Keith Richards: Under the Influence (2015) Reviews

• Good, but needs more focus and depth

  grantss2018-09-16

  The legendary Keith Richards reveals the artists, individuals and music that influenced his music. Interesting documentary, on a very interesting subject. Keith Richards is one of the most influential and successful artists in music history and his views on music are generally worth listening to. The documentary does a reasonable job of showing what and who influenced him, making him the musical genius and megastar he has become. Some good clips from the influential artists, plus Rolling Stones clips and Keith Richards solo clips, including behind-the-scenes footage from him working on his latest album. However, the documentary lacks focus, jumping around and not really making too much of a point in the end. In a way this adds charm to proceedings, as this fits in with the laid-backness of Richards's persona. It would still be nice to have some degree of order though... In addition, as you would imagine of someone of Keith Richards's ilk, his influences are broad and there is much ground to cover. This leaves not much in the way of depth, e.g. reggae gets covered in about 5 minutes and even Chuck Berry, probably the greatest influence on Richards, is only highlighted through the anniversary concert Richards appeared at. A longer, more detailed, documentary would have been great.

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• Entertaining But Way Too Short

  Michael_Elliott2015-09-22

  Keith Richards: Under the Influence (2015) *** (out of 4) This Netflix documentary has Keith Richards talking about a variety of subjects while touring with The Rolling Stones on their 2015 tour as well as preparing his solo album Crosseyed Heart. If you're a fan of Richards or the Stones then you're obviously going to want to check this film out as there's some great interview footage as well as some behind-the-scenes footage from the recent tour. The biggest flaw with this film is that it's rather uneven and I'd argue that 83 minutes isn't nearly enough time to fully get into the mind of Richards. Part of the film is a promo piece for the new album as Richards talks about what made him get back into the studio with a solo album and he also talks about his influences on the album. Whenever the new album isn't being discussed we get the legends talking about his influences, other rebels of rock music, country music, the blues and what it was like being chewed out by Chuck Berry. Again, this is a good and entertaining film but at the same time you can't help but think there's so much more to know about Richards and there's just not enough time here to capture everything. Still, it was great fun getting to see him in the studio recording the new tracks and there's no question that he always manages to have something interesting to say.

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• A gem for music lovers

  adrianotedde2015-11-02

  "Under the Influence" is an intimate portrait of Keith Richards, the music lover. It is highly recommended to Rolling Stones fans and music aficionados. After over fifty years of Richards's career in pop music, this is the film that finally describes the music that made the man avoiding all the sex, drugs and rock'n'roll gossip. It is a significant and welcomed change from decades of accounts tainted by a meaningless narrative of debauchery that satisfied the lowest of rock'n'roll fans' desires and kept many others hungry for good and true music story. The 81 minutes of the film go very fast in a journey that brings the viewer through the main genres of American popular music: blues, country, rock'n'roll. Richards visits New York, Chicago and Nashville and recounts his fascination for American music and his encounters with the legends that inspired the Stones, from Muddy Waters to Howlin' Wolf and Chuck Berry. The interview briefly covers several other aspects of the musician's work like song-writing, recording processes, solo career and the use of different instruments. The film contains also precious footage of studio recordings with Tom Waits and Richards's house sessions in Jamaica with the Wingless Angels. Richards in his short, sometimes convoluted, phrases conveys all the devotion and deep appreciation for what music can bring into one's life. A strong sense of the passing of time and mortality brings in another novelty for a Stones documentary and makes Keith Richards's testimony somehow touching. Great little film on a great music soul.

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• Keith's drunk chuckle makes it worth your time

  maccas-563672019-01-25

  The drunk chuckle of Keith Richards makes me smile. This wasn't so much a documentary about Keith, but more about his music influences. If you're a guitarist or big fan of the blues, then you'll probably love this. If not, then you may find it a bit underwhelming as I did in parts. The first half was a bit like hanging around a music store as guitarists talked about their instruments and recording techniques. I did enjoy hearing how 'Street Fighting Man' came about in the studio though. The sheer scope of different genres and musical influences on Keith was impressive, as was his sheer love for music and rock n roll itself. The reggae and country segments were particularly interesting - as for me, the Stones were my stepping stone into the whole country genre. Have you ever wanted to see Keith Richards and Chuck Berry argue? Well this is your chance. I also had no idea about Keith's proficiency on a piano - was great to see him playing! By the end, you feel like you've been hanging out with Keith and he starts to feel like a good friend. A brief touching moment on family and love was a nice way to wrap things up. If you've always just thought of Keith as a pirate or drunkard, then watch this to get a better understanding of the man and how gifted a musician he is - we need to appreciate these music legends while they're still around!

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• Interesting, but sporadic

  oldchummer2018-12-11

  If you're a big Stones fan and have a knowledge of their history, then this documentary won't have much new stuff to offer. We get the usual story about what influenced him starting out from the old blues of Muddy Waters and Howlin Wolf to the early rock of Chuck Berry and Elvis. Most of the documentary is about his appreciation for the music as well as the making of his third solo album Crosseyed Heart (though it doesn't really get much into the songs themselves). The making of the album is more of a backdrop for Keith's ramblings on the music he loves, which I suppose was sort of the point, but it makes the documentary feel choppy and sporadic at times. It'll jump from him praising Reggae, from breifly mentioning his 80s feud with Mick, to him playing with his idol Chuck Berry in '86 within a span of 2-3 minutes. These are all very entertaining on their own, but these stories don't always get as much breathing room to go too far in depth. This is by no means a bad documentary, its very watchable and entertaining, but its not as grand as you'd want a documentary to be about a legend like Keith.

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