DELBERT MCCLINTON AND FRIENDS ARE “ROCKING THE BOAT”

DELBERT MCCLINTON AND FRIENDS ARE “ROCKING THE BOAT”

NEW FILM DOCUMENTARY CAPTURES ESSENCE OF GRAMMY-AWARD WINNING PERFORMER ON HIS “SANDY BEACHES” CRUISE

AUGUST 1ST SCREENING SET AT WOODS HOLE FILM FESTIVAL

KEAAU, HI – Every year since 1995, three-time Grammy-winner Delbert McClinton, known for his special brand of Texas roadhouse roots-rock, gathers together a bunch of his favorite musical friends and - along with 1,200 fans - boards a ship for a week-long voyage of non-stop music and fun in the Caribbean dubbed the “Sandy Beaches Cruise.” Now, filmmaker Jay Curlee has captured the essence of a showman’s life, what makes McClinton’s music so special, and why this cruise has been a perennial sellout in his new concert film and music documentary, Rocking the Boat: A Musical Conversation and Journey.

Rocking the Boat: a Musical Conversation and Journey has been selected by the 16th Annual Woods Hole Film Festival on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. It will screen at 7 p.m., August 1st at the Redfield Auditorium of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

The festival is an eight-day showcase of independent film, featuring daily screenings, workshops, panel discussions and special events. For more information on the festival, visit www.woodsholefilmfestival.com. Jay Curlee will attend the screening, which will be the east coast premiere of the film. Curlee will also be on-hand for a Q&A session and panels at the festival. Rocking the Boat was the opening night feature of the 37th Annual USA Film Festival, and was also shown at the 27th Breckenridge Festival of Film.

Music performances were culled from over 150 hours of footage shot in high-definition aboard the 2006 Sand Beaches Cruise. In addition to a number of high-energy performances by McClinton, the film also includes (mostly original) standout songs from Rodney Crowell, Marcia Ball, Stephen Bruton, Wayne Toups, Jimmy Hall, Al Anderson, Tommy Castro, Paul Thorn, and Teresa James. The result is a shipboard musical gumbo of rock, blues, country, funk, zydeco and rhythm & blues. The film’s excellent sound was recorded and mixed by Chet Himes, a Grammy-nominated Austin engineer, who is currently re-mastering the library of the critically acclaimed music series “Austin City Limits” for release on DVD.

In addition to the music, the film includes interviews with McClinton and friends with stories about the joys – and rigors – of the road. Also included are vintage photos and video of McClinton during his over 40 years in music. Another Texas music icon, Kinky Friedman, makes a special appearance, giving his unique spin on Texas musicians and the culture itself.

Though long admired for his exceptional body of recorded work as well as his legendary live shows, Delbert McClinton really started appearing on the American mainstream radar in the late 1970s. He was one of the inspirations for the Blues Brothers, who covered his “B-Movie Boxcar Blues” on their first album. In 1980, he had a Top 40 hit with “Givin’ It Up for Your Love,” and later that decade wrote and sang “Weatherman,” the opening theme for the hit movie, “Groundhog Day.”

McClinton received his first Grammy in 1991 for a duet he sang with Bonnie Raitt, “Good Man, Good Woman,” which won the award as Best Rock Vocal. He has since won Grammy Awards for two of his own albums, Nothing Personal, released in 2001, and Cost of Living, released in 2005.

Rocking the Boat: a Musical Conversation and Journey is a production of JC Communications and is director Jay Curlee’s first feature. He has made more than 2,000 commercials and 200 programs while living his entire professional life in Hawaii. Executive producers of the film are Susan James and Arthur James. Rocking the Boat was produced by Yuri Biersach, Wendy Goldstein, Page Hite, Jim Friscia, W.T. Little, Lewis Stephens, and Gary Turlington. Director of photography is Ken Libby and film editor is Keoni Alvarez.

For more information or to purchase a pre-release limited edition DVD of the film, visit www.rockingtheboatmovie.com

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