High and Dry (2005)

Documenting the fertile musical ground of Tucson, Arizona in the '80s and '90s, HIGH AND DRY introduces viewers to the musicians who put Tucson on the map.

Director:

Michael Toubassi

Writer:

Michael Toubassi

Stars:

Calexico, Joey Burns, John Convertino

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Calexico	...	Themselves
Joey Burns	...	Himself
John Convertino	...	Himself
Doo Rag	...	Themselves
Bob Log III	...	Himself
Brad Denboer	...	Himself
Giant Sand	...	Themselves
Howe Gelb	...	Himself
Tommy Larkins	...	Himself
Scott Garber	...	Himself
Scott Benzel	...	Himself
Mike Fisher	...	Himself
Stuart Kupers	...	Himself
Bradley Kemp	...	Himself
Al Perry	...	Himself

Storyline

HIGH AND DRY is a documentary profiling the history of Tucson, Arizona's eclectic music scene. The past two decades have seen a number of singular talents emerge from Tucson, including Giant Sand's Howe Gelb, who has been called "the godfather of the alt-country movement," seminal blues slide-guitarist Rainer Ptacek, and original cow punk Al Perry. The city has also spawned more popular acts including Calexico, the Supersuckers and Machines of Loving Grace. Some of these bands reached the big time but self-destructed under the pressure of a music career they just weren't ready for, while others still make a successful living from their music, without the support of a major label or the mainstream music industry. HIGH AND DRY tells these musicians' stories, while giving insight into the choices they made along the way - where the desert meets rock 'n' roll. Drawing upon rare archival material, as well as live performances and exclusive interviews with band members, the film provides a ...

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Plot Keywords:

band | musician | song | singing | singer | 

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Taglines:

Where The Desert Meets Rock 'N' Roll.

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Genres:

Documentary | Music

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Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 September 2005 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Austin, Texas, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Upstairs Entertainment, Upstairs Film

Technical Specs

Color:

Color

User Reviews

This movie rocks!

I think this movie is great. It takes a local music scene in an out-of-the way place, Tuscon, Arizona, and shows you over several decades how without any established independent venues, a grass-roots music culture grows from house parties and ultimately (at least when this film ends) produces an internationally known and awesome band, Calexico. The beauty of this film is in the incredible archival footage from the past thirty years. It is a documentarian's dream come true to have the source material available to show the viewer what it was really like to see these bands play in people's houses and in ridiculously small venues, rather than having to rely on participant's memories of what is was like. The film has a good mix of interviews with musicians and fans of the Tuscon scene to supplement the archival images. Is Tuscon unique or was this happening in dozens of other small cities across America? It most likely did occur in similar ways in other places, but lucky for us, because of this movie, we get to see how it happened in Tuscon with some totally rockin' music.