New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Memphis musician Van Duren had it all going for himself. He was managed and produced by Andrew Loog Oldham (Rolling Stones) in the 1970s, he was a contemporary of Big Star and was in a post-Big Star band (Baker Street Regulars) with Chris Bell and Jody Stephens, and had made a debut album, Are You Serious?, that had some people comparing him to Paul McCartney. But instead of being the next big thing, he faded into obscurity.
Though he didn't break through with Are You Serious?, and a second album was recorded and shelved (eventually released in 1999), Van continued making music. With his band, Good Question, he had a regional hit with the song "Jane" that had record companies sniffing around, but again, to no avail.
Forty years later and a world away, two Australians,Wade Jackson and Greg Carey, came across Duren's lost album, fell in love with the music and set out to discover what went wrong. They tracked Van Duren down on Facebook and despite having never picked up a movie camera, they journeyed to the U.S. to meet Van Duren and tell his story.
Along the way, they crossed paths with rock stars, Scientologists, and a host of talented musicians who never quite made it. The film took them to North America, Colombia, Japan and back to Australia, staying true to their pledge to finish the film and shine light on Van Duren.
Van's lost career is a parable of the trials and tribulations of the music industry — an industry that leaves countless broken dreamers behind in its wake. Waiting: The Van Duren Story is a love letter to the artist and his music that should have helped define a generation.
The film will go a long way to right a decades-old wrong, and the Omnivore soundtrack, Van Duren — Waiting: The Van Duren Story Original Documentary
Soundtrack — due out February 1, 2019 on Omnivore Recordings — will put Van Duren where he's belonged all along, in the record racks for music lovers to discover.
According to Duren: "In May of 2016, I was contacted by two Australians who had suddenly discovered my first album, Are You Serious? From 1978, on someone's Twitter feed. Having been through the shredder of the music business for decades (yet continuously coming back for more) I was naturally skeptical. Why these guys? Why now?
"It took a few weeks, but it became evident that Wade Jackson and Greg Carey were serious—perhaps a long awaited answer to the album's title. I hipped them to the second album, Idiot Optimism (1979), and they were even more blown away. Their plan was to film a documentary about this music and by association, who the hell I am. Now, more than two years later, the film has reached fruition and touched off several other projects related to my life's work: music. I am more than a little stunned by it all.
"We now have an association with the legendary Omnivore Recordings with plans to reissue some of my work. This will include rare tracks previously unreleased. This is such a beautiful turn of events, and it is an honor to be associated with such a fine label. I am excited and humbled most by the attention this music will receive now, 43 years after it all began at Ardent Studios in a town called Memphis.
"Looks like I'm gonna need a desk."
