AMERICAN EPIC, a Three-Part Historical Documentary, and THE

AMERICAN EPIC SESSIONS, a Feature-Length Recording Studio Film, Premiere in 2017 on PBS

AMERICAN EPIC, a three-part documentary about the trailblazing era when country-wide, the music of ordinary Americans was recorded for the very first time, and THE AMERICAN EPIC SESSIONS, a feature-length film showcasing contemporary artists in recording sessions, premiere in 2017 on PBS (check local listings).

Executive produced by T Bone Burnett, Robert Redford and Jack White, AMERICAN EPIC takes us on a journey across time to the birth of modern music, when the musical strands of a diverse nation first intermingled, sparking a cultural renaissance that forever transformed the future of music and the world. Two British filmmakers, Bernard MacMahon

and Allison McGourty, have pieced together this extraordinary story set in the late 1920s, when record company talent scouts toured America with a recording machine and for the first time captured the raw expression of emerging cultures. It democratized music and gave a voice to the poorest in the nation. The filmmakers follow the recording machine’s trail across the United States to rediscover the families whose recordings would lead to the development of blues, country, gospel, Hawaiian, Cajun and folk music — without which there would be no rock, pop, R&B or hip hop today. Over three episodes, the remarkable lives of these seminal musicians are revealed through previously unseen film footage, unpublished photographs and exclusive interviews with some of the last living witnesses to that era, when musical styles from across the country first emerged, sparking a cultural revolution whose reverberations are felt to this day. For THE AMERICAN EPIC SESSIONS, the filmmakers have re-assembled the recording machine that allowed America to first hear itself. They have replicated the atmosphere of America’s pivotal1920s field recordings down to the smallest detail, with top American artists recording straight to wax, using all the original microphones, amplifiers and other equipment from that era. This is the first time that any performer has been able to use this machinery for more than 90 years. Led by producers Jack White and T Bone Burnett, today’s legends are given a once-in-a-lifetime chance to relive the experience of the founding mothers and fathers, their idols, and remake the music that changed America and changed the world.

First-ever color film footage of Mississippi John Hurt by K. Swerilas, here performing “Louis Collins.” Credit: From collection of Lo-Max Films Ltd. Used with permission.

In addition to the broadcast, AMERICAN EPIC will include companion music releases. Sony Music’s Legacy Recordings will release a companion series of archival recordings, featuring groundbreaking audio restoration of 1920s and 1930s recordings by Lo-Max Films, Nick Bergh and Peter Henderson. Third Man Records will release a deluxe box of vinyl records. The American Epic Sessions, which will be released by Columbia Records, includes exclusive new recordings, produced by Jack White and T Bone Burnett, of music legends and contemporary artists featured in the broadcast, including Alabama Shakes, The Americans, The Avett Brothers, Beck, Frank Fairfield, Ana Gabriel, Rhiannon Giddens, The Hawaiians, Elton John, Pokey LaFarge, Bettye LaVette, Los Lobos, Lost Bayou Ramblers, Taj Mahal, Steve Martin & Edie Brickell, Fred Martin and The Levite Camp, Ashley Monroe, Nas, Willie Nelson & Merle Haggard, Blind Boy Paxton, Raphael Saadiq and Jack White. Funding for AMERICAN EPIC is made possible by generous support from Anne Ray Charitable Trust. Funding is also provided by public television viewers and PBS. AMERICAN EPIC will be available on DVD and Blu-ray from PBS Distribution: ShopPBS.org; 800-PLAY-PBS, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The film will also be available for digital download. PBS International, the worldwide co-production and distribution arm of PBS Distribution, will distribute AMERICAN EPIC to broadcasters and media companies worldwide. For more information on the overall initiative, visit www.americanepic.com. For information specifically about the documentary series and recording studio film, visit www.pbs.org/americanepic. The social media hashtag is #AmericanEpic. AMERICAN EPIC is a production of Lo-Max Films, BBC Arena, Wildwood Enterprises and THIRTEEN PRODUCTIONS LLC for WNET. Director: Bernard MacMahon. Writers: Bernard MacMahon, Allison McGourty, Duke Erikson. Producers: Allison McGourty, Bernard MacMahon, Duke Erikson, Bill Holderman. Executive producers: T Bone Burnett, Robert Redford, Jack White, Anthony Wall for the BBC, Julie Anderson for WNET. Stephen Segaller is executive in charge for WNET. Bill Gardner, VP of Programming & Development, oversees the project for PBS. Press Contacts: Natasha Padilla, WNET 212-560-8824; padilla@wnet.org Press Materials: http://pbs.org/pressroom or http://thirteen.org/pressroom

Websites: http://americanepic.com, http://pbs.org/americanepic, http://facebook.com/americanepic, @AmericanEpic, http://instagram.com/americanepic/, http://google.com/+americanepic, http://youtube.com/americanepic, #AmericanEpic