Anybody else see Jimmy Carter: Rock & Roll President yet? This new film is a documentary about President Jimmy Carter and his love of music. It reveals the story about how the Allman Brothers Band and other musicians helped elect Jimmy Carter as president. Interviews include Gregg Allman, Chuck Leavell, Willie Nelson and Bob Dylan. My favorite part is when Jimmy "sings" the jazz song "Salt Peanuts" in concert with Dizzy Gillepsie.
Yes I remember when Carter ran against Ford. The Allman Brothers and Phil Walden got involved when Win, Loose or Draw came out and they did some shows in support of Carter. The Iranian US Embassy hostage crisis derailed Carter who was having a decent presidency. The rescue mission by the US military failed and it dragged on for over a year. It made Carter look defeated and weak. Ronald Reagan began a John Wayne-General Patton type bid for the White House and defeated Carter in a landslide. Iran must have agreed with Reagan's critics that he would use nuclear weapons because the hostages were released and flown to Germany as soon as Reagan took over.
I'm not talking about Ron Reagan, life long atheist not afraid he is going to burn in hell who is on radio now. I'm talking about his father...the star of the film "Bedtime for Bonzo"!
CNN tonight 01/03 9pm eastern
I watched bits and pieces of it last night...I enjoyed what I saw. In particular, Chuck and Gregg’s interviews...I also enjoyed the footage of the ABB belting out a great rendition of “Whipping Post” from a fundraiser concert for Jimmy’s run for the White House...
Just watched, good vibrations.
As to the hostages being released about an hour after Reagan was inaugurated one might look into the Iran-Contra scandal.
@chain: That Whipping Post footage was bogus. I noticed Berry Oakley was still in the band but Duane was gone. Berry died in 1972. Carter was elected in 1975 and took office the following year. Nice footage, but it was not from a Carter fundraiser. Doesn't matter really, they got their point across. The point being, Jimmy had a very close relationship with the band and I'm sure they did play at a Carter fundraiser. Just not the video that was in the film.
I really enjoyed the documentary, thought it was very well done. What struck me the most was Chuck Leavell saying that Carter stuck with his relationship with ABB even when Gregg was going through the Scooter Herring trial (which was right around the time he was elected). How many politicians would not have run and hid from any relationship with Gregg and ABB at that point? Says a lot about Carter............
@robslob I noticed the clip with Berry, too. I thought it was a great documentary - well done. Cool hearing Bob Dylan waxing poetically with Skynard! I have the same eye doctor as President Carter. They are great friends and in constant contact. I get to hear a lot about "JC". 😉
Aside from the music, I'd say my favorite point of the film was seeing Gerald Ford sitting at the podium next to Carter as he was being sworn in. This was a textbook illustration of class and sportsmanship in politics. I wonder if we'll ever see anything like this again.
I like that CNN uses Ramblin Man for the intro for the advertisment spots. Dickey must like the new income flow...
Yes Dickey has made a lot of money off Ramblin' Man.
Dickey parted with the band in 2000 but when the band folded in 2014 Dickey was still worth more money than Gregg, Butch, Jaimoe, Warren and Derek combined. Dickey wrote some songs that made him wealthy. Gregg did too but supposedly Gregg was worth 15 million and Dickey is 40 million.
Yet that is small compared to Clapton, David Gilmore, etc.
How about Gregg on elec. guitar, Lamar on bass and Chuck on keys giving Carter his own little private sesh in the corner of that back room somewhere ---- where the heck is the video to the rest of that?
