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But when it comes to Jimmy Carter, the popular all-time record seems to be scratching. Despite the 39th President’s longstanding interest in music and its influence on his career, Carter’s connection to the artists who shaped American culture often remains unrecognized.
“I was not at all familiar with Carter’s interest in music, and as a documentary filmmaker who has studied the history of music from this period, I was shocked that this story existed and was hidden away. in plain sight all this time “says. “His musical favorites say a lot about who he is.”
From gospel sung in local churches in Georgia, to country music he could listen to on his childhood radio, to Bob Dylan’s lyrics that set him apart as a politician, “Rock & Roll President” plays like a soundtrack. virtual life story of Carter. Below, we highlight 12 songs from and inspired by the movie and what they tell us about Jimmy Carter.
“Whiskey River”, Willie Nelson
Carter has been friends with Willie Nelson for decades and believes he knows everything the artist has written. Carter explains in the film that some viewed their friendship as inappropriate for a president – but director Wharton is an observer who isn’t surprised by their connection.
“Carter connected to the fact that these artists are truth tellers, and I think that’s one of the things Carter has always been known for,” Wharton says. “He stood firmly behind the truth. He told America the truth even when they didn’t want to hear it; even (when it was) at his peril in politics.”
“Maggie’s Farm”, Bob Dylan
While Wharton wasn’t surprised by Carter’s friendship with Nelson, she was intrigued to learn that Bob Dylan and Carter also have a long friendship, since Dylan isn’t exactly known to be a social butterfly. But as with Nelson, Carter found a soul mate in Dylan.
“Carter recounted when he heard the song ‘Maggie’s Farm’, and how – as a grown-up, son of a farmer, son of a landowner – it was the first time he really really understood the prospect and the predicament of the worker, the guy who works on the farm as opposed to the one who owns your farm, ”says Wharton.
“It’s alright Ma (I’m just bleeding)”, Bob Dylan
“When Carter ran for office there was a huge divide between the establishment kind of world and the youth world, (or) the counter-culture, and Bob Dylan was a hero of the counter-culture,” said Wharton.
“When Carter was quoting Dylan, he was telegraphing young voters that he was listening to the same music as them, and that was a big deal. Young people at that time were very disillusioned with the Vietnam War and Nixon and (then president) Ford, which was Nixon’s legacy. It was what Carter was running against, and Carter was very smart at embracing the language of counterculture. “
“By the river”, Mahalia Jackson
Carter’s musical tastes are incredibly diverse, ranging from folk rock to soul to jazz. But at the root of it all, the documentary shows, there is the gospel.
“The gospel piece of this puzzle was so important,” says Wharton. “It’s the kind of music that we explore in the film first because gospel is the foundation.”
But gospel is also the basis of Carter’s story because of the influence the genre had on other music he would like to become.
“All rock’n’roll goes back to gospel; hip hop returns to gospel; R&B, it all comes out, ”says Wharton. “I always come back to this idea that every culture in the world has created its own form of music, and generally spiritual music is the first type of music that appears in a society.”
“Music is the closest thing any of us normal people will ever touch to the divine,” she continues. “You can go to a place that feels like another world, and the music can take you there. That, to me, is a big part of why Carter’s connection to music makes sense, because he was so connected to his spirituality.
“Amazing Grace”, Willie Nelson
Some of Willie Nelson’s gospel music, Wharton learned, was actually balm for Carter during an immensely tumultuous turn of his presidency.
“Even his collaborators didn’t know it. Without our film, no one would know that there was a musical connection to how he came through this crisis with such grace and humility and the ability to make choices. difficult. to be sure those 52 American hostages made it home alive. His presidency was killed by that, but those Americans came home alive, and that’s all he cared about. the pillars, I think. , of what makes this concept of “president of rock’n’roll” hold together “.
“Steps”, Cecil Taylor
In popular culture, Carter tends to come across as “a bit of a fuddy-duddy; a grandfather figure with his cardigan sweaters and ‘aw shucks’ attitude,” Wharton says.
In fact, “he’s a fan of some of the most intellectual, intoxicating, and supremely hip music on the planet.”
Part A for the director was her discovery of Carter’s love for famous jazz musician Cecil Taylor. Wharton had heard of Taylor but hadn’t really taken an interest in his music until working on the documentary, when she learned that Carter was obsessed with the artist.
“Cecil Taylor was that pioneer of the free jazz movement, so his music is very intellectual and incredibly forward thinking. I was blown away when I started listening to it,” said Wharton. While they haven’t been able to trace any footage from a Taylor performance that matches the documentary, a song like “Steps” speaks “of a level of hipness that I don’t think anyone really expects from. Jimmy Carter. … I love when I tell people that I didn’t really know about Cecil Taylor’s music until President Carter gave me over to him. “
“Salt Peanuts”, Dizzy Gillespie
Other giants of the genre showcased their art that day, including Dizzy Gillespie, who can be seen performing “Salt Peanuts” in the documentary alongside Carter.
“Carter studied nuclear physics, and there is a strong correlation between music theory and math and science,” says Wharton. “When you start to look at these bits of Carter’s personality, that he was a scientist, but he was also a humanist – everything indicates his love of jazz.”
“Midnight Rider”, Allman Brothers Band
According to Wharton, some of the most surprising artists Carter connected with were members of the Allman Brothers Band.
The southern rock group was “known to be rowdy, drugged, and beat up,” Wharton says. “Just a completely different kind of thing than any of these other artists.”
“Can’t you see”, Marshall Tucker Band
Wharton also wanted to understand how the artists viewed their relationship with the politician.
“When it comes to musicians who have, you know, a lot of people who want to be their friend all the time, why wouldn’t they be wary of his motives, or feel like he uses them? to get the youth vote, or something like that? ” Wharton said.
What she learned was that “they could feel he was being sincere and that he wasn’t just talking,” she said. “Songwriters are always looking for the truth, because that’s what makes a good song – when there’s enough truth in it that everyone can relate to it in some way. another, that’s when it resonates with a large audience. And the fact that Jimmy Carter was truly the embodiment of truth is a big clue to me as to why these musicians and writers- composers in particular have connected with him. “
“God Bless America”, Aretha Franklin
“(They) were two of my favorite artists,” Carter says in the film, “and so when I got ready for the inaugural artists to be chosen, they were at the top of my list.”
“American Tune”, Paul Simon
“Sometimes things were so ridiculously perfect, you know, like the fact that Paul Simon played ‘American Tune’ at Jimmy Carter’s inaugural concert,” Wharton adds. “It was like, ‘what better song could he have chosen?’ It is so fitting. “
“Daughter of the Coal Miner,” Loretta Lynn
Another invaluable scene for Wharton was found in Loretta Lynn’s performance of “The Coal Miner’s Daughter” at the White House.
“Loretta Lynn is kind of everyone’s daughter, and for her, performing at the White House for the President and a bunch of other VIP guests is so wonderful; she’s there in all her glory. crooked, ”Wharton said with a laugh.
“That, for me, was the real pleasure of editing the soundtrack, watching the tracks that are actually there. We don’t pretend that Carter likes Loretta Lynn; we see him give her a big kiss at the end of the song. , and he invited her to play.
“This music is intrinsically a reflection of who he is and how he lives his life, and it takes into account the big and the small throughout his history. That’s what makes it so remarkable to me. “
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