Release date: November 25th, 2014
Order Link: Amazon
United States
563 minutes
Color
1.33:1
English
An uncompromisingly independent filmmaker, Les Blank made documentaries for nearly fifty years, elegantly disappearing with his camera into cultural spots rarely seen on-screen—mostly on the peripheries of the United States, but also occasionally abroad. Seemingly off-the-cuff yet poetically constructed, these films are humane, sometimes wry, always engaging tributes to music, food, and all sorts of regionally specific delights. This collector’s set provides a diverse survey of Les Blank’s vast output, including fourteen of his best-known works and eight related short films.
FEATURES:
New 2K digital restorations of all fourteen films—The Blues Accordin’ to Lightnin’ Hopkins (1968);God Respects Us When We Work, but Loves Us When We Dance (1968); Spend It All (1971); A Well Spent Life (1971); Dry Wood (1973); Hot Pepper (1973); Always for Pleasure (1978); Garlic Is as Good as Ten Mothers (1980); Sprout Wings and Fly (1983); In Heaven There Is No Beer?(1984); Gap-Toothed Women (1987); Yum, Yum, Yum! A Taste of Cajun and Creole Cooking(1990); The Maestro: King of the Cowboy Artists (1994); Sworn to the Drum: A Tribute to Francisco Aguabella (1995)—with uncompressed monaural or stereo soundtracks on the Blu-rays
Excerpt from Les Blank: A Quiet Revelation, a film project by Harrod Blank and Gina Leibrecht
New interviews with Blank’s sons, Harrod and Beau; Blank documentary subject Gerald Gaxiola (a.k.a. the Maestro); Blank’s friends and collaborators Skip Gerson, Maureen Gosling, Taylor Hackford, Werner Herzog, Susan Kell, Tom Luddy, David Silberberg, and Chris Simon; and chef and author Alice Waters
Related shorts by Blank: The Sun’s Gonna Shine (1968), More Fess (1978), Julie: Old Time Tales of the Blue Ridge (1991), My Old Fiddle: A Visit with Tommy Jarrell in the Blue Ridge (1994), and The Maestro Rides Again (2005)
Two outtake performances from The Blues Accordin’ to Lightnin’ Hopkins
PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by film scholar Andrew Horton
Order Link: Amazon
United States
563 minutes
Color
1.33:1
English
An uncompromisingly independent filmmaker, Les Blank made documentaries for nearly fifty years, elegantly disappearing with his camera into cultural spots rarely seen on-screen—mostly on the peripheries of the United States, but also occasionally abroad. Seemingly off-the-cuff yet poetically constructed, these films are humane, sometimes wry, always engaging tributes to music, food, and all sorts of regionally specific delights. This collector’s set provides a diverse survey of Les Blank’s vast output, including fourteen of his best-known works and eight related short films.
FEATURES:
New 2K digital restorations of all fourteen films—The Blues Accordin’ to Lightnin’ Hopkins (1968);God Respects Us When We Work, but Loves Us When We Dance (1968); Spend It All (1971); A Well Spent Life (1971); Dry Wood (1973); Hot Pepper (1973); Always for Pleasure (1978); Garlic Is as Good as Ten Mothers (1980); Sprout Wings and Fly (1983); In Heaven There Is No Beer?(1984); Gap-Toothed Women (1987); Yum, Yum, Yum! A Taste of Cajun and Creole Cooking(1990); The Maestro: King of the Cowboy Artists (1994); Sworn to the Drum: A Tribute to Francisco Aguabella (1995)—with uncompressed monaural or stereo soundtracks on the Blu-rays
Excerpt from Les Blank: A Quiet Revelation, a film project by Harrod Blank and Gina Leibrecht
New interviews with Blank’s sons, Harrod and Beau; Blank documentary subject Gerald Gaxiola (a.k.a. the Maestro); Blank’s friends and collaborators Skip Gerson, Maureen Gosling, Taylor Hackford, Werner Herzog, Susan Kell, Tom Luddy, David Silberberg, and Chris Simon; and chef and author Alice Waters
Related shorts by Blank: The Sun’s Gonna Shine (1968), More Fess (1978), Julie: Old Time Tales of the Blue Ridge (1991), My Old Fiddle: A Visit with Tommy Jarrell in the Blue Ridge (1994), and The Maestro Rides Again (2005)
Two outtake performances from The Blues Accordin’ to Lightnin’ Hopkins
PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by film scholar Andrew Horton
