Little Orphan C4's Top 3 Music Documentaries

(in no particular order)

1. Looking For A Thrill: An Anthology of Inspiration (2005) dir. Braden King--This documentary was released in honor of Thrill Jockey's 10th anniversary. It's basically a collection of over 100 interviews with some of the greats, in which they describe their own moments of musical inspiration. Highlights include interviews with Ian MacKaye (Minor Threat, Fugazi), Mike Watt (Minutemen, fIREHOSE, Banyan, etc), Steve Albini (Rapeman, Shellac, Big Black, etc), Bjork, and Thurston Moore (who actually got to see Suicide @ CBGB's in '74--not many people can boast about that.) View the trailer:




2. The Last Waltz (1978) dir. Martin Scorsese--This documentary of The Band's last show includes performances by Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Neil Young, Muddy Waters, Van Morrisson, and more. Highlights include Joni Mitchell with The Band, performing Coyote, and the superstar-studded finale:




3. Gimme Shelter (1970) dir. Albert Maysles, David Maysles, Charlotte Zwerin--It was a toss up between this flick & the Rolling Stones' Rock 'n' Roll Circus (1968), but I could probably write for days about Rock 'n' Roll Circus (for reasons such as this performance by The Who), so in the interest of space & time, Gimme Shelter wins. The film chronicles the entire story of the free 1969 Rolling Stones concert that took place at San Francisco's Altamont Speedway and was policed by the Hell's Angels. What could've been a totally rad idea resulted in the death of (at least) 2 (allegedly) innocent fans, and is marked as the concert that "ended the 60's". View the trailer:



I was sorry to leave out: The Devil and Daniel Johnston, and Stop Making Sense.