Festival synopsis: Filmmaker Murray Lerner captured the spirit of the era at the Newport Folk Festival, as well as the extraordinary music produced on its stage, in his woefully neglected Festival.
Now Lerner has gone back to his Newport footage and crafted a revealing portrait of the young Bob Dylan during the crucial period of 1963-65, as he grows progressively darker and more withdrawn and he and his band take their first steps toward rock and roll.
The film features stirring versions of some of his most famous songs, including some legendary duets with Joan Baez. A great document of an extraordinary artist.
_____________________REVIEW by Gary Cabana, THEreelreviewer.com
The Other Side of the Mirror:
BOB DYLAN LIVE
AT THE NEWPORT FOLK FESTIVAL 1963-1965
4 stars (out of 5/5 out of 5 & a MUST-SEE for Dylan-philes)
[*B&W & Color/(2007)Perf-docu/UK] - (1 hr 20 min)
Directed by Murray Lerner
Starring: Bob Dylan (Vocals, guitars, harmonicas)
Review:
Narration: none.
Pundit interviews: none.
Bob Dylan LIVE in concert: ALL (or damn near all of it).
It doesn't get much better than that Dylan fans.
Now I know some of you have already run out to buy the DVD, but you still haven't participated in this concert until you see it in a darkened theater with a roomful of strangers (preferably ALL Dylan-philes).
This film doesn't have a distributor so just keep your eyes & ears open cause "Dylan fever" has been rekindled by the new dramatized version of Bob's life (Todd Haynes' "I'm Not There") and this docu could pop up anywhere at anytime (museums, arthouses, etc.).
I guarantee it's well worth your time to watch Dylan's annual trek to the Newport Film Festival and his ousting in 1965 when he offended the die-hard folkies with a partially "electric" set.
You'd have thought he put on a Nazi armband or tore up a picture of the Pope considering the fury of the audience reaction. Worth seeing for those scenes alone as well as snippets from the (then) lovely Joan Baez and a young Johnny Cash covering his first Dylan song at the festival.
Just an amazing docu that is rendered intact after a decades-long wait to obtain the music rights for all the songs.
MUST-SEE, MUST-SEE, MUST-SEE!!! (And if you're not a Dylan fan before you see this film you definitely will be one when it's all over, baby blue)
Also featuring performances by (**see set list below/*1965 band): Joan Baez (singer**); Johnny Cash (Singer-guitarist**); Peter, Paul, & Mary**; Pete Seeger (intro's Bob); Freedom Singers**; Peter Yarrow; Mike Bloomfield (guitar*); Al Cooper (organ*); Barry Goldberg (organ*); Jerome Arnold (bass*); & Sam Lay (drums*)
SET LISTS:
"All I Really Want To Do" (7/24/1965) - afternoon workshop
1963*
"North Country Blues" (7/26/1963) - afternoon workshop
"With God On Our Side" (2 versions with Joan Baez) - afternoon workshop & 7/28 night perf
"Talkin' World War III Blues" - 7/26 night perf
"Who Killed Davey Moore?" - 7/27 afternoon workshop
"Only A Pawn In Their Game" - 7/26 night perf
"Blowin' In The Wind" (with The Freedom Singers, Joan Baez, and Peter, Paul and Mary) - 7/26 night perf
1964
"Mr. Tambourine Man" (7/24/1964) - afternoon workshop
Johnny Cash sings "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right"
Joan Baez sings "Mary Hamilton" (she imitates Bob Dylan, brief excerpt)
"It Ain't Me, Babe" (with Joan Baez) - 7/24 night perf
"With God On Our Side" (with Joan Baez) - 7/26 night perf
"Chimes Of Freedom" - 7/26 night perf
1965 (Dylan goes 'electric')
"If You Gotta Go, Go Now" (7/24/1965) - afternoon workshop
"Love Minus Zero/No Limit" - 7/24 afternoon workshop
Daytime rehearsal with electric band members*
"Maggie's Farm" (electric) - 7/25 night perf
"Like A Rolling Stone" (electric) - 7/25 night perf
"Mr. Tambourine Man" - 7/25 night perf
"It's All Over Now, Baby Blue" - 7/25 night perf
Crew:
Photographers: Francis Grumman, Stanley Meredith, George Pickow, & Murray Lerner Editors: Howard Alk, Pagan Harleman, Alison Hiem, George Panos, & Einar Westerlund
LINKS:
www.BobDylan.com
www.legacyrecordings.com
www.columbiarecords.com
TRIVIA:
Bob Dylan finally returned the Newport Folk Festival in 2002, nearly 40 years after the audience booed him for going electric.
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