Echo in the Canyon

I was excited to watch this as the subject is near and dear to my heart, but I was very disappointed... I thought it was going to be all about Laurel Canyon and the legendary music / musicians and it ended up being 50% Jakob Dylan soundtrack promotion. I wanted more from Tom Petty's last interview and I wanted more from a rare glimpse at Brian Wilson .... i wanted way more in regard to archival footage and photos that exist... I did not need to see Bob Dylan's son in every scene of a movie that has nothing to do with him. Not to mention all of the artists that were there that they didn't even mention like Joni Mitchell and The Doors. Well done otherwise, star power was amazing, cinematography was amazing I'd give it a 7/10 although it could have been a 10/10. I wanted to be immersed in the stories and music of that time and instead they kept pulling the viewer into crappy Jakob Dylan rehearsals and cover band concert footage so we only ended up skimming the surface on a subject that has a lot lot lot more to offer which I felt was a shame.

This is a story of what happened in Laurel Canyon in the 60's and it is a must for any lovers of the music coming out of the west coast that fits in well with the documentary about the Wrecking Crew. But in order to hear the amazing stories about the cross pollination, you have to put up with Jakob Dylan, who not only seems to have no chemistry with the people he is interviewing, to the point where you get the idea that the questions were coming from offscreen, but seems to think we need to hear his take on the songs. I thought it was amazingly self indulgent. I don't know if this was done because the producers couldn't get the original songs, did not have enough original interview material or if Jakob thinks he is better than them, but I'm not interested in his music making process. I want the stories not recreations.

If I hadn't read so many rave reviews I might not have been disappointed. But I did, and I was. The only person who shoud be unabashedly in love with this movie is John Hall.

Put it this way. If you're the sort of person who believes older is always better and the sequel never equals the original, Echo In The Canyon will not change your mind.

The celebrity cast speaks for itself. There is the heartbreaking charm of Tom Petty and suprising late in life wisdom from David Crosby. But the film seems to be about a group of young performers trying to capture what it was like, based in part on the movie Model Shop. Seriously. It could be worse; someday people will study City Of Industry or Miracle Mile as realistic documents of what L.A. was like.

There are brief snippets of vintage performances and some are thrilling. Like Buffalo Springfield doing a seque from For What It's Worth to Mr. Soul. But the movie works it's way toward a tribute concert and unfortunately, none of the rehearsals or performances can match, let alone improve on, the originals. And that makes the whole thing kind of melancholy.

Greetings again from the darkness. "Go Where You Wanna Go", a catchy pop song by The Mamas and the Papas, always seemed a quintessential 1960's song, but now, thanks to an insightful interview with singer Michelle Phillips in this new documentary, it's a reminder that even the era's free love carried a price. Director Andrew Slater, the former President of Capital Records, combines the nostalgia associated with the California Sound with the contemporary staying power of the songs and the musicians.

Jakob Dylan of The Wallflowers (and Bob's son) is really the face of the film. Not only does he conduct most of the (many) interviews, he's also the driving force behind the 2015 concert at the Orpheum Theatre celebrating the 50th anniversary of The Byrds debut album ... an album we are told kicked off the fusion of folk and rock. Dylan's first interview is with the legendary Tom Petty (in one of his final interviews before suddenly passing away in 2017). The two are sitting in a guitar shop with Petty regaling the brilliance of a Rickenback, and how the music of 1965-67 influenced him as a songwriter and musician.

An aerial view of Laurel Canyon accompanies its description as the antithesis of the plastic TV world of the 1960's. It was an area that attracted bohemians - musicians, artists, and actors - and collaboration and community were the calling. Jackson Browne and Tom Petty both mention "cross-pollination" ... the "borrowing" of ideas from each other, as it's contrasted with outright theft. The concert at the Orpheum acts a bit as a framing device, and Jakob Dylan takes the lead and performs with other modern day acts such as Regina Spektor, Beck, Jade, Fiona Apple, Cat Power and Norah Jones. We cut to modern versions of the 60's classics after an interview with the original artist or clip of the original band is played. It's a way to connect the dots and show how the music still stands today.

Those interviewed include: Jackson Browne, music producer Lou Adler, David Crosby, Roger McGuinn, Michelle Phillips, Eric Clapton, Graham Nash, Stephen Stills, John Sebastian, and Ringo Starr. Each of these musical luminaries serves up a story or two, and takes a stab at defining the era and its influence. Roger McGuinn tells us how The Beatles influenced The Byrds, how The Beach Boys "Pet Sounds" influenced "Sgt Pepper", and how so many songs and bands are interlinked. Brian Wilson is compared to both Mozart and Bach, and Eric Clapton admits to taking a bit from Buffalo Springfield.

We see and hear Brian in the studio with Jakob, as well as Clapton riffing with Stills. It's fascinating to listen as Brian explains 4 different local studios were used to cut "Good Vibrations" because of the various sounds needed. A bit of artistic lunacy? Perhaps. But it makes for a great tale. It's a bit odd to have clips of Jacques Demy's MODEL SHOP, starring Gary Lockwood and Anouk Aimee, interspersed throughout, but Dylan explains how the film inspired the concert and film. Lastly, we can't help but chuckle since even Jakob couldn't coax his notoriously reclusive father into providing even a touch of recollection for the project. "Expecting to Fly" is offered as the end of the era.

Sorry but it seems like there wasn't enough good footage available so they decided to give Jakob Dylan the starring role, even though he wasn't born until 1969. This was a very disappointing movie, as I thought it would have way more story telling about what Laurel Canyon must have been like in the 60's. There was some of that, but generally speaking, I feel like I was sold a bill of goods here...