2000 album of previously unheard lyrics written by American folk singer Woody Guthrie, put to music written and performed by British singer Billy Bragg and American band Wilco. It continues the project originally conceived by Guthrie's daughter, Nora Guthrie which resulted in the release of Mermaid Avenue in 1998. Both volumes were collected in a 2012 box set along with volume three as Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions.
"Mermaid's Avenue" is a song written by American folk singer Woody Guthrie. In 1943, Guthrie moved his family to 3520 Mermaid Avenue, Coney Island, New York. The song is named after this street. There, Guthrie was an active participant in the thriving cultural and political scene of Brooklyn's Jewish community. The song's title later served as the project title for the Wilco and Billy Bragg album Mermaid Avenue; a cover version by the New York-based klezmer band The Klezmatics is included on their 2006 album Wonder Wheel.
Kicking Television: Live in Chicago is a live album by Chicago alternative rock band Wilco, released on November 15, 2005, by Nonesuch Records. The album consists of material from four live shows at Chicago's Vic Theater recorded May 4, 2005 to May 7, 2005. Although the band filmed the concerts, they decided not to release the footage as a DVD. It was the band's first album with an expanded lineup featuring Nels Cline and Pat Sansone.
Corey Harris is an American blues and reggae musician, currently residing in Charlottesville, Virginia. Along with Keb' Mo' and Alvin Youngblood Hart, he raised the flag of acoustic guitar blues in the mid-1990s. He was featured on the 2003 PBS television mini-series, The Blues, in an episode directed by Martin Scorsese.
Loose Fur was an American rock supergroup comprising Wilco members Jeff Tweedy and Glenn Kotche, along with Wilco collaborator and Sonic Youth's multi-instrumentalist Jim O'Rourke. The trio first convened in May 2000 in preparation for a Tweedy performance at a festival in Chicago. Tweedy was offered the opportunity to collaborate with an artist of his choosing, and he decided to work with O'Rourke. O'Rourke brought Kotche to a rehearsal session, and the trio recorded an album's worth of songs. The trio have since released two albums, 2003's Loose Fur and 2006's Born Again in the USA, for Drag City. The band has only toured once.
The Woody Guthrie Foundation, founded in 1972, is a non-profit organization which formerly served as administrator and caretaker of the Woody Guthrie Archives. The Foundation was originally based in Brooklyn, New York and directed by Woody Guthrie's daughter Nora Guthrie.
The soundtrack album for the Bob Dylan biopic I'm Not There was released as a double CD on October 30, 2007. It features only one recording by Dylan himself—his previously unreleased recording of the title song "I'm Not There" recorded during The Basement Tapes' sessions in 1967—plus various other artists' recordings of songs written by Dylan. These CDs do not contain the movie sound track. Fragments from less than half of the titles are heard in the film, which features more of Dylan's own recordings. The end credits relay a complete list of music heard in the film.
Nora Lee Guthrie is the daughter of American folk musician and singer-songwriter Woody Guthrie and his second wife Marjorie Mazia Guthrie, sister of singer-songwriter Arlo Guthrie, and granddaughter of renowned Yiddish poet Aliza Greenblatt. Nora Guthrie is president of The Woody Guthrie Foundation, president of Woody Guthrie Publications and founder of the Woody Guthrie Archive, and lives in Mt. Kisco, New York.
One by One may refer to:
The Works, Jonatha Brooke's seventh solo release, is a full-length album primarily of previously unheard lyrics by Woody Guthrie, set to original music written and performed by Brooke. Brooke was invited by Guthrie's daughter Nora to sift through the private archives and hunt through Guthrie's unreleased material for possible adaptations. Brooke said she was "smitten" with Guthrie's work and going through it was like "going to church." She liked his poetic love songs like "My Sweet and Bitter Bowl" and spiritual deeper tunes like "My Battle" and loved Guthrie's "full spectrum of craziness" as she described his writings. The album also includes two songs fully written by Brooke.
New Multitudes is a Woody Guthrie tribute album performed by Jay Farrar, Will Johnson, Anders Parker, and Jim James to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Guthrie's birth, released through Rounder Records on February 28, 2012. The project was initiated by Woody's daughter Nora Guthrie to have Farrar add music to her father's lyrics—specifically, his earliest songwriting years in Los Angeles. Over the course of several years, he invited the others to collaborate and recorded at a variety of locations across the United States. Each artist wrote music to lyrics that inspired him and presented it to the collaborators for recording. The result is an album with diverse musical genres that has garnered positive reviews from critics for its varied styles and instrumentation. The quartet promoted the album with a small promotional tour that took them to record stores, radio programs, theaters, and folk festivals. The group has plans for releasing a second volume.
Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions is a 2012 box set of albums by Billy Bragg & Wilco, all of which feature songs consisting of previously unheard lyrics written by American folk singer-songwriter Woody Guthrie set to newly created music. It was released by Nonesuch Records on Record Store Day to commemorate Guthrie's 100th birthday.