Neil Young Helps Complete Long Lost Film Starring Dylan and Hendrix

All Along The Watchtower - The Movie

Neil Young’s Archives aren’t the only ones containing works of fine cinema in various stages of completion. Hollywood notoriously has acres of film canister stacks that may never see a projectionist’s booth. Though starring or directed by the cinematic legends, uncompleted films languish as key creative personnel left a project hanging due to: scheduling conflicts, their death, rehab stints, or the cliché industry excuse “creative differences.” Other works simply over ran budgets and producers failed to find completion funding.

An uncompleted work can become a years or decades long passion project for others to finish. Orson Welles’ 15-year production odyssey of “The Other Side of the Wind” came to an end at his death in 1985. It was finally released in 2018, 35 years after his death. Director Peter Bogdonovich was a Welles confidant and friend and he is one of the film’s actors. He took up the mantle of director and editor from his Mentor Welles, finishing post production in 2017 after decades of work on it as a final tribute to him.

Robert Altman has a new film coming out 13 years after his passing in 2006, and almost 50 years after the death of it’s meteoric co star in 1970. All Along the Watchtower is Altman’s cinematic vision of one of rock and roll’s finest counter culture protest songs.

The film stars the two musicians most associated with the work, it’s writer Bob Dylan appearing as The Thief and the guitarist whose legendary performance of it made it iconic - Jimi Hendrix as the Joker. Dylan’s lyrics tells a story of disillusioned outcasts looking to challenge the establishment and change the system. That is the plot of the movie – the Joker and the Thief attempting to overthrow the corrupt economic and political structure of a western frontier territory in the 1800’s

Jimi Hendrix passed in 1970, months after the filming of his role was finished. He and Bob Dylan spent only a few weeks together filming in British Columbia. Altman was filming two movies there – Watchtower and McCabe and Mrs. Miller, which was released in 1971.

Hendrix’s passing brought the post production work to a stand still and tossed the movie into the courts. He and Dylan were supposed to write and perform the soundtrack for the movie. Decades of legal proceedings between Altman’s production company and Hendrix’s estate kept the project on the shelf. When Altman passed in 2006, legal proceedings ceased, unresolved, and the project became a mere glimmer in the eye of those who knew about it.

Fortunately, cinematic and musical projects with the cultural gravitas such as All Along the Watchtower sometimes are revived. Neverwuz Productions, backed by Wall Street Hedge Fund investment in the production company, reached a settlement with the estates of Hendrix and Altman several years ago acquiring it out right.

Making this film relevant to our Dear Readers and fellow Rusties is the involvement of Neil Young. One of the most contentious part of the decades long legal and creative wrangling was over the song AATW’s use in the film. Altman got Dylan and Hendrix to agree to a duet performance of the song. He did not want Dylan or Hendrix’s original recording appearing in the film which Dylan and Hendrix appreciated. Hendrix’s death ended that idea.

When Neverwuz Productions acquired the film the Soundtrack and playing of AATW was the key component of post production that would lead to the movie’s success or failure – it’s release or abandonment. T Bone Burnett was hired to produce the Soundtrack and address the Watchtower issue.

Burnett and his staff spent almost two years on the soundtrack and recording the appropriate sounding version of Watchtower. Burnett had several versions of the song done with his band but none of them captured his imagining. Burnett wanted the song’s emotional component to be true spiritually to Hendrix’s and Dylan’s recorded versions of it. He felt the entire movie would fall flat and disappoint audiences if AATW wasn’t inspiringly performed. Faced with a completion deadline for the soundtrack and no useful version of Watchtower from his recording sessions he went to the one source who he felt could satisfy his artistic ear of the song’s performance– Neil.

Burnett’s staff had been listening to covers as they watched the film’s climactic scene. He said that search for the right sound came to an immediate halt when they heard Neil’s cover that appears on Road Rock, Vol. 1: Friends & Relatives. Burnett told the Producers that Neil’s version of the song has the ideal emotional impact he was looking for.

Road Rock, Vol. 1: Friends & Relatives
by Neil Young

He said the recording from Red Rocks Amphitheater in a driving rain and thunderstorm “captures the song’s narrative and emotional elements. It has the perfect balance and tone between vocal and instrumental performances so why not use this version”, he said.

The Friends and Relatives Band with Neil, Ben Keith, Spooner Oldham, Donald “Duck” Dunn, Jim Keltner, Astrid Young, Pegi Young and guest vocalist Chrissie Hynde capture the entire essence of the song Burnett said. “Chrissie Hynde’s vocal was the perfect sound dueting with Neil on Old Black”. Burnett said he was awe struck by her clarion voice piercing through the sonic atmosphere the band created, bringing a female perspective to what is a male dominated movie. Old Black’s thundering earthly elemental sound feedback and crunch expressed and further heightened the emotion and the chaos of the movie’s climactic scene.

“That’s what you’re looking for when you score a movie. A musical performance that has the same emotional impact as the visual and narrative components of the film,” Burnett said. T-Bone continued, “I always felt that Dylan sang the song the best, his recording focuses on the lyrics to tell the story. Hendrix’s instrumental performance has no peer but over shadows the message of the lyrics. Then you have Neil Young.

Personally, Neil and the band's performance on that night is my all time favorite."

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Thanks to TW Tour Manager Hounds That Howl for separating the wheat from the chaff!

ps - Happy ARC Day!

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