Amid the annoying disruptions of the pandemic there are also some disruptions of a more felicitous nature, like Anne Colton deciding to make music videos. The documentary filmmaker, in partnership with the Homewood Arts Council and South Sub Music Live, has released five music videos featuring local musicians.
Amid the annoying disruptions of the pandemic there are also some disruptions of a more felicitous nature, like Anne Colton deciding to make music videos.
Colton, of Homewood, is a documentary filmmaker. She’s also a musician. Making music videos might seem like a natural fit, but before the pandemic her view of the genre was along the lines of “meh.”
“Our House” (1982) by Madness. The video features Darrow Richmond, lead vocals; Michael Colton, bass guitar; Stacy Norris, drums; Bill Colton, guitar; Winston Doss, trumpet; David Winicky, trumpet and backing vocals; Xavier Branch, trombone; Ella Bohlman, saxophone and backing vocals; J.R. Benson, saxophone; Allie Mengal, violin, and Tara Thrall, violin.
“Angel from Montgomery” (1971) by John Prine. The video features Maddie Schmidt, vocals and guitar; Steve Ploum, lead guitar; Anastasia Robieson, vocals; Kirk Lindstrom, guitar; Rob Calhoon, bass; Jeff Maharry, drums; Josh Robieson, mandolin.
“For What It’s Worth” (1966) by Stephen Stills, then of Buffalo Springfield. The video features Kelly Campos, lead vocal; Alana Maria, backing vocal; Maddie Schmidt, acoustic guitar and backing vocal; Chris Denman, saxophone; Ron Harrigan, trumpet; Susan Williams, bass; and Jon Elfner, drums.
“You Can’t Always Get What You Want” (1969) by the Rolling Stones. The video features Raiye Rosado, lead vocals; Frank Anastos, lead guitar; Carrie Bonanotte, backing vocals; Seth Whitson, rhythm guitar; Matt Giles, bass; Stacy Norris, drums; Joey Bonanotte, French horn; James Rhyne, keyboards; and Bel Canto Choir members Katie Douglas, Gina Bonanotte, Adelai Easter, Fiona Pries, Paloma Chavira and Rocco Bonanotte, vocals.
“It’s not something I was ever interested in. It just wasn’t my thing,” she said. “This is absolutely new to me.”
Early in July, Colton released four music videos she completed with support from the Homewood Arts Council, collaboration with South Sub Music Live and participation by a cast of talented local music makers.
The videos are part of the “Quarantine (we’re all trapped at home) Music Series” and were created pandemic-style to fit the times, with each musician recording their own performance with minimal direction from Colton, who took the pieces and stitched them into a cohesive whole.
Colton produced a couple of early-pandemic music videos that were simpler in presentation, with videos of each musician shown in an array of boxes, much like a computer screen during a video conferencing session. They were just for fun, she said.
The first effort at the music video genre was “Dancing With Myself,” a light-hearted pop tune that was a test run for what was to follow.
By the time she finished the “For What It’s Worth” video, she was getting excited about the possibilities and felt she was producing something special.
“’For What It’s Worth’ is one of the best videos I’ve ever made. I’m so proud of it,” she said.
She said her approach borrows heavily from her documentary filmmaking experience, where empathy for her subjects is more important than controlling the content with a lot of explicit direction.
“I like to let the material just happen. I can provoke things but I give very little direction,” she said.
For the music video series, she mainly laid a foundation for the musicians. The participants had to be from or have a connection to Homewood. They had to record their own videos from their home, inside or very nearby to maintain a sense of the physical restrictions imposed by the pandemic.
Aside from a few technical suggestions, that was about it. She said the recordings she received were wonderful.
“Everybody brought their A game, musically and visually,” she said.
There were several moving moments, she said. Maddie Schmidt’s video included shots with a thunderstorm lighting up the window behind her and with her looking into a mirror as she sang. Colton said those images could imply the stormy times the country is in as protests against racial injustice exploded in late May and the self-examination many white Americans are engaged in as a result, Colton said.
She was also struck by the image of her husband, Bob Colton, playing guitar while a TV screen in the background shows a protest march and Kelly Campos’ performance, singing with her fist raised.
Colton took the individual recordings, with their individual approaches and visions, and shaped them into a coherent final product that she hoped would do justice to a classic protest song.
Arts council support
According to Homewood Arts Council co-founder Greg Loudon, Colton and company exceeded expectations.
HAC collaborated with and provided support for Colton’s video series.
The partnership came about after HAC’s big plans for 2020 were thwarted by the pandemic. After establishing its gallery on Ridge Road in 2019, the organization’s leaders were preparing to branch out with monthly events to provide outlets for visual and performing artists and to attract more people to Homewood.
One of the biggest events was to be a downtown music walk, with musicians performing at various locations on the street or in stores. When the pandemic killed that idea, HAC leaders started looking for other ways to support musicians.
Loudon said he stumbled across South Sub Music Live, a series of online open mic sessions and concerts produced by Steve Ploum and Anastasia Robieson that emerged in response to the spring lockdown. While Loudon was talking with Colton about how the organization could support local musicians, the idea of doing videos emerged.
Loudon said the project is the kind of thing HAC was formed to do: promoting and providing support for local talent. Both Loudon and Colton said the series has given them an opportunity to meet musicians whose paths they had not crossed.
“(‘For What It’s Worth’) just blew me away,” he said. “We have to keep this going.”
The fifth video in the Quarantine Music series was released this past week. It is a performance of the Rolling Stones’ “You Can’t Always Get What You Want,” featuring members of the Bel Canto Children’s Choir.
All the videos can be found at the HAC website, www.homewoodartscouncil.com.