Greenwich Entertainment

Greenwich EntertainmentEcho in the Canyon, the star-studded documentary focusing on the influential music scene that began in Los Angeles’ Laurel Canyon in the mid-1960s, opens tonight at L.A.’s Cinerama Dome and Landmark Theater, with additional screenings on Saturday and Sunday.

Among the key groups profiled in the flick are The Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, Beach Boys and Mamas & the Papas.

Directed by Andrew Slater, the film features singer/songwriter Jakob Dylan interviewing various famous artists with connections to or influenced by the Laurel Canyon scene, including David Crosby, Stephen Stills, Graham Nash, Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr, Brian Wilson, The Byrds’ Roger McGuinn, The Mamas & the Papas’ Michelle Phillips, Jackson Browne and more.

Slater tells ABC Radio that in making the film, he and Dylan wanted to find out the stories of the songs they loved from the very artists who created them. What evolved, says the director, is “a very personal look at a subject and music that’s still influential 50 years later.”

Slater adds that a key discovery was how much the bands wound up influencing each other.

The film also shows Jakob chatting with younger artists like Beck, Norah Jones, Cat Power and Regina Spektor about how they were inspired by the scene, and captures them recording songs from the era, as well as performing them live in concert.

In addition, Dylan chats with Tom Petty, in what was the late rock legend’s final on-camera interview. As Slater explains, Petty “is almost like the professor in the narrative of the film.”

A soundtrack album that mainly features the cover tunes showcased in the doc also gets released today. Echo in the Canyon will get its New York City premiere on Friday, May 31, before receiving a wider release in June.

Here’s the soundtrack’s track list:

“Go Where You Wanna Go” — featuring Jade Castrinos
“The Bells of Rhymney” — featuring Beck
“You Showed Me” — featuring Cat Power
“She” — featuring Josh Homme
“In My Room” — featuring Fiona Apple
“Goin’ Back” — featuring Beck
“Never My Love” — featuring Norah Jones
“It Won’t Be Wrong” — featuring Fiona Apple
“No Matter What You Do” — featuring Regina Spektor
“Questions” — featuring Jakob Dylan, Stephen Stills
“I Just Wasn’t Made for These Times” — featuring Neil Young
“Expecting to Fly” — featuring Regina Spektor
“What’s Happening” — featuring Neil Young

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