South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Sunday)
Burns tells epic of heartache, hope
PBS documentary explores country music’s varied roots
In the long but exhilarating “Country Music,” Ken Burns explains how to understand a country by its singers and songs.
“Crazy,” “Ring of Fire” and “I Will Always Love You” are among the greatest hits examined in the 16-hour documentary, airing Sept. 15-18 and 22-25 on PBS.
That’s a lot of picking and grinning, as they used to say on “Hee Haw,” but it’s one of the most entertaining works from Burns, maker of “The Civil War,” “Baseball” and “Jazz.”
He draws on singers and songwriters, natural storytellers who speak with vivid, inviting flair. The late Merle Haggard emerges as the most memorable speaker in a terrific cast that includes Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, Charley Pride, Loretta Lynn, Marty Stuart, Vince Gill and Ricky Skaggs.
Florida is represented by Mel Tillis, who wrote “Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love to Town” and used humor to deflect bullying about his stutter. And Florida is crucial because of Winter Haven’s Gram Parsons, who provided a musical education
to Emmylou Harris. The influential star, who calls herself a country music convert, speaks with passion.
“The simplicity of country music is
one of the most important things about it,” Harris says. “It’s about the story and the melody and the sound of the voice and the sincerity of it.”
Great sales are nice, but a great song is forever, whether it’s “Will the Circle Be Unbroken,” “9 to 5” or “Help Me Make It Through the Night.”
Country music has varied roots, and like America, it is never one thing. It has embraced rock, gospel, folk, bluegrass, the blues, honkytonk, you name it. Stars outside country bolstered the form. Ray Charles showed how soulful the music could be, Gill says.
The series offers a cleareyed look at show business and changing tastes. Yet the personal stories matter most, and the details enrich this sprawling saga. Burns and writer Dayton Duncan offer engrossing profiles of many stars, then weave them into a giant tapestry.
We learn life can be a lot like country song. The tragedies stand out. Jimmie Rodgers, Hank Williams and Patsy Cline were consummate talents gone too soon. The stormy saga of George Jones and Tammy Wynette will produce tears.
Many stars overcame
early poverty, troubled childhoods and career setbacks. There is no one way to break through, and resiliency is key. Some performers, notably Nelson and Waylon Jennings, found fame by breaking with the Nashville establishment. Nelson went from despair and lying down in a street to being called the king of country music.
Parton went from being controlled by TV co-star Porter Wagoner to becoming a movie star and an institution. “She’s crossed all boundaries,” Brenda Lee says.
Nelson and Parton are first-rate songwriters, “Country Music” reminds us. The documentary
pauses repeatedly to study lyrics, and Kris Kristofferson is a valuable guide. He says he owes “Me & Bobby McGee” to Italian director Federico Fellini.
Burns is fascinated by stories of redemption, and Johnny Cash and Haggard supply poignant ones. The successful careers of Rosanne Cash and Hank Williams Jr. make this a life-affirming family story.
“Country Music” basically stops in 1996, and the later hours feel like catalogs of recent artists. Time hasn’t sorted out who will be remembered. But Cash’s story helps conclude the program powerfully. His connection to the Carter Family brings the story full circle. He loved music, and he showed an open mind about it.
Ah, open minds. Remember them? I never imagined I’d be so moved by “Country Music.” But I heard America singing, and it made me happy to be alive. Let this hummable history, a tonic for the soul, help you make it through the night.