''Man in the Sand'' is a 1999 documentary that functions as both a biography of

American folk ''American Folk'' is a 2017 American Drama (film and television), drama film written and directed by David Heinz. The film stars Joe Purdy, Amber Rubarth, Krisha Fairchild, David Fine, Bruce Beatty and Elizabeth Dennehy. The film was released on J ...

singer-songwriter

Woody Guthrie Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer-songwriter, one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American socialism and anti-fascism. He has inspire ...

and a chronicle of the creation of the

Billy Bragg Stephen William Bragg (born 20 December 1957) is an English singer-songwriter and left-wing activist. His music blends elements of folk music, punk rock and protest songs, with lyrics that mostly span political or romantic themes. His music i ...

Wilco Wilco is an American alternative rock band based in Chicago, Illinois. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo following singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup changed frequently d ...

''Mermaid Avenue'' albums ('' Vol. I'' (1998), '' Vol. II'' (2000), and '' Vol. III'' (2012)), which feature songs consisting of previously-unheard

lyrics set to newly-created music.

Synopsis

In 1995,

Nora Guthrie Nora Lee Guthrie (born January 2, 1950) is the daughter of American folk musician and singer-songwriter Woody Guthrie and his second wife Marjorie Mazia Guthrie, sister of singer-songwriter Arlo Guthrie, and granddaughter of renowned Yiddish po ...

asked English singer-songwriter

to create music to accompany lyrics written by her father,

, decades earlier, and record an album. Bragg invited American band

to back him on the recordings, and

Jeff Tweedy Jeffrey Scot Tweedy (born August 25, 1967) is an American musician, songwriter, author, and record producer best known as the singer and guitarist of the band Wilco. Tweedy, originally from Belleville, Illinois, started his music career in hi ...

and

Jay Bennett Jay Walter Bennett (November 15, 1963 – May 24, 2009) was an American multi-instrumentalist, engineer, producer, and singer-songwriter, best known as a member of the band Wilco from 1994 to 2001. Biography Early life and work with Wilco Jay ...

from the band wrote music for additional Guthrie lyrics. Throughout the film, Nora narrates the story of her father's life, while Bragg is seen traveling to various locations relevant to Woody Guthrie's life, such as

Okemah, Oklahoma Okemah ( or ) is the largest city in and the county seat of Okfuskee County, Oklahoma, United States. It is the birthplace of folk music legend Woody Guthrie. Thlopthlocco Tribal Town, a federally recognized Muscogee Indian tribe, is headquartered ...

(his hometown),

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(where he met his first wife), and New York City (where he made his home after leaving California). Much time is also spent at the recording sessions with Bragg and Wilco in Chicago (December 1997) and Dublin (January 1998), and with Bragg and

Natalie Merchant Natalie Anne Merchant (born October 26, 1963) is an American alternative rock singer-songwriter. She joined the band 10,000 Maniacs in 1981 and was lead vocalist and primary lyricist for the group. She remained with the group for their first se ...

in Boston (March 1998), that produced most of the tracks for all three albums.

Corey Harris Corey Harris (born February 21, 1969, in Denver, Colorado, United States) is an American blues and reggae musician, currently residing in Charlottesville, Virginia. Along with Keb' Mo' and Alvin Youngblood Hart, he raised the flag of acoustic ...

also participated in the recording.

Music

The following songs are featured in the film (in order of appearance): * "Way Over Yonder in the Minor Key" – Words:

(1946); Music:

(1997) * "California Stars" – Words: Guthrie; Music:

(1997) * "

This Land Is Your Land "This Land Is Your Land" is one of the United States' most famous folk songs. Its lyrics were written by American folk singer Woody Guthrie in 1940 in critical response to Irving Berlin's "God Bless America", with melody based on a Carter Fam ...

" – Words & Music: Guthrie * " Pastures of Plenty" – Words & Music: Guthrie * " I Ain't Got No Home" – Words & Music: Guthrie * "Here Comes the Train" – Words & Music:

(1998) * "

Ingrid Bergman Ingrid Bergman (29 August 191529 August 1982) was a Swedish actress who starred in a variety of European and American films, television movies, and plays.Obituary '' Variety'', 1 September 1982. With a career spanning five decades, she is ofte ...

" – Words: Guthrie (1950); Music: Bragg (1996) * "

Ideology An ideology is a set of beliefs or philosophies attributed to a person or group of persons, especially those held for reasons that are not purely epistemic, in which "practical elements are as prominent as theoretical ones." Formerly applied pri ...

" – Words & Music: Bragg (1986) * " Between the Wars" – Words & Music: Bragg (1985) * "She Came Along to Me" – Words: Guthrie (1942); Music: Bragg/Tweedy/Bennett (1998) * "Go Down to the Water" – Words: Guthrie (1945); Music: Bragg (1997) * "Feed of Man" – Words: Guthrie; Music: Tweedy (1998) * "Birds and Ships" – Words: Guthrie; Music: Bragg (1997) * "Birds and Ships" – Words: Guthrie; Music: Tweedy (1997) * "All You Fascists" – Words: Guthrie (1942); Music: Bragg (1997) * "When the Roses Bloom Again" – Words:

Will D. Cobb William Denight Cobb (July 5, 1876 – January 20, 1930) was an American lyricist and composer. He and a partner, Ren Shields, produced several popular musicals and musical comedies in the early 20th century. Cobb also had a long-run collaborati ...

(1901); Music: Tweedy * "The Unwelcome Guest" – Words: Guthrie (1940); Music: Bragg (1996) * "I Was Born" – Words: Guthrie (1950); Music: Bragg (1996) * "At My Window Sad and Lonely" – Words: Guthrie (1939); Music: Tweedy (1997) * "Another Man's Done Gone" – Words: Guthrie; Music: Bragg (1998) * "Hoodoo Voodoo" – Words: Guthrie; Music:

/Bragg/Harris The VHS release of the film came with a CD titled Mermaid Avenue' Demo's'', which consisted of five of Bragg's demo recordings for the project (these recordings were also included on the DVD release of the film): #"Birds and Ships" #"She Came Along to Me" #"I Guess I Planted" #"Eisler on the Go" #"The Unwelcome Guest" (All songs: words by Guthrie & music by Bragg)

External links

*
Official Website

www.woodyguthrie.org/

Documentary films about music and musicians Rockumentaries Woody Guthrie 1999 films Wilco Billy Bragg 1990s English-language films {{music-documentary-film-stub

Synopsis

Music

See also

External links