Johnny Cash at his home in California, 1960.
Courtesy of Sony Music Archives
16-Hour Documentary Chronicles History of Country Music - from the Carter Family, Jimmie Rodgers and Bob Wills to Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, Loretta Lynn, Charley Pride, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris, Garth Brooks and Many More
30-City National Tour Will Precede Broadcast to Spark Conversation About Unique American Art Form and the People Who Created it. Multi-Artist Concert at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville on March 27
PASADENA, CA; FEBRUARY 1, 2019 -- Step back in time and journey through the compelling history of a truly American art form when COUNTRY MUSIC, a new eight-part, 16-hour film directed by Ken Burns, and produced by Burns and his long-time collaborators Dayton Duncan and Julie Dunfey, premieres Sunday, September 15 through Wednesday, September 18, and Sunday, September 22 through Wednesday, September 25 at 8:00-10:00 p.m. ET. The first four episodes will stream on station-branded PBS platforms, including PBS.org and PBS apps, timed to the Sunday, September 15premiere and the second four timed to the broadcast of Episode 5 on Sunday, September 22 (each episode will stream for a period of three weeks). PBS Passport members will be able to stream the entire series for a period of six months beginning Sunday, September 15.
The documentary, written by Duncan, who also wrote the illustrated companion book (coming from Alfred A. Knopf on September 10), chronicles the highs and lows of country music's early days, from southern Appalachia's songs of struggle, heartbreak and faith to the rollicking Western swing of Texas, California's honky-tonks and Nashville's Grand Ole Opry. The film follows the evolution of country music over the course of the 20th century as it eventually emerges to become America's music.
COUNTRY MUSIC explores crucial questions -- What is country music? and Where did it come from? -- while focusing on the biographies of the fascinating trailblazers who created and shaped it - from the Carter Family, Jimmie Rodgers, Bill Monroe and Bob Wills to Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, Loretta Lynn, Charley Pride, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris, Garth Brooks and many more - as well as the times in which they lived. Much like the music itself, the film tells unforgettable stories of hardships and joys shared by everyday people.
Trailers for the film are available here.
A national campaign exploring the history and music through screenings and discussions will take place in more than 30 markets across the country leading up to the film's premiere. Kicking off the promotional roadshow is a Country Music bus tour along Tennessee Music Pathways with stops and events with local stations and other partners in Cookeville, Bristol, Knoxville, Memphis and Nashville, with a special concert at Ryman Auditorium that will be recorded for broadcast later this year. Among the artists participating in the concert, which will include clips from the film, and be produced by Opry Entertainment, PBS, and Florentine Films are: Dierks Bentley, Rosanne Cash, Rodney Crowell, Rhiannon Giddens, Vince Gill, Brenda Lee, Kathy Mattea, Ketch Secor of Old Crow Medicine Show, Ricky Skaggs, Marty Stuart, Asleep at the Wheel, Holly Williams, and Dwight Yoakam. Bank of America, the corporate underwriter of Burns's films, is also supporting the concert and the bus tour.
At the heart of every great country music song is a story, said Ken Burns. As the songwriter Harlan Howard said, It's three chords and the truth.' The common experiences and human emotions speak to each of us about love and loss, about hard times and the chance of redemption. As an art form, country music is also forever revisiting its history, sharing and updating old classics and celebrating its roots, which are, in many ways, foundational to our country itself.
We discovered that country music isn't--and never was--one type of music; it actually is many styles, said Dayton Duncan. It sprang from diverse roots, and it sprouted many branches. What unites them all is the way the music connects personal stories and elemental experiences with universal themes that every person can relate to. And as it evolved, from the bottom up, it created a special bond between the artists and fans that is unique among all other musical genres.
As with so many of their films, Ken and Dayton guide us on a journey through history that educates and entertains, providing an intimate look into the creative lives of those women and men who came together to develop an authentic American art form, said Perry Simon, PBS Chief Programming Executive and General Manager, General Audience Programming.
COUNTRY MUSIC digs deep to uncover the roots of the music, including ballads, minstrel music, hymns and the blues, and its early years in the 1920s, when it was called hillbilly music, and was recorded for the first time and played across the airwaves on radio station barn dances. It explores how Hollywood B movies instituted the fad of singing cowboys like Gene Autry and shows how the rise of juke joints after World War II changed the musical style by bringing electric and pedal steel guitars to the forefront.
The film witnesses the rise of bluegrass music with Bill Monroe and reveals how one of country music's offspring - rockabilly - evolved into rock and roll in Memphis. Throughout, the documentary focuses on the 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.
As Burns and Duncan weave together the musical stories, they connect the history of country music to the larger story of America, looking at how artists and songwriting reflected period
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Johnny Cash at his home in California, 1960.
