American Roots Music Documentary

ByABC News
October 26, 2001, 1:22 PM

Oct. 29 -- If you want to know where the MTV generation came from, just look in the hearts of the European, African and Latino immigrants who came here over the years.

PBS begins a comprehensive, four-part documentary, American Roots Music, tonight. "Nearly every immigrant that came to America brought folk songs with them," says narrator Kris Kristofferson.

When the recording industry first began, the early producers were looking for product. The fresh talent came from cowboys, hillbillys, jazz musicians and gospel singers who were creating new forms of American music.

Their stories are being told by a New York filmmaker who wants to preserve this history. "Whether it be county, blues, gospel, bluegrass, tejano, Native American, folk, these are the first [types of] music that get recognized as American folk music," said Jim Brown, who worked with Ken Burns on the Civil War series.

"This is the working-class vernacular of American culture," said Brown. "There's something so honest and compelling about this music that I felt that maybe it would have a wider audience."

"This music was a force within many communities to help them survive," said Brown. "And also have good times, joyous times, dances, and courting."

Preserving Folk Heroes

The task of documenting roots music spanned four years, as Brown researched 175 archival sources and interviewed performers including Bonnie Raitt, Willie Nelson and Pete Seeger who talk about their own musical heroes.

Raitt has long worked to highlight the early blues musicians, and Brown says she "literally cried when she saw some of the footage of people who had been important to her." Brown grew up going to see Bob Dylan perform in New York's Greenwich village and was also personally driven to document folk history and the earliest recorded forms of American music.

The footage assembled is simple as strong performances stand alone, without the type of glitz now associated with the music industry.