After an eight-year exploration, Ken Burnsâ 16-hour Country Music documentary will premiere on PBS on Sept. 15.
In celebration of the new film, PBS will air its all-star concert, Country Music: Live at the Ryman, on Sept. 8. Recorded at Nashvilleâs Ryman Auditorium in March, the concert will feature performances by Dierks Bentley, Rosanne Cash, Rodney Crowell, Rhiannon Giddens, Vince Gill, Brenda Lee, Kathy Mattea, Ketch Secor of Old Crow Medicine Show, Ricky Skaggs, Marty Stuart, Asleep at the Wheel, Holly Williams and Dwight Yoakam.
Country Music: Live at the Ryman Set List
- âRuby, Are You Mad at Your Manâ â Rhiannon Giddens and Ketch Secor
- âIn the Jailhouse Nowâ â Ketch Secor
- âTumbling Tumbleweedsâ â Riders in the Sky
- âNew San Antonio Roseâ â Asleep at the Wheel
- âUncle Penâ â Marty Stuart and Ricky Skaggs
- âIâm So Lonesome I Could Cryâ â Holly Williams
- âOrange Blossom Specialâ â Marty Stuart
- âCrazyâ â Rhiannon Giddens
- âHungry Eyesâ â Dwight Yoakam
- âStreets of Bakersfieldâ â Dwight Yoakam and Dierks Bentley
- âCoal Minerâs Daughterâ â Kathy Mattea
âSunday Morning Coming Downâ â Larry Gatlin - âPancho & Leftyâ â Rodney Crowell
- âAre You Sure Hank Done It This Wayâ â Dierks Bentley
- âI Will Always Love Youâ â Vince Gill
- âDonât Get Above Your Raisinââ â Ricky Skaggs
- âI Still Miss Someoneâ â Rosanne Cash
- âWill the Circle Be Unbrokenâ â Full Cast
Country Music: Live at the Ryman will air on PBS on Sept. 8 from 8 p.m.â10 p.m. ET, as well as stream on PBS.org and PBS apps.
Ken and his team spent eight years researching and producing the film, as well as conducting interviews with more than 100 people, including 40 members of the Country Music Hall of Fame. Interviewees include Marty Stuart, Rosanne Cash, Vince Gill, Reba McEntire, Merle Haggard, Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson, Dwight Yoakam, Emmylou Harris, Kris Kristofferson, and Naomi and Wynonna Judd, as well as studio musicians, record producers and others. The film uses more than 3,200 photographs and more than two hours of archival footage, including rare and never-before-seen photos and footage of Jimmie Rodgers, Johnny Cash and more.
âIn country music we found a love for storytelling that translates everyday experiences into universal truths that we can all identify with,â said Ken Burns. âWeâre very excited to share this film with the country, in towns large and small, from one coast to the other. But we are most excited to share it in those areas that gave birth to this most American of art forms. Bringing our film to Ryman Auditorium, the Mother Church of Country Music, and a character itself in our film, is a dream for us.â
Watch Vince Gillâs incredible cover of Dolly Partonâs âI Will Always Love Youâ below.
photo by Jason Simanek/NCD