Bill Monroe: Father Of Bluegrass Music; High Lonesome

Two newly released documentaries chronicle the story of Bill Monroe and the history of bluegrass music, which, it turns out, are nearly the same. Bill Monroe: Father of Bluegrass Music is a mostly winning portrait of Monroe's musical career and the many incarnations of his famous Bluegrass Boys band. Steve Gebhardt's film combines interview footage of musician John Hartford talking with Monroe and interviews with a wide assortment of entertainers (including Ricky Skaggs, Marty Stuart, Emmylou Harris, and Jerry Garcia) together with concert footage of America's most famous mandolin player in action. Songs include "Blue Moon of Kentucky," "Rawhide," "Pike County Breakdown," "The Walls of Time," and others. While C&W enthusiasts will probably appreciate this, too much of the video is given over to brief comments of the "I played guitar with the Bluegrass Boys between (fill in the years)" variety. In fact, throughout the video, one wishes that more time was spent on Bill Monroe the man, and less on the roll call of accompanying musicians. Still, there's some mighty fine pickin' and strummin' on this tape, a few good stories, and a real down home price.But the prize in the videos-about-Bill Monroe category clearly belongs to Rachel Liebling's High Lonesome--which is still playing to packed houses on the art film circuit. While it's loaded with plenty of fine bluegrass music ("folk music in overdrive"), the film would be a beauty even if you turned the sound down. Monroe visits his old Kentucky home and recalls his upbringing, musical education, and eventual formation of the Bluegrass Boys band. Interwoven throughout Monroe's recollections are stories from bluegrass greats like Mac Wiseman and Ralph Stanley (and some pretty good stories they are: one of my favorites was the description of banjo legends' Flatt and Scruggs playing at a psychedelic concert in San Francisco--a slight change of pace from the Grand Ole Opry). But what elevates the film beyond being a simple music video portrait are the haunting images from America's past: the 1920s, 30s, 40s, and beyond, combined with social commentary on how society evolved during those periods and what part music played in the country's changes. An outstanding documentary. (It recently garnered a rave write-up in the June 16, 1994 issue of Rolling Stone--though there was no mention of video availability.)Bill Monroe: Father of Bluegrass Music is recommended. High Lonesome is highly recommended and an Editor's Choice. (R. Pitman)