The Blues is a 2003 documentary film series produced by Martin Scorsese, dedicated to the history of blues music. In each of the seven episodes, a different director explores a stage in the development of the blues. The series originally aired on PBS in the United States.
Contents |
| Feel Like Going Home | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Martin Scorsese |
| Produced by | Sam Pollard |
| Written by | Peter Guralnick |
| Starring | Ali Farka Touré, Corey Harris, Salif Keita, Son House, Taj Mahal, John Lee Hooker, Keb' Mo', Willie King and others. |
| Cinematography | Arthur Jafa |
| Editing by | David Tedeschi |
Director Martin Scorsese pays tribute to the Delta blues, tracing the roots of the music by traveling through the state of Mississippi with musician Corey Harris and then traveling on to West Africa. Willie King, Taj Mahal, Otha Turner and Ali Farka Toure give performances of early Delta blues songs, along with rare archival film of Son House, Muddy Waters, and John Lee Hooker.
| The Soul of a Man | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Wim Wenders |
| Produced by | Alex Gibney |
| Written by | Wim Wenders |
| Narrated by | Laurence Fishburne |
| Music by | Skip James Blind Willie Johnson J. B. Lenoir |
| Cinematography | Lisa Rinzler |
| Editing by | Mathilde Bonnefoy |
Directed by Wim Wenders the film explores the musical careers of blues musicians Skip James, Blind Willie Johnson and J. B. Lenoir.
| The Road to Memphis | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Richard Pearce |
| Produced by | Robert Kenner |
| Written by | Robert Gordon |
| Starring | B. B. King Bobby Rush Rosco Gordon Ike Turner |
| Cinematography | Richard Pearce |
| Editing by | Charlton McMillan |
Director: Richard Pearce. This episode focuses on the Beale Street music scene, particularly three Memphis blues musicians with different levels of acclaim: B. B. King, Rosco Gordon and Bobby Rush.
| Warming by the Devil's Fire | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Charles Burnett |
| Produced by | Margaret Bodde Alex Gibney |
| Written by | Charles Burnett |
| Starring | Tommy Hicks Nathaniel Lee Jr. |
| Music by | Stephen James Taylor |
| Cinematography | John N. Demps |
| Editing by | Edwin Santiago |
Directed by Charles Burnett, this film presents the tale of a young boy traveling to Mississippi to visit relatives. He is caught between the pressures of his religious mother and gospel music, and the eagerness of his blues loving uncle. Performances in The Warming by the Devil's Fire:
| Godfathers and Sons | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Marc Levin |
| Produced by | Daphne Pinkerson Marc Levin |
| Starring | Marshall Chess Chuck D |
| Cinematography | Mark Benjamin |
| Editing by | Bob Eisenhardt |
Director Marc Levin follows Marshall Chess as he remembers his father's contribution to Blues history as the co-founder of Chess Records, his own production of the controversial album Electric Mud and as he organizes a re-union of the musicians that made Electric Mud to record new versions of Muddy Waters' blues-standard Mannish Boy with contributions by hip hop artists like Chuck D of Public Enemy, Common & Kyle Jason.
| Red, White and Blues | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Mike Figgis |
| Produced by | Louise Hammar Shirani Sabratnam |
| Cinematography | Barry Ackroyd Mike Eley John Lynch Patrick Stewart |
| Editing by | David Martin Nigel Karikari |
Director: Mike Figgis. This episode is dedicated to blues culture in Britain and to the effect of the British Invasion on American blues culture. The episode contains footage from a special jam and interview session with such blues greats as Jeff Beck and Van Morrison.
| Piano Blues | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Clint Eastwood |
| Produced by | Clint Eastwood Bruce Ricker |
| Written by | Peter Guralnick |
| Starring | Marcia Ball Dave Brubeck Ray Charles Pinetop Perkins,... |
| Cinematography | Vic Losick |
| Editing by | Joel Cox, Gary Roach |
Director: Clint Eastwood. This episode is dedicated to blues music played on the piano. Eastwood, a piano player and accomplished composer, interviews such key figures as Dr. John, Ray Charles and Pinetop Perkins.