American Masters

History Series / 15 Seasons

American Masters, committed to producing comprehensive film biographies about the broad cast of characters who comprise our cultural history.

1h 42m / TV-14

Chan Marshall Talks About Voicing Janis Joplin's Letters

1m 25s

In this film outtake from Janis: Little Girl Blue, Chan “Cat Power” Marshall, who serves as the film’s narrator and provides the voice for Joplin-penned letters, discusses how she tapped into Joplin’s mindset for the documentary.

Director Amy Berg Brings Janis Back to Life

1m 30s

"I feel like her legacy has been so much about her death to this point, and I hope that people understand her life a little bit more and how much she loved life and performing and being Janis Joplin." Director Amy Berg had the ability to give the audience the public Janis and the private Janis - bringing the singer back to life.

Why Janis Joplin left Big Brother & the Holding Company

33s

In this excerpt from American Masters - Janis Joplin: Little Girl Blue, Janis' letter home reveals a glimpse of the troubles she had with her band, Big Brother and the Holding Company, until she finally decided to leave to form her own.

Merle Keeps You On Your Toes

3m 12s

In this outtake from Merle Haggard: Learning to Live With Myself, band members of The Strangers talk about Merle Haggard's unique and carefree performance style that ultimately pushed each musician to become better.

Letter Home Reveals Janis’ Greatest Ambition

54s

In this film excerpt from Janis: Little Girl Blue, Chan Marshall narrates Janis Joplin’s letter home to family shortly after her 27th (and last) birthday. The letter reveals a glimpse into her off-stage struggles, mostly rooted in her reckless lifestyle and strong desire to be loved.

Dick Cavett on Janis Joplin’s Influence

5m 6s

Dick Cavett, a former talk show host and TV personality, talks about his relationship with Janis Joplin and how her frequent appearance helped the show thrive. He also describes the unforgettable effect and depth of Joplin’s unique and captivating performance style.

Loretta Lynn: Lyricist and Songwriter

2m 33s

In this film excerpt from Loretta Lynn: Still a Mountain Girl, Sheryl Crow and Jack White talk about Loretta Lynn’s talent as a lyricist and songwriter, and Reba McEntire reveals her favorite Lynn song, "If You're Not Gone Too Long,” and sings some of it. Jack White breaks down the unique way Lynn writes choruses and verses.

Loretta Lynn Wrote for Women. Her Song "The Pill."

2m 15s

Loretta Lynn, Sissy Spacek and Sheryl Crow on Lynn's work and influence among women artists, and her song, "The Pill." The song about birth control was both banned and a top hit for Lynn, who has her own special brand of feminism. See archival footage of Lynn performing the songs she wrote: "The Pill" (1975) and "Wine, Women and Song" (1964).

Loretta Lynn and Conway Twitty

2m 59s

Loretta Lynn, Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood talk about Lynn's hit partnership with Conway Twitty. This film excerpt includes footage of Lynn and Twitty performing the number 1 country songs "Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man" and "After the Fire Is Gone." Brooks and Yearwood sing a lyric from "After the Fire is Gone," too.

Loretta Lynn: Still a Mountain Girl - Trailer

2m 47s

Inducted into more music Halls of Fame than any female singer to date, Loretta Lynn has earned four Grammy Awards, Kennedy Center Honors and a Presidential Medal of Freedom, and sold more than 45 million records worldwide. Still going strong after more than 50 years, Lynn is the subject of the new documentary with never-before-seen home movies, performances and interviews with Lynn and musicians.

Why Loretta Lynn Wrote "You Ain't Woman Enough"

1m 14s

"You Ain't Woman Enough (to Take My Man)" is from Loretta Lynn's second studio album (1966). Lynn wrote the song after a young fan at a concert confided in Lynn that a rival was trying to steal her husband. The other woman "was really painted up," says Lynn, who told the worried fan, "honey, she ain't woman enough to take your man!" Lynn then wrote the song in ten minutes. A web exclusive outtake.

Loretta Lynn's Gowns

Loretta Lynn's personal designer Tim Cobb makes the gowns she wears at concerts and events. Cobb shows two popular gowns displayed in her museum: the golden one with glass beads that she wore for her 50th anniversary appearance at the Grand Ole Opry in 2010; and the light blue one she wore for the cover of the Van Lear Rose album (2004). This is an outtake from Loretta Lynn: Still a Mountain Girl.

Fats Domino Concerts: Riots and Rock n' Roll

1m 55s

White and black fans flocked to Fats Domino concerts, integrating many venues for the first time. Four riots took place in 1956. Saxophonist Herb Hardesty describes two concerts and says the riots weren't about race. This film excerpt includes Domino being interviewed about rock n' roll and it's possible influence on rioting. Domino says "music makes people happy. I know it makes me happy."

Fats Domino of New Orleans, the Music Mecca

2m 11s

Fats Domino, born and raised in New Orleans, and so were his writing partner Dave Bartholomew and bandmates like drummer Earl Palmer. In the late 1940s and 1950s, Cosimo Matassa’s J&M music shop was the only recording studio in New Orleans and became the mecca for record companies looking to cash in on the New Orleans rhythm and blues sound.

Fats Domino Filmmaker Joe Lauro on Making the Documentary

8m 11s

Joe Lauro, director of Fats Domino and The Birth of Rock ‘n’ Roll, details the challenges of making a film about a living legend and a very private man. One hurdle was finding archival footage of Fats Domino's performances (which he did, in France). Lauro also had to win Domino's own interest and trust. Once he did, the "floodgates" opened, and Lauro could interview Domino's longtime bandmates.

Fats Domino and The Birth of Rock 'n' Roll - Preview

37s

One of the most popular rockers of the 1950s and early 60s, Fats Domino and his record sales were rivaled then only by Elvis Presley. With his boogie-woogie piano playing rooted in blues, rhythm & blues, and jazz, he became one of the inventors, along with Presley, Chuck Berry, Jerry Lee Lewis and Little Richard, of rock ‘n’ roll, a revolutionary genre that united young black and white audiences.

Fats Domino: I'm Ready, Performed with The Byrds, 1971

2m 59s

See Fats Domino perform "I'm Ready," his hit from 1959, with the rock band The Byrds backing him in 1971. Their appearance was on the local television show "Turn-On, Barry Richards Rock and Soul" on WDCA-TV in Washington DC. This is an outtake from Fats Domino and The Birth of Rock 'n' Roll.

Dave Bartholomew, Longtime Collaborator of Fats Domino

5m 25s

Dave Bartholomew is one New Orleans' great musicians and learned trumpet from the same man who taught Louis Armstrong to play. Bartholomew played with the best bands in New Orleans before he began working with Fats Domino in 1949. The songwriter, bandleader, producer co-wrote and produced most of Fats Domino's hits and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991. A film outtake.

Carole King: A Teenage Songwriter in the Music Business

2m 53s

Carole King, songwriters and friends Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil and others describe the music business and work of songwriters in the 1950s and 1960s. As a 16-year-old living in Queens, King would bring her music to two publishing houses in Manhattan and get paid $25 for a composition that would be given to a recording artist. She soon paired professionally and in marriage with Gerry Goffin.

Carole King: Natural Woman - Trailer

2m 43s

King tells her own story in the new documentary American Masters – Carole King: Natural Woman that weaves previously unseen and rare performances and home movies with a new, exclusive interview with King, friends, fellow songwriters Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, Tapestry producer Lou Adler, drummer Russ Kunkel, guitarist Danny “Kootch” Kortchmar, and more.

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