| THE
LOUIE REPORT
July
2004
first
posted on July 7, 2004, with minor tweaks on August 26th
(all rights reserved)
The
latest LOUIE news, hot off the griddle!
It's
been awhile since the last LOUIE REPORT was written.
The LOUIE REPORT is certainly not your standard blog.
Blogs tend to be written quickly with lots of impromptu,
off-the-cuff commentary. The LOUIE REPORT is an ongoing
journal that came to be before anyone ever intended
a "blog." Each sentence is concisely constructed,
spell-checked, agonized, re-worded, and processed before
it ever hits the internet airwaves. Even so, I'm sure
this latest news report probably has some odd typos
I undoubtedly missed. It ain't perfect, but even imperfection
has its own beauty. Enjoy it for what it is, or write
up your own encyclopedic analysis!
The
last LOUIE REPORT was written in August, right before
the 1,000 Guitars Fest of Tacoma, Washington.
Since that event, things have been rather hectic on
so many different levels for the producers of the LOUIE
LOUIE project. We've been busy on various professional
assignments, we've had to deal with two major computer
hard drive breakdowns that lost a significant amount
of data, we've had to deal with certain less-than-ethical
clients that made life rather miserable, a web hosting
company that fell apart during a critical period, some
health issues, and a commitment to political activism
that didn't quite turn out as expected. We never wavered
in our commitment to complete the long-awaited documentary
on LOUIE LOUIE, but it has been a challenge to juggle
the various elements inside and outside the project.
There's
a lot to discuss, so let's jump into it, shall we...?
Here's what's on the platter...
STATE
OF THE FILM (RIGHT NOW)
1000 GUITARS, THE WAILERS, KENT
MORRILL, and JOHN KERRY(?)
THE LONG-AWAITED RICHARD BERRY
FLIP COMPILATION
ESSENTIAL LOUIE TRACKS
CIGARETTES & COFFEE SOUNDTRACK
LITTLE STEVEN AND HIS UNDERGROUND
GARAGE
TODD SNIDER & BALLAD OF THE
KINGSMEN
EUPHORIA'S ID- THE CD
AM I RIGHT? (dot) COM
THE COWBELL PROJECT
TABOO TUNES- THE BOOK
NERVOUS NORVUS
LOUIE LOUIE DAY
OTHER DOCUMENTARIES
STATE
OF THE FILM
The
past few years has been very productive for THE MEANING
OF LOUIE documentary as we move forward to complete
this film. They certainly haven't been without challenges,
but the journey nonetheless has been very interesting.
With my co-producer Jesse Block, we've forged ahead,
capturing interviews with a wide variety of musicians,
historians, archivists, organizers, and other people
with stories to share about this misunderstood melody.
We've even interviewed a couple of Grammy-award-winning
musicians.
 Carlos
Santana provided some fresh ideas about the origin of
LOUIE LOUIE, and the source for Latin music based on
the iconic beat.
Dave
Alvin talked about the greatness of Richard Berry, an
underrated giant in the Los Angeles music community.
In
August 2003, I attended the "1000 Guitars"
event in Tacoma, Washington, where I had a chance to
visit with some old friends, and meet some friendly
new faces in the Pacific Northwest.
At
the big Tacoma guitar fest, I finally had a chance to
meet with my friend Sam Carlson of the Regents, who's
been doing some amazing work with his encyclopedic
website covering the subject of Pacific Northwest
Bands.
Thanks
to the internet, I was able to track down Bob Tibbits.
Bob invented the Louie Louie Wine Cooler
during the 1980s, which never quite found the proper
market. Finding a bottle of this obscure wine cooler
in 2004 is almost like finding a can of "Billy
Beer." It's damned near impossible to find, and
you certainly don't want to drink the contents of this
bottle. It turns out that Bob lives in Washington, and
I was able to meet him at the guitar fest, where he
provided a superb history of his involvement with this
product
 Some
of the other interviews I conducted at the event were
follow-ups with old friends that provided me with some
great interviews over the years. Both Barry Curtis of
the Kingsmen and George Barner shared some great updates
on their LOUIE involvement in 2004.
John
Grant Hill, a multi-talented singer, songwriter, entrepreneur,
and poet, continues to blow my mind with his range of
interests. During the early 1960's, John was a co-owner
of Topaz Records, which released Little Bill's rendition
of LOUIE LOUIE. While some folks may continue to debate
whether Little Bill's version was the earliest Northwest
recording of LOUIE LOUIE, there's no denying that this
particular version was one of the most important versions
of the songs in the Pacific Northwest. John also had
a fairly interesting solo recording career of his own,
and I'm glad that companies like Ace Records are releasing
some of his rare singles on the "NORTHWEST
BATTLE OF THE BANDS" compilations.
One
of the big highlights of my trek was an official induction
into the LOUIE
LOUIE YACHT CLUB of Bainbridge Island, which is
called "the world's fastest growing virtual yacht
club." With a warm initiation to the club provided
by Captain Jerry Childs, I was able to spend a nice
afternoon onboard one of the LOUIE yachts, cruising
the Puget Sound. My thanks again to this fine group
for making me feel so welcome.
http://groups.msn.com/LouieLouieYachtClub/
 While
I was up in the Northwest, I made a point of visiting
Jack Ely in Oregon. Jack was the original vocalist for
the Kingsmen when they recorded LOUIE LOUIE, and is
semi-retired from the music business. Jack is currently
raising horses, living a wonderful life with his lovely
wife and teenage daughter. Every time I get a chance
to visit with Jack, he's always provided me with excellent
new information for my documentary, and this last trek
was no exception. I had a lot of fun at his horse ranch,
and was even able to talk Jack into singing a version
of the song with one of his horses. I thought I'd share
a little snippet of this rendition, just for fun!
PLAY
THIS MOVIE CLIP!
A
big round of thanks should go out to my friend Mike
Hintze for sponsoring a big portion of my excursion
to the Northwest. Mike has created an extensive Louie
Louie website of his own, and holds the distinction
of being the father of the youngest musician to ever
record LOUIE LOUIE. Nicholas Hintze was 1 and a half
years when he recorded this rendition of LOUIE LOUIE.
If you would like hear this ultra-rare version, you
should check out Mike's website. With any luck, maybe
we'll hear a duet with his new brother Griffin.
http://mhintze.tripod.com/louielouie/default.htm
1000
GUITARS, THE WAILERS, KENT MORRILL, and JOHN KERRY(?)
 The
1000 Guitars celebration in Tacoma was quite an event
to behold! The purpose of this event was to assemble
a large group of musicians dedicated to break the world
record for the largest assortment of guitar players
ever assembled to play one song. Organized by the Fabulous
Wailers, and the Wailers Performing Arts Foundation,
this event used LOUIE LOUIE as the main song for this
ambitious musical celebration.
I
attended this event, and it was quite a festive moment
for Northwest musicians. Along with the Wailers, this
event included the Kingsmen, Paul Revere, George Barner,
Roger Fischer, members of the Ventures, the Regents,
Junior Cadillac, the Frantics, The Bag, and other groups
too numerous to mention. While the intended goal of
'1,000 guitars' wasn't exactly reached, the massive
sound of all the guitars provided some beautiful, maddening,
chaotic noise that was pure music for these LOUIE-biased
ears.
This
August, the 1000 Guitars celebration
aka THE LOUIEFEST is going to happen
again in Tacoma. This time, it will be a two day festival
on August 28th and 29th at the Tacoma Dome and it sounds
considerably more ambitious than the first one.
http://1000guitars.org/
In
December, Wailers vocalist/keyboard player Kent Morrill
underwent major surgery, and had a very close call.
After a surgical removal of his colon, he suffered two
heart attacks, and a clogged artery was discovered.
Kent survived some very serious trauma, and is still
with us by the grace of a higher power. We all want
to wish him the best of health as his life is forever
changed by what many of us consider a miracle.
TheFabulousWailers.com/
I
just found out about the album that presidential candidate
John Kerry recorded back in 1961. He played bass in
a high school band - The Electras. As I looked at the song
listing, I notice that track #5 is a Wailers song-
"Shanghaied," written by Rich Dangel and John
Greek. Regardless of you may think of his political
affiliations, there can be no denying he had good musical
taste in 1961!
KerryRocks.com
ElectrasRockAndRollBand.com
JohnKerryAndTheElectras.com
THE
LONG-AWAITED RICHARD BERRY FLIP COMPILATION
 For
many years, the original Richard Berry recordings on
Flip Records were long-out-of-print, and the only way
to hear these recordings was to purchase bootleg compilations
or pay the high collector prices for the original vinyl.
When Richard Berry wrote LOUIE LOUIE, Flip Records was
the company that released the original single in 1957.
Over the years, Flip Records allowed a few companies
a chance to repackage this rendition on multi-artist
compilations, but around the same time as the compact
disc format came into vogue, the folks at Flip Records
flatly refused to allow licensing of Richard's musical
masterpiece. When Rhino Records was denied an opportunity
to license the original version for their 1983 "Best
of LOUIE LOUIE" compilation, they hired Richard
Berry to re-record the song and made a rendition that
was so close to the original that the owners of Flip
threatened to sue Rhino Records.
During
the 1980s, a Swedish record label by the name of Earth
Angel put out an excellent LP compilation of Richard's
recordings on the Flip Records label. Richard actively
participated in this package, providing family photographs
and beautiful memories summarized by Jim Dawson with
some eloquent liner notes. While Richard received artist
royalties for his participation on this particular collection,
the musical masters for this release originated from
old vinyl singles.
In
the course of researching this massive universe of LOUIE
LOUIE, I've talked to a lot of people, and tried to
maintain contact with the people that own the material
I'd like to license. (Believe me, if this documentary
was about a song that was in the public domain, I would
have finished this project many years ago.) I had tried
in vain to interview the owners of the Flip Records
label, but I never had to chance to do so, as they refused
all requests for my documentary. When Max and Lilian
Feirtag died, I found absolutely no acknowledgement
of their passings in any music industry trade publications.
It took quite a bit of work to find any information
about their estate, yet I persisted in my quest to work
with the people that would inherit this great underrated
musical legacy.
One
connection that definitely worked in my favor was Ace
Records of London. Thanks to my friend Alec Palao, who
happens to work for Ace, I was able to direct this UK
label to the Flip Records estate, and the entire assets
of the fine catalog soon found a loving home. As luck
would have it, in the course of my Louie journeys, I
also made contact with legendary producer Gary S. Paxton,
who owns a prolific catalog of recordings that had never
been legitimately reissued on CD. When Gary started
his musical career, he was "Flip" of the musical
group "Skip and Flip" with "Skip"
Battin. As Gary Paxton and his business partner Kim
Fowley recorded Richard immediately after Richard left
Flip Records, this turned out to be a very interesting
set of coincidences. Like the Flip Records connection,
I was able to connect Ace Records to Gary "Flip"
Paxton.
One
could characterize this type of alliance as a"double
Flip" for Richard Berry's music.
"Have
Louie Will Travel" is a remarkable new release
from Ace Records that I am very proud to be associated
with. This new CD features every Richard Berry song
ever released by Flip Records, and all of the songs
that Richard Berry recorded with Gary Paxton and Kim
Fowley. I provided the liner notes for this CD, and
I'm happy to say that these songs have never sounded
better. Ace did a superb job of mastering these songs
direct from the original tape masters, and it's a major
improvement from the mediocre CD bootleg compilations
I've heard over the years.
I
hope a lot of folks get a chance to hear this new CD.
I recently established some alliances with CD Universe
and Amazon
that will provide me with some token royalties for every
sale that gets channeled through the LouieLouie.net
website. If you use this link to buy CDs, DVDs, or books
from these companies, you will be supporting this website,
which leads me to my next subject....
ESSENTIAL
LOUIE TRACKS
As
long as I’ve had this LOUIE LOUIE website, I’ve
had a lot of people write me asking me about how to
obtain certain recordings of LOUIE. Some folks want
to know my opinion of the “best LOUIE LOUIEs”
and want to know where they could order them. I’ve
created a new section titled “Essential
LOUIE Tracks” which should hopefully
answer both of those types of inquiries. With the alliance
links in place, you can now order lots of these diverse
recordings. The CD Universe interface also has a nice
search engine, allowing one to to search for specific
songs, as well as artists and album/CD titles.
By
the way, if you search for LOUIE LOUIE tracks at at
CD Universe, be sure to search for both "Louie
Louie" and "Louie, Louie" as you will
get two different results. That comma can really make
a difference when it comes to search engines.
COFFEE & CIGARETTES
SOUNDTRACK
 With
an internet site known for "all things LOUIE LOUIE,"
I often get the inside track on certain music products
that contain this song. I was very happy when the good
people at Milan Records contacted me a few months ago
to tell me about the soundtrack for the new Jim Jarmusch
film, "Coffee & Cigarettes."
This
soundtrack features not one version of LOUIE LOUIE,
but two quintessential versions of the song - Richard
Berry's original 1957 version, and Iggy Pop's jaw-dropping
reinterpretation of the song for his 1994 "American
Caesar" album. In addition to Richard Berry and
Iggy Pop, this soundtrack also features some excellent
music by Tom Waits, Funkadelic, The Skatalites, Modern
Jazz Quartet, and other great musicians.
How
could I not love this soundtrack? Richard Berry,
Iggy Pop, and Tom Waits are three guys that have infiltrated
my record collection on a deep level that few artists
could ever attain in the E.P. Universe. Jarmusch is
one of the few living filmmakers whose work I will usually
seek out immediately upon release. To quote a press
release, "COFFEE AND CIGARETTES is a classic 'Jim
Jarmusch' film comprising a comic series of short vignettes
with an all-star cast discussing topics diverse as caffeine
popsicles, Paris in the twenties, and the use of nicotine
as an insecticide - all the while sitting around sipping
coffee and smoking cigarettes. A founding figure of
the US independent film scene, Jim Jarmusch delivers
an absorbing and fascinating film that focus on the
obsessions, joys, and addictions of life! Filmed in
black and white, COFFEE AND CIGARETTES had its world
premiere to great acclaim at the Venice International
Film Festival and the Toronto International Film Festival."
I
saw this film, and I enjoyed it. While it's certainly
not Jarmusch's best movie, it has some interesting moments.
Followers of Marshall McLuhan's writings might point
out that a good movie may be defined not by its cohesive
storytelling, but the experience of actually watching
the movie.
OK,
so here's what you need to know - the starting credits
are accompanied by LOUIE LOUIE, and the end credits
are also accompanied by LOUIE LOUIE. It's a good movie,
and it's an even better soundtrack.
http://www.coffeeandcigarettesmovie.com/
http://www.milanrecords.com/
BUY
THIS CD FROM CD UNIVERSE RIGHT NOW!
LITTLE
STEVEN AND HIS UNDERGROUND GARAGE
 I
haven't met him in person yet, but as far as I'm concerned,
Little Steven, aka "Miami" Steve Van Zandt
of the E Band, aka "Silvio Dante" of the Sopranos
is my pal. Little Steven has been one of the most articulate
supporters for the cause of genuine garage rock. His
radio show, the Underground Garage, is truly a feast
for sore ears. Syndicated around the globe, this program
provides a superb introduction to real rock and roll
from the past, as well as worthy contenders of the present.
This ain't no traditional oldies program, and Little
Steven is certainly not your average disc jockey.
I
call Little Steven my pal because he recognizes the
importance of THE MEANING OF LOUIE, and he's acknowledged
my efforts in a very cool 2 hour show that celebrated
LOUIE LOUIE back in November (episode 84). His producer
Holly Cara-Price is an enthusiastic cyber-representative
that truly does her homework, and it's obvious that
all the folks attached to this show have put a lot of
passion into this show. Each show covers a particular
topic, be it LOUIE LOUIE, the Ramones, B-Movies, Film
Noir classics, Halloween, Frankie Barsalona, Groucho
Marx, or a region of the world that has been a hotbed
for great music.
If
none of your local radio stations are playing this show,
I would encourage you to do some petitioning. On the
other hand, if some of you folks are too darned lazy
to get off the easy chair to make this kind of call,
you can also hear this show via the web, assuming you've
got a solid broadband connection. Voices of America,
and Jimmy Buffett's Margarita are two international
sources for hearing streaming versions of the show.
If you have a program like Streamers
installed on your computer, you can actually set
it up your computer to work like a VCR to record streaming
audio shows as MP3 files. I haven't been able to get
the darned software to work yet, but soon, I'll spend
more time on this sucker.
The
BIG news is that Little Steven is hosting something
called the "International Underground Garage
Festival" on August 14 on Randall's Island
in New York City. Some of the bands confirmed to play
at this event are: Iggy Pop & The Stooges, The New
York Dolls, The Strokes, The Pretty Things, Bo Diddley,
The Raveonettes, The Mooney Suzuki, The Romantics, The
Electric Prunes, The Chesterfield Kings, The Fuzztones,
The Cynics, The Stems, The Chains, The Singles, The
Contrast, The Woggles, The Boss Martians, The High Dials,
The Forty-Fives, The Shazam, The Cocktail Slippers,
The Star Spangles, The Charms, and the Flaming Sideburns.
Can you say "WHOAA!?"
Anybody
feel like sponsoring a financially-challenged filmmaker
so he can afford to attend this thing? Airline tickets?
Some hotel accommodations? A case of blank videotapes
and a camera rental? An expense account at Acme Bar
and Grille so I can indulge in those delicious Cajun
catfish sandwiches that I thoroughly enjoyed the last
time I set foot in the Big Apple?
http://www.littlesteven.com/
TODD
SNIDER & BALLAD OF THE KINGSMEN
 Musician
Todd Snider recently wrote a catchy little song called
"The Ballad of the Kingsmen." This song is
part of his new CD titled "East
Nashville Skyline" which comes out on July
20th. Those in Nashville on that particular day will
be able to see him for free at a special in-store performance
at West End Tower Records.
The
song itself doesn't really sound anything at all like
LOUIE LOUIE, but it provides an interesting interpretation
of the song's history. The whole album is fairly entertaining
- catchy music and smart lyrics. Not only does Todd
write about the Kingsmen, but he also has some songs
about Judge Judy, Mike Tyson, Marilyn Manson, and Eminem.
It's on John
Prine's Oh Boy label, which is a great source for
music you probably won't hear on mainstream radio.
John
Prine, best known for an "Illegal Smile",
actually wrote a song that also had a LOUIE LOUIE reference.
If you're able to track down the "Lost Dogs And
Mixed Blessings" CD with the song "Lake Marie,"
you will hear a brief mention of this iconic melody.
I've always thought John Prine was one of the great
underrated American singer-songwriters, and I'm glad
to see that he's provided a home for other talented
musicians.
http://www.toddsnider.net/
http://www.toddsnider.com/
http://www.ohboy.com//
BUY
THIS CD FROM CD UNIVERSE RIGHT NOW!
EUPHORIA'S
ID - THE CD
 One
of the great versions of the song I recently received
came from Jay Snyder, who led Euphoria's Id during the
early 1960's. Euphoria's Id was a band from the New
England area, and Jay's put together a compilation of
archival recordings from his old group, titled "Mastering
The Art Of French Kissing." The version of LOUIE
LOUIE is one that's never been released prior to this
CD, and I for one am glad that this track was finally
unveiled to the public some 30 years later.
After
Euphoria Id, Jay led a pysch band known as Fate. Over
the years, he's had a rich musical career working with
such artists as Big Mama Thornton, the Hudson Brothers,
the Limeliters, and Hilton Valentine of the Animals.
Fans of the Doobie Brothers will want to check his site
to find out when his unreleased tapes of the band will
be released.
http://www.goldenretrieverrecords.com
AM
I RIGHT? (dot) COM
I
stumbled over a really funny musical site called amiright.com,
which has the catch phrase "Making fun of music.
One song at a time..."
This
website is a fun site to discover some inspired musical
parodies, strange band names, and one subject that's
dear to my heart - "misheard lyrics." Naturally,
LOUIE LOUIE is one of the songs mentioned at this site,
which also includes intentionally comedic rephrasings.
With a little bit of extra earwax clogging the passageways,
the phrase "Let's Give It To 'em, Right Now"
can be transformed into "Let's Grill a Tuna, Right
Now!"
By
all means, give this site a full test drive when you
get the chance!
http://www.amiright.com/
THE
COWBELL PROJECT
 Another
goofy music site I discovered was a website known as
"The Cowbell Project." This particular site
documents all known recordings that utilizes a cowbell.
http://www.geekspeakweekly.com/cowbell/
This
website claims that the Kingsmen's version of LOUIE
LOUIE uses a cowbell. Now I didn't hear any damned cowbell
in the recording, so I asked some experts about this,
including Jack Ely, original vocalist for the Kingsmen,
who confirmed that there was no cowbell used in the
recording of the song. My friend Theo deGrood of the
Netherlands provided the most interesting response:
Definitely
NO cowbells on The Kingsmen's original.
But
thanks for this URL: these are the sites I like! This
reminds me of a guy I knew long ago who only bought
LPs with a red or reddish back. He actually had more
than a thousand albums like that, his collection was
arranged neatly from light pink to dark blood red.
Hardly any of them were ever played, but what a collection!
So
alas, the Kingsmen will have to be removed from the
cowbell list. But it's definitely a very obvious instrument
to use in this song. So I gave my collection a quick
scan and found these versions we could submit as a
worthy replacement:
Africa
- Beau Brummels '66 - Eddie Cano - The Kids - The
Lat-Teens - Roberto El Gato - Mongo Santamaria - Simba
- Barry White (or is that a temple block?) as well
as ALL the marching band versions!
Always
looking for another all-time low in doing useless
things, Theo
TABOO
TUNES - THE BOOK
 Northwest
author Peter Blecha just finished his new book entitled
"Taboo Tunes: A History of Banned Bands and Censored
Songs." As America comes to terms with Janet Jackson's
infamous wardrobe malfunction and the F.C.C.'s crackdown
on "indecency," the subject of censorship
is again a hot topic in the U.S.A.
Peter
has certainly spent some time on the subject of music
censorship. He's performed in various punk/garage bands,
worked in used record stores, spent some extensive airtime
as a radio DJ, wrote a long-running column for The Rocket
magazine, and notably was the original senior curator
at the Experience Music Project of Seattle. He served
as a board member for JAMPAC (Joint Artists & Music
Promotions Political Action Committee), and has written
a lot of liner notes. This new book is published by
Backbeat Books, and should be a fine addition to the
library of any serious musicologist.
BUY
THE BOOK AT AMAZON
NERVOUS
NORVUS
 Does
the little phrase "Pump the fluid in me LOUIE"
qualify for a relevant notice in the Louie Report, even
though there's absolutely no connection to Richard Berry's
most famous melody? In the case of the 1956 hit "Transfusion"
by Nervous Norvus, aka Jimmy Drake, I'll say absolutely!
Jimmy Drake was a true poet in the universe of rock
and roll novelty songs, and I'm very happy to report
that my friend Phil Milstein compiled the most comprehensive
collection of his recordings. Norton Records recently
this "Stone Age Woo," a massive compilation
that includes commercial releases, private pressings,
unreleased demos, and a fat booklet filled with facts,
photos, and amazing tidbits about this guy.
Who
could forget such lyrics as....?
"Tooling
down the highway doing seventy-nine, I'm a twin pipe
papa and I'm feelin' fine. Hey man dig that was that
a red stop sign. Transfusion transfusion, I'm just
a solid mess of contusions. Never never never gonna
speed again - Slip the blood to me Bud!"
ORDER
THE CD TODAY
LOUIE
LOUIE DAY
Last
April 11th, which was also Easter this year, many of
us celebrated Richard Berry's birthday. Over at the
Yahoo group known as the LOUIE LOUIE PARTY, my friend
Mike Hintze wrote what many of us were thinking:
Last
year around this time, there was some discussion of
the significance of April 11 in the history of Louie
Louie. Most importantly, it is Richard Berry's birthday.
But there is more. On April 11, 1998, the Kingsmen
finally won their court case to regain their rights
to their Wand recordings, including, most significantly,
Louie Louie. And the week of April 11, 1985 marked
the height of the effort to make Louie Louie the state
song of Washington.
There
was agreement that April 11 should be deemed Louie
Louie Day. So how does a holiday get established?
People just have to start celebrating it. And hopefully,
it will catch on. So to do my part, I added a new
page to my Louie
Louie website about April 11 being Louie Louie
Day. http://louielouieweb.tripod.com/LL-day.htm
I'm
also going to call all the oldies and classic rock
stations in the Seattle area and request LL, and mention
that it's Richard Berry's birthday and Louie Louie
Day. Maybe I'll even call some of the alternative
stations and see if I can get them to play the Black
Flag or Iggy Pop versions. Maybe the easy listening
stations will play the Sandpipers . . .
Anyway,
I hope you all have a very happy Louie Louie Day.
Next
year, we are going to embark on an effort to bring greater
recognition to this very fine day. Meanwhile, go check
out Mike's page.
http://louielouieweb.tripod.com/LL-day.htm
OTHER
DOCUMENTARIES
As
someone that produces documentaries, I am very happy
to see that this genre is doing very well at the box
office. Who would have ever guessed that a documentary
on birds would become the 3rd most successful documentary
of all time? I'm also happy to see that a film on fast
food habits would also do so well, taking the 4th place.
Of
the top
10 grossing documentaries of all time, 8 of these
were released within the past two years. This is truly
a wonderful new era for documentaries, and I couldn't
be happier to see this type of support.
http://www.boxofficemojo.com/genres/chart/?id=documentary.htm
There
are two music documentaries facing some problems that
I can certainly relate to. Both "MC5 - *A True
Testimonial" and "Ramones- End of the Century"
are films that are caught up in some clearance issues
that make it very difficult at this point in time to
receive any form of legitimate distribution. Having
seen the MC5 film, which I loved, it's especially distressing
to learn that the filmmakers and the subjects of the
film haven't been able to come up with an agreement
that will make everyone happy.
Music
documentaries can be a major headache to produce. Synch
licenses, life stories, and other clearance issues are
not matters left to the timid. Documentaries are the
fastest growing genre in the field of motion picture
entertainment, but that still doesn't always make the
task of production any easier. Some stories are very
complicated, and when you're dealing with life stories,
one has to be very respectful of the lives of those
involved.
The
documentary that everyone seems to be talking about
is, of course, Michael Moore's "Fahrenheit 9/11".
This film has generated a lot of dialogue regarding
the credibility of certain American government officials,
as America engages in a greater debate on the issues
that truly matter in 2004. While some may argue that Moore's
films are "divisive" or worse yet, "un-American,"
the bottom line is that such productions will create
a stronger country, as adversity and intelligent debate
can only strengthen the case for coherent policies.
I
would encourage all American citizens to see Michael
Moore's film, and engage in the great debate of the
year. It is absolutely irresponsible for any critic
to attack a film they haven't actually seen.
America
has a long history of debate over political policy.
Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton were diametrically
opposed over many different issues, but nobody could
deny that these founding fathers provided some important
guidance in the formative years. Congressman Abraham
Lincoln often spoke out against the Mexican war fought
by President James Polk, but this "peacenik"
eventually became the president, and many people still
consider him to be one of the the best men to ever hold
that office.
Michael
Moore is a social critic that loves
America, regardless of what some reactionaries may believe.
I don't agree with all of Moore's viewpoints, but I
absolutely respect his right to make films that encourage
more public discussion over this form of government
that we label a "democracy."
As
a wise pundit once said, "if you're not angry,
you haven't been paying attention."
My
hat is off to all those that continue to expand the
art and craft of this fine field of documentary film
production.
Internet
surfer Fintan Cadogan sent me a nice little statement
that summarizes a nice sentiment of LOUIE:
Louie
louie is probably the stupidest and the most beautiful
rock n'roll song of all time. No matter how you play
it or try to twist it, it always emerges smelling
of roses. No other song is capable of being abused
to the extent that it has, and still it emerges as
one of the most compelling rock songs of all time.
Thank you Mr Berry
My
thanks again for all of the people
that shared their comments, questions, and stories for
THE MEANING OF LOUIE. Your input is greatly appreciated.
Me gotta go now,
ERIC
PREDOEHL
All
images & words copyright 1999-2004 Eric Predoehl
/ OCTALOUIE, LLC, except as noted. All rights reserved.
The term "LOUIE LOUIE" is a registered trademark
of RMB, Inc, a company owned by The Kingsmen, the band recognized for turning
the song into the monster icon heard all over the world.
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