RUMBLE: The Indians Who Rocked the World

About the Documentary - - PBS Independent Lens

"They tried to ban, censor and erase Indian culture from rock and roll history but Native American influence is wrapped into modern music's DNA. RUMBLE: The Indians Who Rocked the World is an electric look at Native American influence in popular music, going deep into the Indigenous foundations of rock. RUMBLE  traces the melodies, rhythms, and beats of traditional Native music as they took different forms across the spectrum of 20th-century American rock.

"Native Americans such as Robbie Robertson and Buffy Sainte-Marie helped to define its evolution, while Native guitarists and drummers such as Link Wray -- the electric guitar pioneer whose titular instrumental hit was banned from the radio, Hall of Famer Jimi Hendrix, who was part-Cherokee, Jesse Ed Davis, and many more forever changed the trajectory of rock and roll. Their stories are told by some of America’s greatest rock legends who knew them, played music with them, and were inspired by them, including George Clinton, Taj Mahal, Slash, Jackson Browne, Taboo, Buddy Guy, Quincy Jones, Derek Trucks, Tony Bennett, Iggy Pop, Steven Tyler and Stevie Van Zandt. Telling a missing chapter in rock history, RUMBLE is essential viewing for music fans." source - - PBS Independent Lens

RUMBLE Filmmakers Go Deep into the Indigenous Foundations of Rock - PBS Independent Lens

“The making of RUMBLE was a team effort, all of them passionate about bringing an important story to the world. Director-producer Catherine Bainbridge and co-director Alfonso Maiorana worked with Executive Producer Stevie Salas, a Native American musician, film composer and producer, as well as Tim Johnson, former Associate Director for Museum Programs at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian, to bring this long overdue story to the screen: how Native Americans influenced popular music, going deep into the Indigenous foundations of rock.

“RUMBLE is a ‘vibrant survey of a criminally overlooked aspect of American popular music,’ says the LA Times. It’s ‘a master class in the mixing of cultures,’ adds The New York Times. ‘If you couldn’t name two Native American musicians at the beginning of the documentary, you’ll remember at least a half-dozen after the end. And it’s a good bet you’ll be searching for their albums, too.’”

RUMBLE On: More Native American Musicians You Should Know - PBS Independent Lens

by Gregg McVicar, Host and producer of UnderCurrents on Native Voice One

“Rock and roll was born in the United States, and it makes sense that some of its forerunners would be the original Americans. The people are the land and the music comes from the land. Iconic artists like Charley Patton, Mildred Bailey, Jimi Hendrix, Robbie Robertson, and Redbone were among the first to express this Native perspective through popular music.  We can connect the dots from Patton, the “Father of the Delta Blues,” on through a musical narrative that runs like a powerful river through today’s blues, rock and jazz music. The film RUMBLE helps us understand why, and to actually now hear these indigenous influences present themselves in rhythm, tonality, phrasing, and attitude.

“This process has not stopped, just as Native cultures continue to thrive and evolve, adding new bits of influence into American culture. But what about the other direction? One often hears the question “why does today’s Native music sound so much like other styles?” The answer would have to be that today’s Native peoples are full participants in modern culture and engage in the same cultural give and take as everyone else….“

RUMBLE – Charley Patton, Grandfather of Delta Blues - PBS Independent Lens      2:28 film clip

Rock, blues, folk, traditional, Big Band jazz