Source Material: Music Docs

When I first saw Oliver Stone’s 1991 psychedelic and dramatic whirlwind as a teen, “The Doors” — and the way Val Kilmer truly transcended into Jim Morrison’s spirit (and fully adopted his body and voice) — the relationship between true stories in music history and filmmaking seemed like an entirely new planet to me. I was instantly hooked! In fact, the film was what inspired me to go to film school. Seeing the way Morrison was such an artist, and how he started out in film school — where he met Ray Manzarek (keyboardist and early visionary for The Doors) — how if it wasn’t for film school, The Doors may have never happened. I felt an instant bond to the film. When we watch music films, it gives us a deeper, personal connection to the music and artist we love so deeply. It’s fascinating how much has to happen before it reaches our ears.

Here are eight of my favorite music documentaries to queue up this week and where to watch them:

1. “Jazz On A Summer’s Day” (1959) – directed by Bert Stern. Available to rent on YouTube.

In 1958, photographer Bert Stern (most recognizable for taking the last photos of Marilyn Monroe, known as “The Last Sitting” ) was inspired by a friend to “take some pictures” at the Newport Jazz Festival. It turned out to be his first and only motion picture film. With stunning candid cinematography of the hippest scenes imaginable, the film captures intimate documentation of the greatest legends in Jazz: Louis Armstrong, Anita O’Day, Thelonious Monk, Chico Hamilton (to name a few). You’ll feel like a fly on a wall to one of the most stylish eras in music history.

2. “Dig!” (2004) Directed by Ondi Timoner. Available on Amazon Prime.

If you’re looking for a story stranger than fiction, here you go. If you want to relive (or perhaps wish you could have lived) in the early ’90s underground rock scene in Portland, Oregon, look no further. The queen of documentary filmmaking, Ondi Timoner, shot the radical relationship between the bands The Dandy Warhols and Brian Jonestown Massacre. It is shot over a period of seven years and culled from 1,500 hours of footage. (Interloper Films)

3. “Funky Monks” (1991) Directed by Gavin Bowden. Watch on YouTube.

What feels like a true home video, in all its VHS grime, the film observes what it was like to be The Red Hot Chili Peppers during the recording of its ’91 Warner Bros. debut album, “Blood Sugar Sex Magik” — produced by Rick Ruben at The Mansion. Both shot in black and white and in color, the film is a lovely, filterless portal into the band’s brotherhood and creative process.

4. “1991: The Year Punk Broke” (1993) Directed by Dave Markey. Watch on YouTube.

The film is worth watching for the opening credits alone. Filmmaker Dave Markey captures Sonic Youth, Nirvana (who are literally babies in this), Dinosaur JR., The Ramones, Gumball and Babes in Toyland on their first European Tour in ’91. They’re really all just a bunch of kids at recess — it’s a trip to see the artistry, talent and poetry that leaks from these musicians before anyone even knew who they were. A tip of the hat to the mix between experimental cinema and concert videography.

“Meet Me in the Bathroom” film poster. Credit: Lizzy Goodman

5. “Meet Me in the Bathroom” (2022) Directed by Will Lovelace and David Southern. Available on Amazon Prime.

This was one of my favorite films of 2022. Right when I thought every great underground music era in NYC had been publicized and glamorized through film and photography, “Meet Me in The Bathroom” covers life post-9/11 in Brooklyn’s underground art and music culture that birthed The Strokes, LCD Soundsystem and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Based on the book by the same name by Lizzie Goodman.

6. “The Public Image is Rotten” (2018) Directed by Tabbert Fiiller Available on Amazon Prime.

An intimate narrative and conversation with the British vocalist John Lydon, aka Johnny Rotten. The roller coaster of a life leading the Sex Pistols, losing his dear friend Syd Vicious, starting Public Image LTD, all the rotating bass players (including Flea!) and how focused and extremely affected he is still is as an artist.

7. “Nothing Compares” (2022) Directed by Kathryn Ferguson. Watch on Showtime.

Sinead O’Connor was one of the first real radical women who saw fame through her undeniable talent, fast. More devastatingly, she got ripped apart so hard by the media for speaking her voice and political opinions without a filter. The film depicts the rise and fall of her career and her mental health in a seriously honest portrait that everyone should watch without judgement.

This article appears in Source Weekly February 23, 2023.