baby come back
Denis Lambert
Of All The Things is a new documentary that shines a light on one of the greatest songwriters ever.
Dennis Lambert's tale is a humble story but one of incredible success. As the songwriter behind Rhinestone Cowboy (the tune made famous by Glen Campbell), Lambert famously wrote: "I'm gonna be where the lights are shinin' on me", yet his career has largely seen him working behind the scenes.
Dennis Lambert may not be a household name but his works permeate pop culture of the 1970s and 80s. He was a giant in the recording world, penning chart-toppers such as 'Ain't No Woman Like The One I've Got', 'Don't Pull Your Love', 'Baby Come Back', 'One Tin Soldier', 'Nightshift' and 'We Built This City'.
Lambert has written over 600 songs, spanning almost every genre of music, 75 of which have featured on Billboard's Top 100 chart, even at one point having four songs listed simultaneously - a feat previously accomplished only by The Beatles.
A new documentary portrait, directed and co-produced by his son, actor Jody Lambert, is making its way around the world to popular acclaim. Of All The Things is the story of how a decision to take the road less travelled led to the reignition of a great passion.
Although Dennis has had the world singing along to his words for decades, his own voice has remained relatively unknown. However, it turns out his obscure 1972 solo album, 'Bags And Things', is huge. in the Philippines!
A Filipino concert promoter, who had been begging Dennis to tour for decades, finally convinced him to come to the Philippines in 2007, 35 years after the release of his album. Now a perfectly settled 60-year-old family man selling top-end real estate in Florida, Dennis packs up his tour bus and hits the road with a film crew poised to tell one of the most unique comeback stories ever.
Of All The Things is a hilarious and touching film that follows Dennis on a two-week adventure that takes him from the comforts of Boca Raton, through the remote outer islands of the Philippines, to a sold-out show at Manila's famous Araneta Coliseum for thousands of fans he never knew he had.
At the world premiere at the 2008 South By Southwest (SXSW) Film Festival Dennis was asked what makes a good song: "It's a lot of things. If you really want to put it in simplest terms, it's when the marriage of the music and the lyrics press all the right emotional buttons in the listener. It's the way the words sit on the notes. You can't split them out, you know. You can say that's a wonderful lyric taken by itself. Or that's a great melody but it's what happens when they merge that makes a song really special."
Since then, Of All the Things has screened at 2008 Sarasota International Film Festival, where it won the audience award for Best Documentary, Nantucket Film Festival (winner of Audience Award for Best Feature Film) and the Palm Beach International Film Festival (winner of Audience Favourite Documentary) as well as screenings at AFI Fest, Woodstock Film Festival, and festivals across the US. Of All the Things screens as part of First Look in May when ACMI celebrates the art of the music documentary. For more information and session times, click here
Published Monday, 4 May 2009
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