Clockwise from top left: Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars (Emi); Stop Making Sense (Palm Pictures); Prince: Sign O The Times (Cineplex Odeon Films); Madonna: Truth Or Dare (DVD: Paramount Pictures Home Entertainment); Homecoming: A Film By Beyonce (Netflix); U2: Rattle And Hum (Paramount Pictures)Graphic: Libby...
- 10/12/2023
- by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
- avclub.com
Exclusive: Production is underway on a concert documentary about legendary rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival, built around one-of-a-kind performance footage of Ccr that sat in a London vault for five decades.
Academy Award-winning actor Jeff Bridges will narrate Travelin’ Band: Creedence Clearwater Revival at the Royal Albert Hall, a production of Craft Recordings, Concord Originals and Marathan Films. Bob Smeaton, the filmmaker behind Grammy-winning documentaries on The Beatles and Jimi Hendrix, is directing the Creedence doc.
“As a kid growing up in the U.K. during the late ’60s, early ’70s, Creedence were a band that I was only really aware of through their hit singles,” Smeaton said in a statement. “Therefore, making this film was an education for me, I was able to see and hear why they are worthy of their status as one of the greatest bands of all time. I knew they were good, I never knew they were that good.
Academy Award-winning actor Jeff Bridges will narrate Travelin’ Band: Creedence Clearwater Revival at the Royal Albert Hall, a production of Craft Recordings, Concord Originals and Marathan Films. Bob Smeaton, the filmmaker behind Grammy-winning documentaries on The Beatles and Jimi Hendrix, is directing the Creedence doc.
“As a kid growing up in the U.K. during the late ’60s, early ’70s, Creedence were a band that I was only really aware of through their hit singles,” Smeaton said in a statement. “Therefore, making this film was an education for me, I was able to see and hear why they are worthy of their status as one of the greatest bands of all time. I knew they were good, I never knew they were that good.
- 4/28/2022
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
Director Bob Smeaton’s rock ‘n road-trip movie, featuring some of 1970’s preeminent musicians on a five day train tour through Canada, is an essential time capsule of what happened when the swinging sixties made its awkward leap into the unforgiving after-party of the ’70s. There are eye-opening run-ins with hostile fans along the way but the camaraderie of the musicians, including Janis Joplin, The Band and The Grateful Dead keeps spirits high (literally). Because the tour was a financial disaster, the footage sat unused in a garage for years before being resurrected for presentation at the 2003 Toronto Film Festival.
The post Festival Express appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
The post Festival Express appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
- 8/17/2018
- by TFH Team
- Trailers from Hell
"Don't have to explain myself to you / I don't give two f**ks about your review" said Paul Weller with The Jam on 'The Modern World' back in 1977, so I don't think he'll be all that bothered by what I say about his band or this documentary.
He doesn't have to worry either way. Screened in the city ahead of its broadcast on Sky Arts next week, The Jam: About The Young Idea is a fine documentary that can reel in movie fans who hadn't necessarily surrendered to the beat of Weller, Bruce Foxton and Rick Buckler before.
Riding on the back of a new photo exhibition of the band, the film is directed with economy and style by Bob Smeaton, one of the men behind the remarkable Beatles Anthology series from the mid-1990s.
About The Young Idea mixes up archive live footage, new conversations with the band and...
He doesn't have to worry either way. Screened in the city ahead of its broadcast on Sky Arts next week, The Jam: About The Young Idea is a fine documentary that can reel in movie fans who hadn't necessarily surrendered to the beat of Weller, Bruce Foxton and Rick Buckler before.
Riding on the back of a new photo exhibition of the band, the film is directed with economy and style by Bob Smeaton, one of the men behind the remarkable Beatles Anthology series from the mid-1990s.
About The Young Idea mixes up archive live footage, new conversations with the band and...
- 8/28/2015
- Digital Spy
Other leading nominees are Life Itself and 20,000 Days on Earth.
Laura Poitras’ Citizenfour, about Nsa whistleblower Edward Snowden, leads the pack at the Cinema Eye Awards nominations, with six nods.
Steve James’ Life Itself about Roger Ebert and Iain Forsythe and Jane Pollard’s 20,000 Days on Earth about Nick Cave followed close behind with five nominations each.
The nominees for the awards, which recognise exemplary craft and innovation in nonfiction film, were announced last night at an industry party at Cph: Dox in Copenhagen.
In addition to those three, the other nominations for the Nonfiction Feature Film were Jesse Moss’ The Overnighters and Orlando von Einsiedel’s Virunga.
Poitras and James are also nominated in the Direction category, and each has previously won that Cinema Eye prize, Poitras with The Oath in 2011 and James in 2012 with The Interrupters. Poitras becomes the most nominated filmmaker in Cinema Eye history with nine nominations.
Other films nominated...
Laura Poitras’ Citizenfour, about Nsa whistleblower Edward Snowden, leads the pack at the Cinema Eye Awards nominations, with six nods.
Steve James’ Life Itself about Roger Ebert and Iain Forsythe and Jane Pollard’s 20,000 Days on Earth about Nick Cave followed close behind with five nominations each.
The nominees for the awards, which recognise exemplary craft and innovation in nonfiction film, were announced last night at an industry party at Cph: Dox in Copenhagen.
In addition to those three, the other nominations for the Nonfiction Feature Film were Jesse Moss’ The Overnighters and Orlando von Einsiedel’s Virunga.
Poitras and James are also nominated in the Direction category, and each has previously won that Cinema Eye prize, Poitras with The Oath in 2011 and James in 2012 with The Interrupters. Poitras becomes the most nominated filmmaker in Cinema Eye history with nine nominations.
Other films nominated...
- 11/13/2014
- by wendy.mitchell@screendaily.com (Wendy Mitchell)
- ScreenDaily
Rock n' Roll Will Never Die! kicks off at Trailers from Hell, with director Allan Arkush introducing "Festival Express."Director Bob Smeaton’s rock ‘n road-trip movie, featuring some of 1970′s preeminent musicians on a five day train tour through Canada, is an essential time capsule of what happened when the swinging sixties made its awkward leap into the unforgiving after-party of the ’70s. There are eye-opening run-ins with hostile fans along the way but the camaraderie of the musicians, including Janis Joplin, The Band and The Grateful Dead keeps spirits high (literally). Because the tour was a financial disaster, the footage sat unused in a garage for years before being resurrected for presentation at the 2003 Toronto Film Festival.
- 3/3/2014
- by Trailers From Hell
- Thompson on Hollywood
Director Bob Smeaton’s rock ‘n road-trip movie, featuring some of 1970′s preeminent musicians on a five day train tour through Canada, is an essential time capsule of what happened when the swinging sixties made its awkward leap into the unforgiving after-party of the ’70s. There are eye-opening run-ins with hostile fans along the way but the camaraderie of the musicians, including Janis Joplin, The Band and The Grateful Dead keeps spirits high (literally). Because the tour was a financial disaster, the footage sat unused in a garage for years before being resurrected for presentation at the 2003 Toronto Film Festival.
The post Festival Express appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
The post Festival Express appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
- 3/3/2014
- by TFH Team
- Trailers from Hell
If you missed it when it aired a week ago, for a limited time, PBS is making available its new two-hour documentary on the life of Jimi Hendrix, titled Jimi Hendrix: Hear My Train A Comin, which was broadcast on the network last week, Tuesday, November 5, at 9pm, as part of its American Masters series. The documentary is directed by Bob Smeaton whose credits include several other music-themed films like The Beatles Anthology, Festival Express, as well as several Hendrix projects: Jimi Hendrix: Voodoo Child (2010) and Hendrix 70: Live at Woodstock (2012). Regarding this new film, director Smeaton told the New York Times in an interview...
- 11/11/2013
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
Probably the most enduring image of Jimi Hendrix is of him onstage at Woodstock, performing "The Star-Spangled Banner" -- complete with rockets' red glare -- before a muddy field full of drugged-out hippies.
But the pioneering blues/rock guitarist who played that August 1969 morning in upstate New York has a rich back story, and it's told in "Jimi Hendrix: American Masters," premiering Tuesday, Nov. 5, on PBS (check local listings).
"From when he came to London in September of 1966, (Hendrix's recording career lasted) like four years, four albums, numerous tours," notes Bob Smeaton, the film's director to Zap2it. "And you forget, when he came [to London], he was like 23 years old, and then he died at 27. And now you think of someone at 27 years old like a young kid. And you think he'd done so much in such a short space of time. ... He squeezed a lot of life into four years.
But the pioneering blues/rock guitarist who played that August 1969 morning in upstate New York has a rich back story, and it's told in "Jimi Hendrix: American Masters," premiering Tuesday, Nov. 5, on PBS (check local listings).
"From when he came to London in September of 1966, (Hendrix's recording career lasted) like four years, four albums, numerous tours," notes Bob Smeaton, the film's director to Zap2it. "And you forget, when he came [to London], he was like 23 years old, and then he died at 27. And now you think of someone at 27 years old like a young kid. And you think he'd done so much in such a short space of time. ... He squeezed a lot of life into four years.
- 11/5/2013
- by editorial@zap2it.com
- Zap2It - From Inside the Box
Maybe just in time for the world premiere of Andre Benjamin's biopic All Is By My Side, at Tiff last month, a new two-hour documentary on the life of Jimi Hendrix, titled Jimi Hendrix: Hear My Train A Comin, will be broadcast on PBS tonight, Tuesday, November 5, at 9pm, as part of its American Masters series. The DVD package will be accompanied by a CD with a previously-unreleased 1968 concert recording by the Jimi Hendrix Experience at the Miami Pop Festival that year. The documentary is directed by Bob Smeaton whose credits include several other music-themed films like The Beatles Anthology, Festival Express, as well as several Hendrix...
- 11/5/2013
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
The venerable PBS series American Masters — deep-dish documentary portraits of American artists — has a tradition of healthy eclecticism, incorporating select figures from popular culture into its generally highbrow mix. In the years since the series began in 1985, its subjects have included such diverse pop giants as Woody Allen, the Doors, Clint Eastwood, Annie Leibovitz, Marvin Gaye, Jeff Bridges, and Johnny Carson. (Just last night, the series re-broadcast Timothy Greenfield-Sanders’ marvelous 1998 documentary about Lou Reed.) That said, the notion of American Masters devoting an episode to Jimi Hendrix, the guitar visionary of purple blues-rock psychedelia, has an almost mischievously counterintuitive ring.
- 11/5/2013
- by Owen Gleiberman
- EW - Inside TV
Maybe just in time for the world premiere of Andre Benjamin's biopic All Is By My Side, at Tiff last month, a new two-hour documentary on the life of Jimi Hendrix, titled Jimi Hendrix: Hear My Train A Comin, will be broadcast on PBS next week Tuesday, November 5, at 9pm, as part of its American Masters series, on the same day that the DVD version will also be released. The DVD package will be accompanied by a CD with a previously-unreleased 1968 concert recording by the Jimi Hendrix Experience at the Miami Pop Festival that year. The documentary is directed by Bob Smeaton whose credits include several other music-themed films like The Beatles...
- 11/1/2013
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
Maybe just in time for the world premiere of Andre Benjamin's biopic All Is By My Side, at Tiff last month, a new two-hour documentary on the life of Jimi Hendrix, titled Jimi Hendrix: Hear My Train A Comin, will be broadcast on PBS on November 5, at 9pm, as part of its American Masters series on the same day that the DVD version will also be released. The DVD package will be accompanied by a CD with a previously-unreleased 1968 concert recording by the Jimi Hendrix Experience at the Miami Pop Festival that year. The documentary is directed by Bob Smeaton whose credits include several other music-themed films like The Beatles Anthology, Festival...
- 10/4/2013
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
Maybe just in time for the world premiere of Andre Benjamin's biopic All Is By My Side, at Tiff this month, a new two-hour documentary on the life of Jimi Hendrix, titled Jimi Hendrix: Hear My Train A Comin, will be released directly to the home video market on November 5, courtesy of Sony's Legacy brand. PBS will also broadcast the documentary as part of its American Masters series on the same day that the DVD version is released. The DVD package will be accompanied by a CD with a previously-unreleased 1968 concert recording by the Jimi Hendrix Experience at the Miami Pop Festival that year. The documentary is directed by Bob Smeaton whose...
- 9/18/2013
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
After profiling its first-ever sports figure, Billie Jean King, tonight at 8pm, PBS doc series "American Masters" will turn to Jimi Hendrix with "Jimi Hendrix - Hear My Train A Comin'," slated to premiere Tuesday, November 5, 2013 at 9pm. The two-hour doc is directed by Bob Smeaton of "Festival Express" and "Jimi Hendrix: Voodoo Child," and an expanded home video edition will be released on the same day the film airs on PBS, as well as a CD and limited edition vinyl set for "Jimi Hendrix Experience: Miami Pop Festival," the first-ever release of one of the guitar virtuoso's most sought-after performances. "Hear My Train A Comin'" will include previously unseen performance footage and home movies taken by Hendrix and drummer Mitch Mitchell as well as interviews with Paul McCartney, Noel Redding, Mitch Mitchell, Billy Cox, Eddie Kramer, Steve Winwood, Vernon Reid, Billy Gibbons, Dweezil Zappa and Dave Mason. Check...
- 9/10/2013
- by Alison Willmore
- Indiewire
Maybe just in time for the world premiere of Andre Benjamin's biopic All Is By My Side, at Tiff this month, a new two-hour documentary on the life of Jimi Hendrix, titled Jimi Hendrix: Hear My Train A Comin, will be released directly to the home video market on November 5, courtesy of Sony's Legacy brand. The DVD package will be accompanied by a CD with a previously-unreleased 1968 concert recording by the Jimi Hendrix Experience at the Miami Pop Festival that year. PBS will also broadcast the documentary as part of its American Masters series on the same day that the DVD version is released. The documentary is directed by Bob Smeaton whose credits include...
- 9/5/2013
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
CTV will air the new Beatles documentary "The Beatles On Record", in a Canadian network premiere, December 4.
The show debuted on the Us History Channel November 25 and in the UK on the BBC September 5.
Directed by Bob Smeaton, the in-depth special offers an intimate glimpse into the creative process behind The Beatles songs, narrated by John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Ringo Starr and producer George Martin, featuring never-before-heard outtakes of studio chat from the band's first recording sessions at the Abbey Road studios.
"The Beatles On Record" complements the recently-released digitally-re-mastered Beatles catalogue from Emi, comprising all 12 Beatles albums in stereo, with track listings and original LP artwork.
With over 60 classic songs, photos from The Beatles' archives and rare footage, the doc reveals how the band's enduring body of work pushed the boundaries, resulting in a musical legacy.
Sneak Peek "The Beatles On Record"...
The show debuted on the Us History Channel November 25 and in the UK on the BBC September 5.
Directed by Bob Smeaton, the in-depth special offers an intimate glimpse into the creative process behind The Beatles songs, narrated by John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Ringo Starr and producer George Martin, featuring never-before-heard outtakes of studio chat from the band's first recording sessions at the Abbey Road studios.
"The Beatles On Record" complements the recently-released digitally-re-mastered Beatles catalogue from Emi, comprising all 12 Beatles albums in stereo, with track listings and original LP artwork.
With over 60 classic songs, photos from The Beatles' archives and rare footage, the doc reveals how the band's enduring body of work pushed the boundaries, resulting in a musical legacy.
Sneak Peek "The Beatles On Record"...
- 12/4/2009
- by Michael Stevens
- SneakPeek
ROTTERDAM, Netherlands -- "Festival Express" should rightfully take its place in rock history as one of the great performance films of all time. Assembled by "Beatles Anthology" ringmaster Bob Smeaton from footage shot on the all-star Festival Express tour of 1970, the film features blistering live performances from Janis Joplin, the Band, the Flying Burrito Brothers and The Grateful Dead, to name a few.
But the real draw is the footage of some extended jam sessions that took place on the five-day train ride between gigs as the Festival Express tour organizers managed to persuade the acts to travel together on the same train. The carriages were wired for sound, with drum kits and amplifiers, so that the musicians could while away the time jamming. Talents as diverse as Joplin, Jerry Garcia and Buddy Guy passed the journey exploring one another's musical styles.
"Festival Express" will have no trouble attracting classic-rock fans in most Western countries, and DVD extras will give it a second lease on life on disc. Thinkfilm will release theatrically in the United States in mid-July.
The trans-Canada Festival Express tour got off to a bad start in 1970 when demonstrators in Toronto tried to close down the opening gig, demanding that the bands play for free. After Toronto, promoter Ken Walker realized he was going to make a loss, but he thought he'd continue the tour for the hell of it. The Festival Express traveled 2,150 miles across Canada. A young Peter Biziou (who went on to shoot "Mississippi Burning" and "The Truman Show") filmed the whole thing with another cameraman for a movie that didn't materialize at the time.
A standout performance is Joplin's wild and passionate rendition of "Cry Baby". Other highlights include the Band performing "I Shall Be Released" -- a version of "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" was sadly omitted because there is no visual footage to match the audio -- and a late Burritos lineup grooving through "Lazy Day". Jam sessions feature all and sundry.
Recent interviews with surviving participants conducted by Smeaton add context. More importantly, Smeaton has worked hard to ensure that the finished work is more than just a collection of clips.
But the real draw is the footage of some extended jam sessions that took place on the five-day train ride between gigs as the Festival Express tour organizers managed to persuade the acts to travel together on the same train. The carriages were wired for sound, with drum kits and amplifiers, so that the musicians could while away the time jamming. Talents as diverse as Joplin, Jerry Garcia and Buddy Guy passed the journey exploring one another's musical styles.
"Festival Express" will have no trouble attracting classic-rock fans in most Western countries, and DVD extras will give it a second lease on life on disc. Thinkfilm will release theatrically in the United States in mid-July.
The trans-Canada Festival Express tour got off to a bad start in 1970 when demonstrators in Toronto tried to close down the opening gig, demanding that the bands play for free. After Toronto, promoter Ken Walker realized he was going to make a loss, but he thought he'd continue the tour for the hell of it. The Festival Express traveled 2,150 miles across Canada. A young Peter Biziou (who went on to shoot "Mississippi Burning" and "The Truman Show") filmed the whole thing with another cameraman for a movie that didn't materialize at the time.
A standout performance is Joplin's wild and passionate rendition of "Cry Baby". Other highlights include the Band performing "I Shall Be Released" -- a version of "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" was sadly omitted because there is no visual footage to match the audio -- and a late Burritos lineup grooving through "Lazy Day". Jam sessions feature all and sundry.
Recent interviews with surviving participants conducted by Smeaton add context. More importantly, Smeaton has worked hard to ensure that the finished work is more than just a collection of clips.
ROTTERDAM, Netherlands -- Festival Express should rightfully take its place in rock history as one of the great performance films of all time. Assembled by Beatles Anthology ringmaster Bob Smeaton from footage shot on the all-star Festival Express tour of 1970, the film features blistering live performances from Janis Joplin, the Band, the Flying Burrito Brothers and The Grateful Dead, to name a few.
But the real draw is the footage of some extended jam sessions that took place on the five-day train ride between gigs as the Festival Express tour organizers managed to persuade the acts to travel together on the same train. The carriages were wired for sound, with drum kits and amplifiers, so that the musicians could while away the time jamming. Talents as diverse as Joplin, Jerry Garcia and Buddy Guy passed the journey exploring one another's musical styles.
Festival Express will have no trouble attracting classic-rock fans in most Western countries, and DVD extras will give it a second lease on life on disc. Thinkfilm will release theatrically in the United States in mid-July.
The trans-Canada Festival Express tour got off to a bad start in 1970 when demonstrators in Toronto tried to close down the opening gig, demanding that the bands play for free. After Toronto, promoter Ken Walker realized he was going to make a loss, but he thought he'd continue the tour for the hell of it. The Festival Express traveled 2,150 miles across Canada. A young Peter Biziou (who went on to shoot Mississippi Burning and The Truman Show) filmed the whole thing with another cameraman for a movie that didn't materialize at the time.
A standout performance is Joplin's wild and passionate rendition of Cry Baby. Other highlights include the Band performing I Shall Be Released -- a version of "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" was sadly omitted because there is no visual footage to match the audio -- and a late Burritos lineup grooving through Lazy Day. Jam sessions feature all and sundry.
Recent interviews with surviving participants conducted by Smeaton add context. More importantly, Smeaton has worked hard to ensure that the finished work is more than just a collection of clips.
But the real draw is the footage of some extended jam sessions that took place on the five-day train ride between gigs as the Festival Express tour organizers managed to persuade the acts to travel together on the same train. The carriages were wired for sound, with drum kits and amplifiers, so that the musicians could while away the time jamming. Talents as diverse as Joplin, Jerry Garcia and Buddy Guy passed the journey exploring one another's musical styles.
Festival Express will have no trouble attracting classic-rock fans in most Western countries, and DVD extras will give it a second lease on life on disc. Thinkfilm will release theatrically in the United States in mid-July.
The trans-Canada Festival Express tour got off to a bad start in 1970 when demonstrators in Toronto tried to close down the opening gig, demanding that the bands play for free. After Toronto, promoter Ken Walker realized he was going to make a loss, but he thought he'd continue the tour for the hell of it. The Festival Express traveled 2,150 miles across Canada. A young Peter Biziou (who went on to shoot Mississippi Burning and The Truman Show) filmed the whole thing with another cameraman for a movie that didn't materialize at the time.
A standout performance is Joplin's wild and passionate rendition of Cry Baby. Other highlights include the Band performing I Shall Be Released -- a version of "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" was sadly omitted because there is no visual footage to match the audio -- and a late Burritos lineup grooving through Lazy Day. Jam sessions feature all and sundry.
Recent interviews with surviving participants conducted by Smeaton add context. More importantly, Smeaton has worked hard to ensure that the finished work is more than just a collection of clips.
- 4/20/2004
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
NEW YORK -- Indie film unit ThinkFilm has sealed a deal to acquire North American rights to the rock documentary Festival Express, which played the Toronto International Film Festival in September. Express stars Janis Joplin, the Band and The Grateful Dead, among other classic rock legends, during the 1970 Canadian counterpart to Woodstock, called Festival Express. Express features largely unseen footage, shot by Peter Biziou, and also includes interviews with various participants, witnesses and survivors, assembled by director Bob Smeaton. Sales outfit Hanway reps worldwide rights to Express.
- 1/13/2004
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
MILAN -- U.K. independent distribution company Optimum Releasing kicked off this year's MIFED market here with the acquisition of U.K. rights to four titles, headlined by the Michael Moore documentary Fahrenheit 9/11. The British outfit picked up Moore's documentary -- which looks at links between the families of Osama bin Laden and President Bush -- from French sales company Wild Bunch. Optimum also sealed a deal with Wild Bunch for the documentary The Agronomist, directed by Jonathan Demme. It follows the life of journalist and activist Jean Dominique, who was murdered in Haiti in the late 1990s. The company, which is aiming to develop a diverse slate of releases for next year, also grabbed U.K. rights to Festival Express, directed by Bob Smeaton.
- 11/9/2003
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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