Tom Dowd & the Language of Music (2003)

A documentary about Tom Dowd, who was an innovative recording engineer and producer of noted albums with John Coltrane, Ornette Coleman, Otis Redding, Eric Clapton, the Allman Brothers and many others.

Director:

Mark Moormann

Stars:

Ginger Baker, Ray Charles, John Coltrane

2 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Ginger Baker	...	Himself (archive footage)
Jim Camacho	...	Himself
Ray Charles	...	Himself
Eric Clapton	...	Himself
Ornette Coleman	...	Himself
John Coltrane	...	Himself (archive footage)
Bobby Darin	...	Himself (archive footage)
Tom Dowd	...	Himself
Ahmet Ertegun	...	Himself
Aretha Franklin	...	Herself
Thelonious Monk	...	Himself (archive footage)
Tito Puente	...	Himself (archive footage)
Phil Ramone	...	Himself
Otis Redding	...	Himself (archive footage)
Mike Stoller	...	Himself

Storyline

If you picked some of the all-time great albums in American rock, soul, and jazz, chances are one name might be found on the back of almost every one: Tom Dowd--the secret behind five decades of brilliant music, an unsung hero, producer and recording pioneer. From the perfection of live mixing to the introduction of eight-track recording, the mythology of exactly how much impact Dowd has had is still up for grabs. His diverse and genuine love of work is remembered in part through intimate interviews with several musical icons and personal friends.

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Genres:

Documentary | Music

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Official Sites:

Official website

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 January 2003 (USA)

Also Known As:

O Tom Dowd kai i glossa tis mousikis

Filming Locations:

Criteria Recording Studios - 1755 NE 149th Street, Miami, Florida, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$16,522 (USA) (13 August 2004)

Gross:

$40,238 (USA) (27 August 2004)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Language of Music Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Color:

Black and White Color

User Reviews

Great footage, oddly constructed film

This film has fabulous archival footage and some interviews with the greats -- Ray Charles, Ahmet Ertegun, Jerry Wexler, Eric Clapton - and many others. And some of the footage is well shot.

But the film's story suffers - a lot - from the oddly constructed narrative. It was as if the filmmaker wasn't sure what the story was he wanted to tell and therefore kept starting and stopping as if he was still deciding. From all these fits and starts all over the film -- some stories ultimately lead lead somewhere and some of which lead no where at all. It felt more like the rough cut of a film, not the final film itself.

It was a disappointment to me because of the great access that the filmmaker had and how little story-telling ability he demonstrated.