The story of Bobby and Sonny Osborne, better known as The Osborne Brothers, one of the most successful bluegrass groups of all time. Born in Hyden, Kentucky, they achieved world wide recognition with their 1967 single, “Rocky Top.”
In a small Southern town, a plantation owner is duped into thinking a thief is a kind stranger. To repay the stranger for stopping a robbery, the plantation owner invites him to his home to meet his daughter.
Indie folk heroes Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros, Tennessee’s Old Crow Medicine Show, and Britain’s acclaimed Mumford & Sons, climbed aboard a beautiful vintage train in California, setting out for New Orleans, Louisiana on a “tour of dreams”. The resulting film from this journey is nothing short of magical. Part road movie and part concert film, BIG EASY EXPRESS bears witness to the birth of a new musical era. With poignancy and beauty, Malloy documents these incredible musicians as they ride the rails and wow the crowds, from Oakland… to New Orleans.
Examine the history of bluegrass music, from its origins to its eventual worldwide popularity, and hear from dozens of musicians who explain the ways bluegrass music transcends generational, cultural and geographic boundaries.
The Rev. Jeff Mosier (Blueground Undergrass) was contracted by Phish in the Fall of 1994, to help them learn Bluegrass. They flew him to Michigan and Mike Gordon picked him up in a limo, and they had their first lesson on 11/14/1994, same night as Grand Rapids.
This passionate and affecting performance documentary celebrates the virtuoso artistry and joyous community of contemporary bluegrass music. Musically depicting many of the traditional roots and some of the more far-reaching branches of the genre by employing verite footage, thoughtful interviews, and vividly captured extended performances to weave a seamless tapestry that transports and enraptures the devoted fan and newcomer alike.
Join the Grammy Award winner and his band for a one-of-a-kind concert honoring the birthplace of Bluegrass. One of music’s top artists across all genres, Strings reveres acoustic music while pushing it forward into new spaces through his incredible live shows. Recorded on February 26, 2023 at the historic Ryman, Strings celebrates the traditional bluegrass songs that shaped him as a musician.
The life and times of The Carter Family, one of the earliest and most-influential group in American country and roots music.
No single figure in American music so dominated a genre as did Bill Monroe with bluegrass. BILL MONROE: FATHER OF BLUEGRASS MUSIC features performances by Bill Monroe & the Blue Grass Boys, Lester Flatt, Emmylou Harris, Paul McCartney, the Osborne Brothers, Dolly Parton, Ricky Skaggs, Marty Stuart, John Hartford and a once-in-a-lifetime Blue Grass Boys reunion featuring Del McCoury, Chubby Wise and Bill Keith. The film features archival footage and rare 1990s performances from Monroe's final years including many of the greatest songs from his six decades of recording.
At the Ryman is a 1992 live album by Emmylou Harris and her then-newly formed acoustic backing band, The Nash Ramblers, recorded at the Ryman Auditorium, most famously known as the onetime home of the Grand Ole Opry. This video includes interviews with the artists and live performances from the album.
An intimate portrait of the acclaimed North Carolina band The Avett Brothers, charting their decade-and-a- half rise, while chronicling their present-day collaboration with famed producer Rick Rubin on the multi-Grammy-nominated album “True Sadness.”
Fronted by one of the most accomplished banjo players of his time, Bela Fleck and the Flecktones are captured live in concert on Live at the Quick. The versatile band performs just over a dozen songs including such radically different compositions as "Amazing Grace," "Big Country," "Hoedown," and the prelude from a Bach violin concerto.
Longtime fans of bluegrass music and those only recently discovering it will appreciate this documentary on the genre, which was born of a combination of African and Celtic sounds and is the base of American country music. This film traces the musical form from its Appalachian roots to the present. The rise, fall, and consistent revival of bluegrass chronicled through oral history and visual record, resulting in a priceless film that even casual fans are sure to enjoy.
You Gave Me A Song offers an intimate portrait of old-time music pioneer Alice Gerrard and her remarkable, unpredictable journey creating and preserving traditional music. The film follows eighty-four year old Gerrard over several years, weaving together verité footage of living room rehearsals, recording sessions, songwriting, archival work, and performances with photos and rare field recordings. Much of the film is told in Alice’s voice and via interviews with musical collaborators and family members who share the story of Alice and others chasing that high lonesome sound.
Filmed on location in seven different states during 1980-1981, America’s most loved and original music genre is the subject of “That’s Bluegrass”. This care-free, fast-moving documentary lovingly examines our home-grown musical heritage from the simple front porch fiddler to famous Nashville recording stars, listening in as accomplished amateurs do some “pickin and grinning” at outdoor festivals and play songs handed down from generation to generation.
Jerry Garcia, legendary lead guitarist for the Grateful Dead and David Grisman, virtuoso mandolinist and founder of "Dawg" music… Now, for the first time ever, the musical matrimony and extraordinary friendship of Garcia and Grisman is traced in the award-winning documentary Grateful Dawg.
Fifty years later, and he's still rattlin' the Devil's cage. Charlie Louvin can walk through a crowded mall and not attract attention. But it shouldn't be that way; the humble 83-year-old musician in the cowboy hat and jeans is a true American hero. To start, 50 years ago he and his brother recorded "Satan is Real," an album that shook up the music business. And the life he lived thereafter was pretty radical, too, from his military service to his country to his 61-year marriage to his induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame and Grand Ole Opry. On Friday, December 3, 2010 at the fooBAR in Nashville, we caught Charlie Louvin on stage, making music for his fans, celebrating the anniversary of that famous album. And we filmed the night for history's sake. This is the tribute he so richly deserves.
Fellow musicians talk about the career and impact of Kentucky native J.D. Crowe, one of bluegrass music's most accomplished and influential performers and bandleaders. Crowe was instrumental in the careers of Ricky Skaggs, Tony Rice, Keith Whitley and Jerry Douglas and was voted into the International Bluegrass Music Museum Hall of Fame in his own right in 2003.
The Stanley sound is true old-time, mountain style bluegrass music. This film tells Ralph's story through interviews with Ralph, fellow musicians, and those who know Ralph best. Rank Stranger, White Dove, Pretty Polly, Man of Constant Sorrow, and over twenty other songs help tell the story. Ralph performs with Dwight Yoakam, Patty Loveless, Junior Brown, Larry Sparks, George Shuffler, Ricky Skaggs, and members of the Clinch Mountain Boys.