Beanland - Rising From the Riverbed

Rising from the Riverbed is about the people, the moments and --- the music. Beanland was part blues, part ragtime, and part boogie woogie all coming together to create what Bill McCrory perfectly calls, ‘river music.’ The core of river is the soul, the culture, and the heart that lies in every person who lives their life according to this same groove. JoJo Hermann, original member of Beanland and current member of Widespread Panic, says, “Mississippi has a groove, it has a vibe from Junior Kimbrough [and] RL Burnside. And Beanland is a part of that.”
Rising from the Riverbed paints the picture of this timeless and influential band with roots plated firmly in the ground of Mississippi. It chronicles the crazy adventures and misadventures of some good ole Southern boys, and one Yankee, who had fingers like hammers that could dance gracefully across the keys of a piano. In the late 80's, the guys were brought together because of their common love for the Grateful Dead. They were all diggin' what the Grateful Dead was doing for music and what they were doing on stage, and wanted to do something like that.

Chico Harris, fan from the heyday, on Beanland, "They never professed to being great players or being too serious about it, but they knew something connected between the band and the audience during the shows and fell in love with that feeling." This amazing film, part documentary, features interviews and stories from all those involved. It's also part concert, showing scenes from many shows including their 2004 Reunion show in Oxford and the Grove show from 2001. Rising from the Riverbed is an incredible journey told through the eyes of first-time filmmakers Scotty Glahn and Kutcher Miller.

Beanland was "right at the cutting edge of what turned into jambands, when no one knew what it was," says Producer Jim Dickinson. Beanland will forever be in the hearts of those lucky enough to have witnessed their groundbreaking shows in the late 80's and mid 90's. Rising from the Riverbed takes you to that time and those moments when anything could happen - and it did.

- By Sutton Stevens