We’ve been watching a lot of documentaries over the past few years, especially music documentaries, and there has been a strong multi-year run of so many fantastic new releases it’s worth recommending some of what we’ve seen.
Most of these we rented or purchased on iTunes or Netflix. There are a few DVDs. These are the ones worth seeing again, not a list of everything watched. Even if you don’t necessarily like the band (Journey, Rush, whatever) the movies are fantastic.
Bold titles indicate a particular awesomeness. (Updated April 2019.)
Music Documentaries
- Beyoncé, Homecoming
- Rolling Stones, Olé Olé Olé
- Shot, The Psycho-Spiritual Mantra of Rock and Roll
- Ed Sheeran, Songwriter
- Taylor Swift, Reputation
- The History of Chicago
- Bill Frisell, a Portrait
- Gaga: Five Foot Two
- Chasing Trane
- Roger Waters The Wall
- Long Strange Trip: The Untold Story of the Grateful Dead
- Eat That Question, Zappa In His Own Words
- Frank Zappa & the Mothers: Roxy the Movie
- Jaco
- The Other One: The Long Strange Trip of Bob Weir
- Amy (Winehouse)
- Paradise Is There: The New Tigerlily Recordings – A Film Memoir by Natalie Merchant
- R.E.M. By MTV
- The Pleasures of Being Out of Step: Notes on the Life of Nat Hentoff
- Charles Lloyd: Arrows Into Infinity
- One Track Heart: The Story of Krishna Das
- Kansas: Miracles Out of Nowhere
- The Wrecking Crew
- Leonard Cohen: Live in Dublin
- The Sea In Between
- Find Your Way: A Busker’s Documentary
- Muscle Shoals
- Artifact
- Jimi Hendrix: Hear My Train a Comin’
- Billy Joel Live at Shea Stadium
- Imagine: John Lennon
- Classic Albums: John Lennon – Plastic Ono Band
- Spark: A Burning Man Story
- Neil Young Journeys
- History of the Eagles
- Jimi Hendrix: The Dick Cavett Show
- Don’t Stop Believin’: Everyman’s Journey
- Sound City
- Metallica: Some Kind Of Monster
- Legends of the Canyon
- Inventing David Geffen
- Crossfire Hurricane
- George Harrison: Living In The Material World
- Rush: Beyond The Lighted Stage
- The Other F Word
- Pearl Jam Twenty
- Michael Jackson: This Is It
- Stones In Exile
- Under African Skies
- Electric Daisy Carnival
- Glass: A Portrait of Philip in Twelve Parts
- It Might Get Loud
Related Music & Culture
- Grass is Greener
- Ram Dass, Going Home
- Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond
- Orange Sunshine
- The Sunshine Makers
- Indie Game: The Movie
- Ken Kesey’s Magic Trip
- Taking Woodstock
- Ram Dass Fierce Grace
- We Live In Public
- Gonzo: Life and Work of Hunter Thompson
Architecture
- The Oyler House: Richard Neutra’s Desert Retreat
- Frank Lloyd Wright: A Film By Ken Burns & Lynn Novick (PBS TV)
- Visual Acoustics: The Modernism of Julius Shulman
- Eames: The Architect and the Painter