Review: Townes van Zandt documentary

Subject: Townes van Z Doc
From: Mudlark
Date: 03 Aug 06 - 12:46 AM

Did anybody else see the T. van Z documentary tonight on Sundance? Interesting, pretty well made, and sad enough to commit suicide by. Some great songs buried in there. Thot it telling that Emmy Lou thought Pancho & Lefty was her song!

Subject: RE: Townes van Z Doc
From: Barry Finn
Date: 03 Aug 06 - 11:56 AM

I did see it advertised & turned to get but that'snot a channel we can get unless we pay extra. So tell us more about it, please. I'm not sure I get the part we're Emmy Lou thought it was her song. If you didn't write something how can you think it's yours'?

Barry

Subject: RE: Townes van Z Doc
From: Scoville
Date: 03 Aug 06 - 12:49 PM

Which doc is this?

I got Be There to Love Me for my birthday and it was interesting but a downer-and-a-half. I have mixed feelings about Townes as a songwriter, anyway, though.

Subject: RE: Townes van Z Doc
From: Willie-O
Date: 03 Aug 06 - 09:22 PM

It is indeed Be There To Love Me. I found it scorching. It has a kind of intimate home-video vibe some of the time, and is more than worth seeking out. One of those pieces that lets the interviewees tell the story instead of a stupid-ass voiceover.

The lovely Emmylou spoke very touchingly about how much she loves singing "Poncho and Lefty"; it's not a song-appropriation thing at all.

The overarching theme of the piece is (IMHO) that age-old question of balance: is the artistry of a Townes Van Zandt worth all the emotional wreckage left in his wake? The answer seems to be a qualified yes; despite all the pain he caused to the people that loved him (his wives, children, musical friends like Guy and Susannah Clark) they clearly kept on loving him and now cherish his music and memory.

Don't hesitate to spend money on this video; it is one of the best musical documentaries ever.

W-O

Subject: RE: Townes van Z Doc
From: Johnhenry'shammer
Date: 04 Aug 06 - 01:14 AM

I can't say I was crazy about it. I'm not a big Townes fan though.

Subject: RE: Townes van Z Doc
From: Mudlark
Date: 04 Aug 06 - 01:48 AM

I have to agree with Willo-O...touching, wrenching, heart-breaking but real. He said he never let a song go, recorded every one...which is my take on his body of music. But in that motley bunch of stuff are some killer songs. He paid dearly for them, as did his friends and family. Hard to see the pain of his life, but TG for his music. A very good documentary, in my estimation.

Subject: RE: Townes van Z Doc
From: Scoville
Date: 04 Aug 06 - 11:49 PM

I'm afraid I think sometimes that he ought to have let a few of them go; the world only needs so many songs about bar-room girls before they just start to run together.

I did think it was a good documentary, and I was glad that the majority of the commentary was from family members and not some "outsider", but, for me, at least, I don't think it had the effect that it was supposed to have, but then I'm a pessimist by nature and have a personal policy of respecting the art but being careful not to wish too much about the artist.

Subject: RE: Townes van Z Doc
From: WFDU - Ron Olesko
Date: 05 Aug 06 - 10:36 AM

"The overarching theme of the piece is (IMHO) that age-old question of balance: is the artistry of a Townes Van Zandt worth all the emotional wreckage left in his wake? The answer seems to be a qualified yes..."

I'm not sure if I agree with that. I am not sure if Van Zandt was capable of making a choice.   Addiction is not a choice. I am convinced that there is something genetic that prevents SOME people from making healthy choices.

Someone once put forth the idea that Woody Guthrie poured out so many songs in a relatively short timespan because his body was reacting to Huntington's. The disease was genetic, and it caused his creative side to put out as much "product" as possible before the body shuts down. Perhaps there is something to that. It might explain why these so-called "tortured souls" can produce beautiful art while their lives are crumbling.

I don't buy the theory that people have to suffer for their art, but I do think that there are people who have no choice in the matter.

I thought the documentary was superb - well edited and good conception. The story is told to appeal to both fans of the music and to people who may never have heard a Townes Van Zandt song. It works.

Ron

Subject: RE: Townes van Z Doc
From: Scoville
Date: 05 Aug 06 - 11:42 AM

I don't think addiction and Huntington's are quite in the same category. Huntington's is uncontrollable, no matter what you do; no cure, no treatment, no management, no nothing. I agree that addiction itself is not a choice and that some people are genetically more susceptible, but I think there is still a degree of choice involved. There are enough brilliant artists who have gone through it and come out alive (Dylan among them) to support that. It's miserable and it's a Hell of a lot of hard work, but it's not the guaranteed death sentence that is Huntington's.

I mostly felt terribly badly for J.T. He seems to have mostly turned out OK (must have had a very sane mother) and had a lot of very thoughtful and well-considered things to say, but I felt badly that his father was essentially lost to him when he was so young. Worse than lost, almost, if he was calling his mom in the middle of the night to come get him because Townes was out of control.

Subject: RE: Townes van Z Doc
From: WFDU - Ron Olesko
Date: 05 Aug 06 - 04:26 PM

Of course Hungtington's and addiction are in different catagories, but I strongly believe that genetic makeup plays a role in each. An addict won't automatically grab for heroin, a drink or some other poison but there has to be a reason why I can handle a drink or two but it becomes the start of a binge for a friend of mine. Yes, there is a choice involved, but there are also urges that are too strong for some people to handle without help.

As for why some artists can handle it and others can't, I think that also can be traced to genetics.   Why is Keith Richards still walking the earth and Gram Parsons gone?

I do agree, JT was a very moving part of the documentary. He has inherited his father's gift of eloquence, and it appears he has a good head on his shoulders.

Subject: RE: Townes van Z Doc
From: GUEST,Wesley S
Date: 05 Aug 06 - 04:35 PM

I'm not sure that I could say that I "enjoyed" the movie but I'm glad I saw it. It's scary to think that they are folks out there who are willing to shoot up bourbon and coke. But it's worth a watch.