I love film again! The screening of “That’s the Way God Planned It” last week at TACAW was remarkable. The title is a song Billy Preston wrote and sang in 1971, during The Concert for Bangladesh at Madison Square Garden in New York City. He also danced brilliantly on stage and, in a voice-over recorded later, said, he “had to rejoice.”
It is no surprise that this screening happened here. I moved to the Roaring Fork Valley in 1976, The Summer of the Big Ships in NYC harbor. My British musician boyfriend played at the top of one of the Twin Towers then, and on break viewed many ships in the waters around Manhattan Island. He described the scene to me as I listened through a payphone in Carl’s Pharmacy. He stayed out east and I began digging roots in here.
We went to art college in Brooklyn in the early ‘70s and he played in pubs and clubs downtown. His band, “Banish Misfortune,” opened in CBGB’s for Blondie and Patty Smith — who also went to our school. One night in the West Village — we were out for a rare dinner, sharing an entrée — he told me casually that George Harrison just walked by the restaurant. I often acted falsely cool, pretending I didn’t care about well known musicians, but holy moly my body rose out of the chair and I ran outside. When I returned to the restaurant, my boyfriend asked, “How did you like Billy Preston?” He was walking alongside my favorite Beatle. Musicians knew.
Now, because of this film, many, including members of Mr. Preston’s family, will appreciate the impact he had on our music. Some of the most telling footage is a recording session at Abbey Road in London in 1969. The boys are having a difficult session working on “Don’t Bring Me Down” when young Mr. Preston shows up smiling and saves the day on his keyboard, lifting everyone up where they wanted to be.
Why is it no surprise that this film showed here? Elizabeth Paepcke individualized our ski areas with a music festival starting in 1949. John Denver settled here. It was and is home to many bards: John Oates, Jimmy Ibbotson, Jimmy Buffett, Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Jan Garrett, Frank Martin, Chris Banks, John Sommers, Jennetta Howell and more. Creative voices thrive here.
Not to mention the long-time passion of executive producer and the film’s book writer, Daniel Shaw. I watched him interview writers in our Valley over the years, but he especially lit up when the writer was a bard. His interview with David Crosby at Belly Up after Mr. Crosby wrote his autobiography was an instructive milestone for me, literally. The tenacity of investigation with a remarkable artist was rare. I’ve often utilized their sparring as an inspiration when I faced a similar challenge. They both remained themselves and we benefited.
And the toughest part of this film, for me as a dance and theatre performer, is the story on screen of a brilliant artist’s struggle to keep working, and living to be an older human being. I’ve been thinking lately about humans being LARGE — not like celebrities, but truly ourselves. Standing inside a bright light and radiating all that we are.
In conversation with a long-time arts administrator recently, a passionate-feeling woman I’ve known for some 20 plus years, I said, “I feel, in part, that I’ve been ostracized for being the best I can be creatively.” She was speechless, but I was glad to be honest. I’ve often asked, “At what age do we tell our students to stop being the best they can be artistically?” And then tell them to, you know, “Get a job.” Why?
Two thirds through the film, I felt upset with people who knew Billy Preston who didn’t step in and help him more when he had serious troubles. It’s always a balance, isn’t it? To take risks, to stand by someone inventive, but to also stay healthy and cared for in a community, especially if you don’t have family. Powerful artists sometimes don’t have family. They give their all to us. And what do we give back to them?
When asked after the screening why he chose Mr. Preston to tell audiences about, Shaw replied, “He started at age 5. I love him. I danced around my room as a kid to ‘Will It Go Round in Circles.’” Daniel’s love of music, respect for the creative process and how art inspires us radiates in this thoughtful, luminous portrayal of a generous, extremely talented man and artist: Billy Preston.
The film is expected to screen at the Isis — date and time to be determined — and will soon be available to stream.