Country Music: New Burns documentary coming this fall

I’ve been a big fan of American filmmaker Ken Burns going all the way back to his 1990 award-winning PBS documentary “The Civil War,” which made him a household name, and his multi-part series on “Baseball” (1994) and “Jazz” (2001) were must-see TV in my home. Thus, I was excited to learn recently that the documentarian’s latest project, “Country Music,” is coming this fall to PBS. It will chronicle the history of a uniquely American art form, “rising from the experiences of remarkable people in distinctive regions of our nation,” by asking “What is country music?” and “Where did it come from?”

In following the evolution of country music from its 20th century origins to its present – from hillbilly and bluegrass to westerrn swing and rockabilly – viewers will learn how country music has emerged as America’s music.

The multi-episode, 16-hour journey “Country Music” series, which has been six years in the making, includes biographies covering a who’s who of country: Jimmie Rogers, Bob Wills, Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, Charley Pride, Merle Haggard and Emmylou Harris. From southern Appalachia’s songs of struggle, heartbreak and faith to the rollicking swing of Texas to Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry, “Country Music” tells “unforgettable stories of the hardships and joys shared by everyday people,” according to the documentary’s website. More than 100 interviews were conducted for this documentary project with prominent country songwriters and musicians, including Vince Gill, Roseanne Cash, Kris Kristofferson and Reba McEntire.

Singer/songwriter and music historian Marty Stuart plays a prominent role as one of the principal commentators in “Country Music.” In one segment about the Grand Ole Opry, Stuart reflects on its role and importance as the mother church of country music. “All of his children had come to the mother church of country music. It was almost like a badge of honor that you had to bring your culture with you to the table. That’s why Bob Wills and his guys brought us western music. That’s why Hank Williams brought the south with him from Honky Tonks. Johnny Cash brought the black land dirt of Arkansas. Bill Monroe brought music out of Kentucky, bluegrass music. Willie Nelson brought his poetry from Texas. Patsy Cline brought her heartache from Virginia. I mean it was the most wonderful parade of sons and daughters of America that brought their hearts and their souls and their experiences, and it gave us a great era in country music.”

Directed and produced by Burns, “Country Music” is written and produced by Dayton Duncan; and produced by Emmy Award winner Julie Duffey, who has created some of Burns’ most-acclaimed and most-watched PBS documentaries, including “The Civil War,” “Lewis & Clark: The Journey of the Corps of Discovery,” and “The National Parks: America’s Best Idea.”

According to Burns, “All the while, we will note constant tug of war between the desire to make country music as mainstream as possible and the periodic reflexes to bring it back to its roots.”

Hearing "I'll Still Love You" sung in a very unusual way

Elvis Costello wrote "I'll Still Love You" in 10 minutes.

Johnny Cash: Forever Words, an upcoming compilation of various all-star artists performing songs based upon the unrecorded poetry, lyrics and letters of the late Johnny Cash that's due out April 6, includes a lovely and elaborately orchestrated piano ballad featuring Cash's poem, "I'll Still Love You," performed by Elvis Costello. 

More than a dozen different country, blues, gospel, rock and R&B artists, including Willie Nelson, Roseanne Cash, Kris Kristofferson, Alison Krauss, T Bone Burnett, and the late Chris Cornell from Soundgarden, contributed to Johnny Cash: Forever Words, which was produced by Cash's son, John Carter Cash. Thanks to its recent sneak preview, Costello's composition is already drawing lots of praise from music critics for its non-Johnny Cash-like approach.

Although Cash (who died in 2003) was known throughout much of his legendary career as a country artist, Costello's composition for Johnny Cash: Forever Words shouldn't necessarily be labeled a country song despite the songsmith's appreciation toward country music. Rather, think of it as a mature pop tune about extending love into the afterlife which "brings to mind the likes of Harry Nilsson and Paul McCartney with, thanks to its jazz chording and crooner inflections, a touch of Frank Sinatra," writes Spin music critic Winston Cook-Wilson. 

Another critic suggests that Costello's contribution is "a breathtaking ballad with dramatic strings and a gorgeous sense of melody, sung with a vulnerability that suits the lyrics as Cash poetically reflects on mortality."

"I'll Still Love You" reminds me very much of Costello's original song "You Shouldn't Look At Me This Way" from last year, which he penned for the motion picture Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool.

In a video interview that accompanied the release of "I'll Still Love You," Costello muses about how everything fell into place. "The folio of lyrics was before me on the kitchen table, and there was one lyric that was thought to be one that might suit me," he recalls. "And then I was glancing through the folio and that particular lyric was on the page, and the next thing I could hear it in a very unusual way."

As Costello explains, he didn't hear Cash's musical sensibility in the poem. Instead, he says, "I knew right away it wasn't meant to be played. ... You could hear his musical voice on many of the lyrics on the page but not this one; not me anyway. I heard something completely different."

In this case, according to Costello, he went downstairs to his upright piano and "pretty much wrote what you hear in 10 minutes," in putting the Man in Black's poem to music.

One of these mornings

I'm going rise up flying

One of these mornings

I'll sail away

Beyond the blue

I've gotta promise

There's a world ahead

I want you to know that when I come

I'll still love you

I won't be a stranger

When I get to heaven

'Cause you gave me heaven

Right here on earth

If I get rewarded

With an ancient heart of gold

and for what it's worth

I'll still love you

One of these mornings

When my trouble's over

One of these mornings

When all my suffering is through

I'll go out singing

It'll be a day to sing about

And I'll guarantee for eternity

I'll still love you

I'll still love you

I'll still love you

I'll still love you.

Screenshot photograph of Elvis Costello and "I'll Still Love You" video courtesy of YouTube.com.

Just sing, little darling, sing with me

The song "Emmylou" is a tribute to country musicians past and present ~ Emmylou Harris, Gram Parsons, June Carter and Johnny Cash ~ sung by the Swedish folk duo First Aid Kit. It is just one of many highlights of this young group's recently-released second album, The Lion's Roar. 

The stirring harmonies are truly remarkable and the beautiful-but-woodsy songwriting sensibility of sisters Johanna (b. 1990) and Klara (b. 1993) Söderberg is pure delight.  "Emmylou" is an homage to the lone living survivor, Emmylou Harris, the namesake of the song's title.

"Emmylou" has been described as being about the power of singing with someone you love. The song's poignant chorus speaks lyrically:

"I'll be your Emmylou and I'll be your June,
And you'll be my Gram and my Johnny, too.
No, I'm not asking much of you,
Just sing, little darling, sing with me."

"Emmylou" is emotionally affecting and it's bound to bring a tear to fans of all music genres ~ not just country music. It is pure Americana.