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108 of 115 found the following review helpful:
 What Were They Thinking?Nov 13, 2001
By Lew Harris
As an overview of roots music, it's hard to quibble with this fascinating package. But for real fans, there's one serious, serious problem: There is some amazing footage that I have never seen, that they have unearthed. Live performances by Leadbelly, by Woody Guthrie, by Howlin' Wolf, by Hank Williams. And unlike Ken Burns' astonishing "Jazz," not only are these rare, rare performances cut horribly short...but the narrators talk over them, so you can't hear the artists' performances. There are some full-length performances on the DVD that were not on the series when it played on TV..but they were of "lesser" artists, for the most part. Here were legends of the '40s actually captured live--including Leadbelly in prison garb--and they have mutilated the performances. Shame.
16 of 20 found the following review helpful:
 Nearly PerfectJul 06, 2004
The PBS American Roots Music series - both the 4 part documentary on DVD and 4 CD boxed set - is a commendable work. It is an incredible education in not only popular American music and culture, but history, and should be required viewing and listening in high schools. Many of the problems in American Society and its youth today stem from a complete lack of pride and self-awareness. A quick survey of popular music and culture reveal a frightening level of ignorance of America's history, values, and ideals. In short, while the series focusses on America's musical traditions, it does a fantastic job of conveying a sense of America's "roots" in a positive, enriching manner. The DVD documentary strikes a perfect balance between glossing over, and becoming bogged down in, the material. Unlike the Ken Burns' projects that exhaust the viewer's interest and collapse under their own weight, the series is informative and educational, yet entertaining. It is not MEANT to be an exhaustive treatise on the subject - and so some reviewers here are missing the point - that would take 40, not 4, episodes. Rather, it is an introduction and a sampler; peaking our curiosity and prompting us to investigate and research further the wonderful heritage of music out there. And in that, it succeeds marvelously. What also impressed me was the documentary's remarkable objectivity. While it eschews political correctness, it doesn't necessarily candy coat anything either. What it does do is present the material in a respectful, thoughtful, intelligent, and unbiased manner - something so lacking in today's political and social discourse. So in this sense, folks looking for something with an "agenda" - conspiracies, skeletons in the closet, and historical revisionism - may be disappointed by the documentary. The CD boxed set is equally well-done: a fantastic booklet, thorough liner notes, and collection of songs that is a music lover's dream. Again, it is intended to be a sampler - great songs by landmark artists - not an exhaustive account of American Roots music. And also like the documentary, its meant to be a enriching, uplifting - not deconstructing - experience. If the series has a shortcoming, it is the absence of one of the major "roots" - Jazz - which was no doubt and most unfortunately excluded, because of the recent Ken Burns' PBS documentary. But to exclude Jazz from the discussion of American Roots music, means we do not have the entire picture. And so in that sense, the series is somewhat flawed. Still, its hard to find any other fault with the series. This is a work that TRULY embraces and celebrates America's cultural diversity. Entertaining and enlightening, I would heartily recommend owning the box set and DVD for one's own edification as well as a way to help introduce friends and family to REAL American music - in all its forms.
2 of 2 found the following review helpful:
AMERICAN ROOTS MUSIC - DVDJan 14, 2009
By Gary Covington
"Southern Rocker"
NOTE: PLEASE EXCUSE MY USE OF CAPITAL LETTERS ON THIS REVIEW. I WROTE THIS REVIEW BEFORE I LEARNED THAT IT'S NOT PROPER COMPUTER ETIQUETTE.
THIS IS A VERY COMPREHENSIVE, VERY AUTHORITATIVE , AND VERY HISTORICAL DOCUMENTARY OF AMERICAN ROOTS MUSIC. THIS DOCUMENTARY CONTAINS A WEALTH OF AMERICAN MUSIC HISTORY AND THE PIONEERING ARTISTS WHO LAID THE FOUNDATION FOR AMERICAN MUSIC!!! THIS IS A 4 HOUR, 4 EPISODE 2 DISC DOCUMENTARY WITH HISTORICAL PARTIAL PERFORMANCES, AND/OR COMMENTARY ON SUCH ARTISTS AS: JIMMIE RODGERS (THE FATHER OF COUNTRY MUSIC), THE CARTER FAMILY (THE FIRST FAMILY OF COUNTRY MUSIC), MUDDY WATERS (A LEGENDARY BLUESMAN), B.B.KING (A LIVING LEGEND OF THE BLUES), BOB WILLS (KING OF WESTERN SWING), HANK WILLIAMS (KING OF COUNTRY MUSIC), BILL MONROE (A LEGENDARY BLUEGRASS MUSICAN), EARL SCRUGGS (A LEGENDARY BLUEGRASS MUSICIAN), MAHALIA JACKSON (A SOUL MUSIC QUEEN), CHIFTON CHENIER (THE KING OF ZYDECO), WOODY GUTHRIE (A FOLK MUSIC PIONEER), AND MANY, MANY MORE!!!!
YOU GET COMMENTARIES BY MARTY STUART, GILLIAN WELCH (OF OF THE O BROTHER ART THOU MOVIE), RICKY SCAGGS, RUFUS THOMAS, BONNIE RAITT, MAVIS STAPLES, DOYLE LAWSON, RAPLH STANLEY, ARLO GUTHRIE, KEITH RICHARDS, SAM PHILLIPS, MERLE HAGGARD, BENICE JOHNSON, ROBERT MIRABAL AND MANY OTHERS.
EPISODE 1:
1.THE FISK JUBILEE SINGERS (THESE WERE AFRICAN AMERICAN SINGERS, WHO WERE IN COLLEGE, AND THEY SUNG SPIRITAL MUSIC, TO SUPPORT THEIR COLLEGE, THEY EVEN TRAVELED ACROSS THE COUNTRY PUTTING ON SHOWS THAT WERE WELL RECEIVED BY BOTH BLACK AND WHITE AUDIENCES. THEY STARTED AROUND THE 1870' BEFORE THERE WAS RECORDED MUSIC).
1. RECORDED MUSIC: A DOUMENTARY OF THE BEGINNING OF RECORDED MUSIC.
2. THE BRISTOL SESSIONS: FEATURES JIMMIE RODGERS (YOU GET A GREAT ALMOST COMPLETE PERFORMANCE OF JIMMIE RODGERS SINGING "WAITING ON A TRAIN". AND YOU GET HISTORY ON THE CARTER FAMILY. THE BRISTOL SESSIONS WAS ONE OF THE FIRST SESSIONS TO RECORD MUSIC ON RECORD, AND JIMMY RODGERS AND THE CARTER FAMILY WERE RECORDED AT THESE BRISTOL SESSIONS.
3. DELTA BLUES: FEATURES A HISTORY AND PARTIAL PERFORMANCES BY LEGENDARY MISSISSIPPI DELTA BLUES MUSICIANS. YOU GET A GOOD PARTIAL PERFORMANCE OF SON HOUSE (A LENGENDAR DELTA BLUESMAN) AND OTHERS.
4. THE GRAND OLE OPRY
5. GOSPEL IS BORN( THE STORY OF THOMAS DORSEY - THE FATHER OF BLACK GOSPEL MUSIC).
EPISODE 2:
6. COWBOY MUSIC AND WESTERN SWING
7. LEAD BELLY AND LOMAX
8. WOODY GUTHRIE
9.BLUEGRASS
10. HONKY TONK MUSIC
11. THE BLUES AND RADIO
NOW, YOU GET BONUS FULL LENGTH PERFORMANCES BY BOB WILLS, EARL SCRUGGS, AND DOC WATSON.
EPISODE 3:
12. CHIGAGO BLUES
13. B.B KING
14. GOLDEN AGE OF GOSPEL
15. THE WEAVERS
16. THE FOLK REVIVAL
17. NEWPORT FOLK FESTIVAL
EPISODE 4:
18. CAJUN MUSIC
19. ZYDECO MUSIC
20. TEJANO MUSIC
21. NATIVE AMERICAN MUSIC
22. NAKAI AND MIRABEL (NATIVE AMERICAN MUSIC).
23. EVOLUTION OF ROOTS MUSIC.
THEN YOU GET FULL LENGTH BONUS PERFORMANCES BY SISTER ROSETTA THARPE, STEVE RILEY AND THE MAMOU PLAYBOYS (CAJUN), AND VALERIO LONGORIA.
OVERALL, THIS IS A GREAT HISTORICAL DOCUMENARY OF AMERICAN ROOTS MUSIC. IT'S DIFFICULT TO DESCRIBE THE ENTIRE SERIES IN DETAIL, BECAUSE IT CONTAINS SUCH A WEALTH OF INFORMATION.
IT YOU ARE EXPECTING A LOT OF FULL LENGTH PERMANCES YOU WILL BE DISAPPOINTED, BUT IF YOU LIKE AMERICAN MUSIC HISTORY, THEN YOU'LL ENJOY THIS ONE, AND IN THAT CONTEXT, I DO RECOMMEND THIS ONE.
9 of 13 found the following review helpful:
 Weak, Confusing, DisappointingFeb 18, 2006
By Peej
"Cat Lover"
Its hard to believe someone budgeted a 4-part series that says so little about such a fascinating and important subject. This is truly one of the worst documentaries I've ever seen and in four volumes! The first episode makes no sense, its just bits and pieces of sound clips, film and photos supposedly representing the development of roots music but there's no story that ties it together. For example, gospel music is one of the foundations of roots music. The documentary spends a fair amount of time on the topic but gives no real explanation of what it is or why its so important. You have to already be familiar with the history of american roots music to put together the confusing pieces. Kris Kristoffersen narrates and sounds like he's about to fall asleep. Its very lame, don't waste your money.
11 of 16 found the following review helpful:
 American Roots Music VHSJan 10, 2002
By Marilyn B. Glabicki
"bird lady"
I loved this series. It is very well-done. They have taken 200 years of music in this country (some goes back farther than that) and made a very interesting story that ties in the many peoples and sounds and styles. You end up with this continuous musical tapestry that has them all woven in. Boy, a lot is packed into a little viewing time. You see nice long excerpts of live performances of all types. There are interesting interviews with performers. The narration is informative and stays on track with what you're watching. I really loved the music - all of it. And there was so much, no matter what your preference. Seeing how music evolved- and seeing where it's going and can go - that was fantastic. When it was over, I felt like I had been left with a timeless gift.
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