Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World

American popular music has always been a blend of disparate cultural influences that evolve into something unique and new. Much has been said about the merger of Western European, Mexican, and African musical roots in jazz, country, blues, and rock and roll. The exciting documentary Rumble reveals the unheralded influence of Native American singing, chanting, and drumming on much beloved music. The jumping-off point in co-directors Catherine Bainbridge and Alfonso Maiorana's film is Link Wray, the dazzling guitar player whose 1958 hit “Rumble” not only introduced the power chord but also has the odd distinction of being the only instrumental banned from radio (due to fears that it could incite juvenile delinquency). The late Wray was Shawnee, and the film makes a strong case that those chords resemble the kind of indigenous chanting that he grew up hearing. Wray and “Rumble”—the song—sparked the imaginations of future guitar gods such as Steven Van Zandt of the E Street Band, Wayne Kramer of the MC5, and Slash of Guns N' Roses, all of whom, along with many other musicians, critics, and historians, are interviewed here. Wray's personal sources for his sound have become ingrained in the rock and roll ecosystem over decades, and would perhaps be hard to sort out unless identified—which is exactly what Rumble does. The same is true for 1930s jazz singer Mildred Bailey, who grew up on the Couer d'Alene Reservation and integrated a gliding vocal style into her sound that would deeply influence Ella Fitzgerald and Tony Bennett (who appears here). The music of Charley Patton, Jimi Hendrix, Robbie Robertson, Jesse Ed Davis, John Trudell, Redbone, Buffy Sainte-Marie, and others—all part or full-blooded Native American—is also explored here, while other interviewees include Martin Scorsese, Iggy Pop, and Jackson Browne. Highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (T. Keogh)