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Directed by Martin Scorsese
Written by Peter Guralnick
Director Martin Scorsese (THE LAST WALTZ, RAGING BULL, GANGS OF NEW YORK) pays homage to the Delta blues. Musician Corey Harris travels through Mississippi and on to West Africa, exploring the roots of the music. The film celebrates the early Delta bluesmen through original performances (including Willie King, Taj Mahal, Otha Turner, and Ali Farka Toure) and rare archival footage (featuring Son House, Muddy Waters, and John Lee Hooker). |
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Written and directed by Wim Wenders
Director Wim Wenders (BUENA VISTA SOCIAL CLUB; WINGS OF DESIRE; PARIS, TEXAS) explores the lives of his favorite blues artists -- Skip James, Blind Willie Johnson, and J. B. Lenoir -- in a film that is part history and part personal pilgrimage. The film tells the story of these artists' lives in music through a fictional film-within-a-film, rare archival footage, and covers of their songs by contemporary musicians, including Bonnie Raitt, Lucinda Williams, Lou Reed, Eagle Eye Cherry, Nick Cave, and The Bad. Seeds, The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Cassandra Wilson, Garland Jeffreys, Los Lobos, and others.
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Directed by Richard Pearce
Written by Robert Gordon
Director Richard Pearce (THE LONG WALK HOME, LEAP OF FAITH, A FAMILY THING) traces the musical odyssey of blues legend B.B. King in a film that pays tribute to the city that gave birth to a new style of blues. Pearce's homage to Memphis features original performances by B.B. King, Bobby Rush, Rosco Gordon, and Ike Turner, as well as historical footage of Howlin' Wolf and Rufus Thomas.
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Written and directed by Charles Burnett
Director Charles Burnett (KILLER SHEEP, MY BROTHER'S WEDDING, TO SLEEP WITH ANGER) presents a tale about a young boy's encounter with his family in Mississippi in the 1950s, and intergenerational tensions between the heavenly strains of gospel and the devilish moans of the blues.
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Directed by Marc Levin
Director Marc Levin (SLAM, WHITEBOYS, BROOKLYN BABYLON) travels to Chicago with hip-hop legend Chuck D (of Public Enemy) and Marshall Chess (son of Leonard Chess and heir to the Chess Records legacy) to explore the heyday of Chicago blues as they unite to produce an album that seeks to bring veteran blues players together with contemporary hip hop musicians. Along with never-before-seen archival footage of Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, and the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, are original performances by Koko Taylor, Otis Rush, Magic Slim, Ike Turner, and Sam Lay.
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Directed by Mike Figgis
Director Mike Figgis (STORMY MONDAY, LEAVING LAS VEGAS, TIME CODE) joins musicians such as Van Morrison, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Tom Jones, performing and talking about the music of the early sixties British invasion that reintroduced the blues sound to America. During the 1960s, the UK was the location for a vibrant social revolution. London, Liverpool, Birmingham, Manchester, and Newcastle all had their own music scenes. Musicians from Belfast and Glasgow moved to London to be part of the club scene there.
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Directed by Clint Eastwood
Director -- and piano player -- Clint Eastwood (PLAY MISTY FOR ME, BIRD, UNFORGIVEN) explores his life-long passion for piano blues, using a treasure trove of rare historical footage in addition to interviews and performances by such living legends as Pinetop Perkins and Jay McShann, as well as Dave Brubeck and Marcia Ball.
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