The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins 1969 les blank films. The resulting film, the blues accordin to lightnin hopkins, is a gorgeous 31minute poem of a movie, a series of snapshots from his life as well as a look at an era fast disappearing. Much of it was protest songs by singersongwriters of the 60s, but also featured very special people on tour, like blues singers brownie mcgee and sonny terry and my favorite, lightnin hopkins. The first 7 songs are are from the album down home blues, which in my opinion is lightnins finest work ever. He was at his best when unaccompanied, as on this prestige date recorded in 1961.
This is what they mean when they say chicken noodle soup for the soul. The late, great lightnin hopkins was one of the most natural of bluesmen, a poet who would often make up lyrics as he recorded. He was 67 and wearing a brightblue leisure suit with rhinestones that sparkled in the tv lights and a beige fedora cocked at a 45degree angle on the side of his head. Lightnin hopkins sings about playing cards with les blank and skip gerson a card. Hopkins was active musically until his death in 1982 of esophageal cancer.
Country blues by lightnin hopkins sam john lightnin hopkins march 15, 1911 january 30, 1982 was a texas country bluesman of the highest caliber from from centerville, texas. Deep texas bluesthe early blues of lightnin hopkins 2. Still got the blues music the blues accordin to lightnin. This is a lotta lightnin, a compilation of 2 albums recorded in 1964, with a running time of 76 minutes. Clip from the blues accordin to lightnin hopkins a documentary film by. The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins 1969 directed by. Lightnin and the blues this creatively named reissue was the third and final one in this series that imperial records launched to capitalize on two things, the rise of the 33 rpm format and two, the rediscovery of hopkins in 1959. Hopkins had been a prolific recording artist in the decade following his first sessions in 1948. Personnel on camera jazz on the screen is a reference work of filmographic information and. With music streaming on deezer you can discover more than 56 million tracks, create your own playlists, and share your favourite tracks with your friends. The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins 1969 rotten. Directed by les blank 1968 united states les blank creates a vivid portrait of bluesman lightin hopkins through a vital collection of musical performances. I have been a fan of lightnin hopkins for 40 years and have many of his recordings.
The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins nov 27, 2004. He boogies at an out door barbecue and he takes you with him on a homecoming visit. Early on in his documentary career, les blank had a radical idea. Shuffle blues in key of a style of lightnin hopkins%2c john lee hooker. Two of the best come from the man renowned near and far as lightnin hopkins, the most recent being the 1968 lp texas blues man. Austin city limits, 1979, less than three years before he died. Rolling stone magazine ranked him number 71 on its list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time. With remarkable intimacy, blank captures his music and musings the blues is just a funny feelin, yet people call it a mighty bad disease in this celebration of a legend that doubles as a portrait of the people and culture of houston, txcaptured vividly at a bbq and an allblack rodeo. Blanks wheelhouse however was always regional american music and the blues accordin to lightnin hopkinsa gorgeous little film radiates with his reverence for the texas legend. Though he usually played electric guitar, the texas blues titan performed on this release with an acoustic, and the result is most. Likable short documentary features the great texas blues singer lightnin hopkins.
On the making of the blues according to lightnin hopkins. And through it all his music remained distinctly identifiable as belonging to one powerful and unique voice. The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins 2014, texas blues, documentary, bdrip 720p. The film includes interviews and a performance by hopkins. This is a reissue of lightnin hopkins lightnin strikes, originally released in 1966. Criterion channel streaming us vimeo streaming nonus amazon streaming uk amazon streaming. The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins is streaming now on the criterion channel.
The very best of lightnin hopkins lightnin hopkins on allmusic 2000 pruning 16. Lightning album of the week lightning hopkins book. Lightnin hopkins nothin but the blues video dailymotion. A portrait of the great texas bluesman, lightnin hopkins. Rather than show a bunch of still images or talking heads, complete with captions to let us know who were listening to, why not actually just document a culture, a person. Like all of the teaching dvds produced by stefan grossmans guitar workshop, the audio fidelity is excellent, and the dvds give enough close up and. The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins 1967 youtube. On the making of the blues accordin to lightnin hopkins. Aug 29, 2012 along the way his cool and calm demeanor was captured by documentarian les blank in the short film the blues accordin to lightnin hopkins and had his suave likeness rendered by the brilliant pen of robert crumb. The international festival of ethnographic films nuoro, sardinia, italy, 1998 i grew up in tampa, florida in a white, uppermiddle class home and distinctly remember the first live music i ever experienced. Lightnin hopkins many albums are remarkably consistent or all of them sound the same, depending on the way you want to phrase it, featuring his semiimprovised autobiographical lyrics sung over a stock set of slow blues riffs, with the occasional speededup boogie tossed in, and now and then a turn at the piano. Voir film the blues accordin to lightnin hopkins en streaming. Some newly surfaced films confirm late documentarian les blank as a restless, oneofakind talent by sam adams every week, upstream hunts down a handful of titles available on the internet and nowhere else that would make for a good double feature or miniature retrospective. The blues accordin to lightin hopkins nr, 31 min documentary.
Whether hopkins played acoustic or electric guitar really didnt make much. The new york times described him as one of the great country blues singers and perhaps the greatest single influence on rock guitar players. The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins 1970 the blues. At the time, my second marriage had recently collapsed and i felt myself a failure as a father, a human and an artist. Lightnin hopkins, mance lipscomb, ruth ames and billy bizor. And lightnin hopkins is certainly more blessed than whats average. Blues accordin to lightnin hopkins library of congress. Lightnin hopkins country blues by lightnin hopkins. The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins the official bob. The film begins depicting hopkins as a young boy at the point that he decides to become a musician and goes on to show lightnin as an adult in. It is righteousness that guides the hand of the blues guitarist towards those pure notes. Its a fine batch of tunes from a true legend in prime form, and its also an opportunity to get up close and personal with a still potent. Listen to the blues anthology by lightnin hopkins on deezer. The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins july 31, 2014 hallgeir 2 comments he was like an ancient oracle in his uncanny ability to improvise rhyming blues songs about a person or situation that revealed a truth that was perfect in its simplicity, yet infinitely complex in its layers of meaning.
The making of the blues according to lightnin hopkins by les blank written for the program ix. The great texas bluesman lightnin hopkins is captured brilliantly in this deeply moving film. Rolling stone magazine ranked him number 71 on its list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time the musicologist robert mack mccormick opined that hopkins is the embodiment of the jazzandpoetry spirit. This video is about the blues according to lightning hopkins. The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins facebook watch. Rolling stone magazine ranked him number 71 on its list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time whose career began in the 1920s and stretched all the way into. The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins 2014, texas. The inheritor of a blues tradition that went back to blind lemon jefferson and texas alexander, he was an idiosyncratic musician, at his best when playing. Dec 12, 2012 the blues accordin to lightnin hopkins dec 12, 2012 yesterdays film was no doubt approved by ry cooder in part because of this early les blank documentary, a 30minute portrait of blues singer lightnin hopkins and his friends and neighbours in centerville, texas. The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins was only his second effort and it stands as one of his best, still.
The blues accordin to lightin hopkins 1967 rotten tomatoes. Lightnin hopkins lightnin and the blues 1960, vinyl. Let there be lightnin how sam hopkins lived the blues. Country blues by lightnin hopkins the turntable jukebox. Lightnin hopkins is many peoples idea of what a bluessinger should be. The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins full documentary. Though he usually played electric guitar, the texas blues titan performed on this release with an acoustic, and the result is most rewardin. The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins 1969 directed. Yesterdays film was no doubt approved by ry cooder in part because of this early les blank documentary, a 30minute portrait of blues singer lightnin hopkins and his friends and neighbours in centerville, texas. Here he takes us in one of his many short films, certainly one of his more known, to texas into the world of blues musician lightnin hopkins. Director blank reveals lightnins inspiration, and features a generous helping of classic blues. Sep 16, 2016 hopkins was active musically until his death in 1982 of esophageal cancer. The short avoids explicit biography, choosing instead to record intimate musical moments and the ambient humanity of hopkins worldit even credits. This 2dvd set is a followup to his first volume on the style of hopkins.
The classic lightnin hopkins portrait remains music film great les blanks 1968 short the blues accordin to lightnin hopkins, a brief but vivid immersion in lightnins world thats more about the spirit of the music than the facts of a life. I dont know the difference between lightin hopkins, lightin slim, or lightnin mcqueen. This brilliant new biographythe first book ever written about himilluminates the many contradictions of the man and his myth. Publication date 1960 topics country, blues, texas language english tracklist a1 long time. Smokes like lightnin the great electric show and dance. Listen to your favorite songs from double blues by lightnin hopkins now. Stream double blues by lightnin hopkins on amazon music. His stark, functional guitar style and rich texas drawl made his work instantly recognizable.
Lightnin hopkins had a mixture of styles and much of his work, even later in his career, harked back to a down home blues style from the prewar era that he had lived through although he. Les blank reveals the inspiration of great texas bluesman lightnin hopkins, and features a generous helping of classic blues, including the songs, mr. Director blank reveals lightnins inspiration, and features a. Some newly surfaced films confirm late documentarian les. The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins check out the video clip below for an excellent 30miniute documentary, capturing the life of legendary blues singerguitarist sam lightnin hopkins. Find the full 56 films for 56 years selections here. Stream adfree with amazon music unlimited on mobile, desktop, and tablet. The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins dangerous minds. And davis has also plumbed the depths of another great blues player, lightnin hopkins, on deep texas blues. Of late theres been a very welcome flurry of prime reissues originating from the powerhouse vaults of arhoolie records.
By the time of his death in 1982, sam lightnin hopkins was likely the most recorded blues artist in history. Hey well oh yeah what did you tell him about it i wish you up that you know get it dont get it cuz you see i cant i go long all the way but you know you dont stay in my boy you comes on you know yeah okay you go up there baby youll see me live up there come on play to get tired. Samuel john lightnin hopkins march 15, 1912 january 30, 1982 was an american country blues singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional pianist, from centerville, texas. The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins the official. Clip from the blues accordin to lightnin hopkins a documentary film by les blank. Blues accordin to lightnin hopkins les blank spent the early part of his thirties, and much of his twenties, putting together industrial movies, basically educational films for the corporate world, movies to promote the venture to investors and employees. The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins is an american documentary from 1970, so this one is already almost 50 years old now and it is an early, but not very early career effort by director les blank.
The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins 1969 rotten tomatoes. Voir film the blues accordin to lightnin hopkins en. Includes performances at an outdoor barbeque and a black rodeo. The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins 2014, texas blues. Ive tried, on more than one occasion, to get into the blues, but i find it just doesnt move me.
Blank reveals lightnins inspiration, and features a generous helping of classic blues. Voir en the blues accordin to lightnin hopkins 1969 vf gratuit film complet. In his own words and own own music, lightnin hopkins reveals the inspiration for his blues. The blues accordin to lightnin hopkins the criterion channel.
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