The best Johnny Cash’s documentary movies
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
John R. "Johnny" Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. Although he is primarily remembered as a country music artist, his songs and sound spanned many other genres including rockabilly and rock and roll—especially early in his career—as well as blues, folk, and gospel. This crossover appeal led to Cash being inducted in both the Country Music Hall of Fame and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Late in his career, Cash covered songs by several rock artists, among them the industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails and he covered the synthpop band Depeche Mode's Personal Jesus.
Cash was known for his deep, distinctive bass-baritone voice; for the "boom-chicka-boom" freight train sound of his Tennessee Three backing band; for his rebelliousness, coupled with an increasingly somber and humble demeanor; for providing free concerts inside prison walls; and for his dark performance clothing, which earned him the nickname "The Man in Black". He traditionally started his concerts by saying, "Hello, I'm Johnny Cash." and usually following it up with his standard "Folsom Prison Blues."
Much of Cash's music, especially that of his later career, echoed themes of sorrow, moral tribulation and redemption. His signature songs include "I Walk the Line", "Folsom Prison Blues", "Ring of Fire", "Get Rhythm" and "Man in Black". He also recorded humorous numbers, including "One Piece at a Time" and "A Boy Named Sue"; a duet with his future wife, June Carter, called "Jackson"; as well as railroad songs including "Hey, Porter" and "Rock Island Line".
Cash, a devout but troubled Christian, has been characterized as a "lens through which to view American contradictions and challenges." A Biblical scholar, he penned a Christian novel titled Man in White, and he made a spoken word recording of the entire New King James Version of the New Testament. Even so, Cash declared that he was "the biggest sinner of them all", and viewed himself overall as a complicated and contradictory man. Accordingly, Cash is said to have "contained multitudes", and has been deemed "the philosopher-prince of American country music".
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No Direction Home: Bob Dylan
8.4/10
A chronicle of Bob Dylan's strange evolution between 1961 and 1966 from folk singer to protest singer to "voice of a generation" to rock star.
My Darling Vivian
7.5/10
The story of Vivian Liberto, Johnny Cash's first wife and the mother of his four daughters. Includes never-before-seen footage and photographs of Johnny Cash and Rosanne Cash, as well as footage featuring Reese Witherspoon, Joaquin Phoenix, Tim Robbins, Whoopi Goldberg, John C. Reilly and many more.
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers: Runnin' Down a Dream
8.6/10
Directed by Peter Bogdanovich and packed with rare concert footage and home movies, this documentary explores the history of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, including Petty's famous collaborations and notorious clashes with the record industry. Interviews with musical luminaries including Jackson Browne, George Harrison, Eddie Vedder, Roger McGuinn, Jeff Lynne, Dave Stewart and Petty himself shed some revelatory vision.
Festival
7.5/10
Black and white footage of performances, interviews, and conversations at the Newport Folk Festival, from 1963 to 1966. The headliners are Peter, Paul and Mary, Joan Baez, Pete Seeger, and Bob Dylan, who's acoustic and electric. Son House and Mike Bloomfield talk about the blues; John Hurt, Howlin' Wolf, and Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee show its range. The Osborne Brothers perform bluegrass. Donovan, Johnny Cash, Judy Collins, Mimi and Dick Farina, and others less well known also perform. Several talk musical philosophy, and there's a running commentary about the nature and appeal of folk music. The crowd looks clean cut.
Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice
8/10
With one of the most memorably stunning voices that has ever hit the airwaves, Linda Ronstadt burst onto the 1960s folk rock music scene in her early twenties.
ReMastered: Tricky Dick & The Man in Black
7.1/10
This documentary chronicles Johnny Cash's 1970 visit to the White House, where Cash's emerging liberal ideals clashed with Richard Nixon's policies.
Loretta Lynn: Still a Mountain Girl
7.8/10
Explore the country legend's hard-fought road to stardom. From her Appalachian roots to the Oscar-winning biopic of her life, Coal Miner's Daughter, Loretta Lynn struggled to balance family and her music career and is still going strong after more than 50 years. The documentary premieres the same day Lynn's first new studio album in over 10 years is released.
In Dreams: The Roy Orbison Story
8/10
Roy Orbison - In Dreams is the ultimate exclusive music documentary of the life of Roy Orbison. It provides in-depth insights into his legendary career with classic performances, personal home movies and photos, location footage and interviews with the great and the humble that he touched with his music.
Music Videos That Defined the 00’s
The Gift: The Journey of Johnny Cash
8.1/10
Johnny Cash stands among the giants of 20th century American life. But his story remains tangled in mystery and myth. This documentary brings Cash the man out from behind the legend.
Willie Nelson: The Big Six-O
7.7/10
Willie Nelson and friends celebrate his sixtieth birthday in a star-studded concert event.
Johnny Cash's America
7.8/10
This classic concert features a number of tracks from his new album coupled with favourites from across his career including Folsom Prison Blues, I Walk The Line, Ghost Riders In The Sky, Orange Blossom Special and San Quentin.
Pete Seeger: The Power of Song
8.4/10
Interviews, archival footage and home movies are used to illustrate a social history of folk artists Pete Seeger.
A Tribute To Johnny Cash
7.2/10
On Sunday, April 18, 1999, the hottest names in rock and roll united with the biggest stars in country music when TNT presented "A Tribute To Johnny Cash." From humble beginnings as the son of a sharecropper to his rise to fame as a music legend, "The Man In Black" has become one of the most influential performers of the 20th century. Some of Cash's biggest fans, including Bruce Springsteen, Trisha Yearwood, and U2, performed in this star-studded concert saluting Cash's groundbreaking career and the rich legacy of his music. In his fifty year career as singer and song-writer, Cash garnered nine Grammy® Awards, a Kennedy Center Honor, and the distinction of becoming the first inductee in both the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame — an honor shared only by Elvis Presley.
The Work of Director Mark Romanek
8.1/10
More than two-dozen music-videos directed by filmmaker Mark Romanek (One-Hour Photo) are collected together in this compilation from Palm Pictures. Among the songs featured in The Work of Director Mark Romanek are "Novocaine for the Soul" by Eels, "99 Problems" by Jay-Z, and "Hurt" by Johnny Cash.
Johnny Cash: American Rebel
7.7/10
Johnny Cash: American Rebel is built around 12 essential Johnny Cash tracks spanning four decades that each deliver the passion, musicality and messages against war, injustice, racism and prejudice, including “Folsom Prison Blues,” “Jackson,” “San Quentin,” “Man in Black,” “Sunday Morning Coming Down,” “Ring of Fire” and “Hurt.” Each song illustrates a chapter in his life, as well the story of an ever-changing America from the 1950s to modern day, as told through interviews, archival concert footage, photographs and personal artifacts from the Cash family.
Shakespeare Was a Big George Jones Fan: 'Cowboy' Jack Clement's Home Movies
6.6/10
A Documentary about Nashville's Maverick songwriter/producer, 'Cowboy' Jack Clement.
Country Kings at the BBC
Classic male country singers from the BBC vaults, journeying from The Everly Brothers and Jerry Lee Lewis to Garth Brooks and Willie Nelson, and featuring classic songs and performances by Glen Campbell, Charley Pride, George Hamilton IV, Kenny Rogers, Clint Black, Johnny Cash, Eric Church and more. This 50 years-plus compilation is a chronological look at country kings as featured on BBC studio shows as varied as In Concert, Wogan, The Late Show and Later with Jools Holland, plus early variety shows presented by the likes of Lulu, Harry Secombe and Shirley Abicair.
The Winding Stream
7.7/10
The story of the American music dynasty, the Carters and Cashes, and their decades-long influence on popular music.
Bob Dylan: The Other Side of the Mirror - Live at the Newport Folk Festival
8.1/10
An unvarnished chronicle of Bob Dylan's metamorphosis from folk to rock musician via appearances at the Newport Folk Festival between 1963 and 1965.
