Beggars of Life, starring Louise Brooks, screens in the UK with live musical accompaniment by The Dodge Brothers

Beggars of Life, starring Louise Brooks, will be shown on Thursday November 6th at the York Theater Royal in York, England with live musical accompaniment by the one and only Dodge Brothers! This special event is part of the Aesthetica Film Festival. More information about this event can be found HERE.

And here is a piece which appeared in the Ryedale Gazette & Herald. 

“Never has a film and a band been more perfectly matched than Beggars of Life and
the Dodge Brothers – deep dish Americana, rail-riding hoboes and Louise Brooks –
 they were made for each other.” – Bryony Dixon, British Film Institute.

 

“I thought the Dodge Brothers were terrific, and Beggars of Life could hardly have been
received more enthusiastically.” – Kevin Brownlow, Oscar honoree

Here is what the venue says about the event: "Experience a dazzling collision of classic cinema and live music as The Dodge Brothers bring their acclaimed live score to Beggars of Life (1928), a landmark American silent film starring Louise Brooks.

With renowned film critic and BBC presenter Mark Kermode on double bass and harmonica, and joined by the extraordinary Neil Brand – celebrated silent film accompanist and star of BBC Four’s Sound of Cinema – on piano, this electrifying ensemble transforms a black-and-white masterpiece into a full-blooded cinematic event.

Rounding out the lineup are Mike Hammond, a gifted Alabama-born guitarist and vocalist with deep roots in Southern Americana traditions, and Alex Hammond, whose percussion brings the rhythm of jug band, skiffle, and rockabilly roaring into the present. The band also features Aly Hirji on rhythm guitar and mandolin, adding even more richness to the sound.

Fusing blues, bluegrass, gospel, jug band, and rockabilly with infectious energy and razor-sharp timing, The Dodge Brothers breathe thrilling new life into this gritty tale of train-hopping outsiders and Depression-era America. Whether performing at Glastonbury, Latitude, or on screen via BBC Radio 2, The Culture Show and The One Show, The Dodge Brothers have built a cult following for their foot-stomping sound and genre-defying performances. Their live scores are hailed by critics as “a revelation,” combining academic insight and raw musical power. This is silent cinema as you’ve never experienced it — urgent, raw, loud and alive." 

The Dodge Brothers have accompanied Beggars of Life on a number of occasions, including most famously, at the Glastonbury music festival, where the group was the first to play live music to accompany a silent film. For more on the Dodge Brothers, check out this 2014 Huffington Post article by Thomas Gladysz on the group's historic performance appearance -- "A Glastonbury First."

Also, the Louise Brooks Society blog includes a short 2011 interview with the band, "Talking with The Dodge Brothers."

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