hbalzac

This gritty, hard-hitting rockumentary sheds light on a musical genre that generally gets short shrift---Yacht Rock. These actors, all dead-ringers for the music legends they portray, bring these misunderstood troubadors to life, and bring us a rare gift---the opportunity to see the story behind the beloved hits, and to relive those moments EXACTLY AS THEY HAPPENED. The profile of John Oates of the hit-making duo Hall and Oates was particularly revealing and provocative. And who can see the tragedy of Jim Messina, cast aside by superstardom-bound Kenny Loggins, living on the mean streets of Marina Del Rey and not shed a single, reflective tear? I'm a man, and all-man, but I'm not ashamed to say I wept like a small child. Koko would have given this a knowing nod of approval, had he not died in 1978. Only because there's no eleven yet, ten of ten.

This is a fine portrait of Texas songwriter Billie Joe Shaver, a man who has lived a hard life and seems to have made peace with the various human tragedies that befell him. (He lost his son to a drug OD, and his wife to cancer.)

The 56-minute running time left me wanting more.

I'd have liked more live footage and maybe some archival information, but this hour-long documentary lets Billy Joe tell it himself from his heart.

Includes live performances of "Georgia On A Fast Train" and "I'm Just An Old Chunk Of Coal".

Highly, highly recommended.