THE ONE MAN BEATLES: SOMETHING ABOUT EMITT RHODES plays Sunday, 4/17 at Regal Winter Park Village, at 12.30pm, as part of the 20th Annual Florida Film Festival. [details]
By Samir Mathur
(This film plays as a double-header with ‘Steve Winwood: English Soul,’ but unfortunately I didn’t get to see that ahead of writing this piece. So it’s only half a review)
I knew the name Emitt Rhodes, but wasn’t familiar with his music, prior to watching ‘The One-Man Beatles’. There are comparisons with Paul McCartney “on a really good day” from the outset, and it’s easy to see why. Rhodes’ songs, first with band Merry Go Round, and then as a solo artist, have a very clear Beatles-sound, and Rhodes was doing the “playing every single instrument on your solo album” thing before Macca got to it. After releasing four albums in quick succession in the 1960s, Rhodes disappeared from the scene, and has not been heard from since. Until, of course, these filmmakers set out to find him.
There’s an interesting story to be told here, of a man who shone incredibly brightly but then burned out by 24, and hasn’t been seen since. I was surprised, and a little disappointed, then, that there was no drama, no thrill in the chase, as the filmmakers tried to reach this mercurial, elusive genius. Fifteen minutes into the film, they’re in his living room, jamming with him. I couldn’t help but think of the film ‘Winnebago Man’, where the director painstakingly tracked down his reluctant subject, Jack Rebney; there were voicemails exchanged, friends acting as go-betweens, and Rebney initially did not want to be bothered but begrudgingly came around. Not so here: Emitt Rhodes is happy to talk about himself, and he alternates between being charming and being a textbook grumpy old man. He even says “Band names are so crazy now… Smashing Pumpkins?!” There are some moments of real poignancy though; it’s hard not to feel for him when getting misty-eyed talking about his late mother, or about how he can’t afford health insurance. But despite these moments, I watched the film and still felt removed from Rhodes, the way you shouldn’t feel after a documentary like this. Far more revealing, and not necessarily in a positive way, was this interview he conducted with WFMU’s Michael Shelley. That archived show also contains lots of his songs, which are undeniably great.
“It’s time to make some noise again,” he says towards the end of the film, and I can’t wait to hear more from him.
By Samir MathurContributing writer
(This film plays as a double-header with ‘Steve Winwood: English Soul,’ but unfortunately I didn’t get to see that ahead of writing this piece. So it’s only half a review)
I knew the name Emitt Rhodes, but wasn’t familiar with his music, prior to watching ‘The One-Man Beatles’. There are comparisons with Paul McCartney “on a really good day” from the outset, and it’s easy to see why. Rhodes’ songs, first with band Merry Go Round, and then as a solo artist, have a very clear Beatles-sound, and Rhodes was doing the “playing every single instrument on your solo album” thing before Macca got to it. After releasing four albums in quick succession in the 1960s, Rhodes disappeared from the scene, and has not been heard from since. Until, of course, these filmmakers set out to find him.
There’s an interesting story to be told here, of a man who shone incredibly brightly but then burned out by 24, and hasn’t been seen since. I was surprised, and a little disappointed, then, that there was no drama, no thrill in the chase, as the filmmakers tried to reach this mercurial, elusive genius. Fifteen minutes into the film, they’re in his living room, jamming with him. I couldn’t help but think of the film ‘Winnebago Man’, where the director painstakingly tracked down his reluctant subject, Jack Rebney; there were voicemails exchanged, friends acting as go-betweens, and Rebney initially did not want to be bothered but begrudgingly came around. Not so here: Emitt Rhodes is happy to talk about himself, and he alternates between being charming and being a textbook grumpy old man. He even says “Band names are so crazy now… Smashing Pumpkins?!” There are some moments of real poignancy though; it’s hard not to feel for him when getting misty-eyed talking about his late mother, or about how he can’t afford health insurance. But despite these moments, I watched the film and still felt removed from Rhodes, the way you shouldn’t feel after a documentary like this. Far more revealing, and not necessarily in a positive way, was this interview he conducted with WFMU’s Michael Shelley. That archived show also contains lots of his songs, which are undeniably great.
“It’s time to make some noise again,” he says towards the end of the film, and I can’t wait to hear more from him.