Martin Scorsese’s favourite musicians of the 1960s
American filmmaker Martin Scorsese has enjoyed one of Hollywood’s most impressive careers, with many of his movies considered some of the greatest cinematic achievements of all time, ranging from Taxi Driver to Raging Bull and Goodfellas.
Scorsese’s oeuvre often concentrates on themes such as crime, personal conflict, isolation, guilt, violence, and religion. However, when he’s not making thematically complex fictional films, Scorsese can be found creating documentaries about one of his other main passions: music.
The director has helmed several music documentaries throughout his career, beginning with 1978’s The Last Waltz, which follows The Band. Since then, he has also made projects such as No Direction Home: Bob Dylan, George Harrison: Living in the Material World and the semi-fictional Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese.
Additionally, Scorsese has acted as a producer for the documentary film series The Blues, directing one instalment, Feel Like Going Home. The filmmaker has an intense love of the blues genre, tracing its influence in his favourite artists from the 1960s. He once explained: “The blues had such a powerful mystique, such an aura around it, that certain names would suddenly be in the air, and you just had to have their records.” Scorsese notes that most mainstream music from the period was influenced by the blues, often merging it with a hard rock sound.
He explained: “In the early sixties, my preference was for Phil Spector, Motown, and the girl groups, like the Ronettes, the Marvelettes, and the Shirelles. Then came the British Invasion. Like everyone else, I was floored by this music, and struck by its strong blues influence.”
The director added: “The more I understood the history behind rock and roll, the more I could hear the blues behind it. With some of the new British music, the blues came to the forefront, and the bands were paying homage to their masters.”
Scorsese picked out John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers, one of the most important pioneers of British blues rock. The band was led by Mayall, who allowed tens of different musicians to join him in his ever-rotating lineup. Sadly, his legacy is often overshadowed by the musicians who temporarily played with him in the Bluesbreakers, such as Fleetwood Mac’s John McVie, Peter Green and Mick Fleetwood, and Cream’s Eric Clapton. However, Mayall was a vital figure in shaping the sound of modern rock into what we know today.
Speaking of Fleetwood Mac, Scorsese was also a big fan, and due to their early sound, he called them “basically a blues band”. Of course, Scorsese’s admiration for The Rolling Stones is no secret, explaining that their “music had a heavy blues accent right from the start”. In 2008, Scorsese filmed the Rolling Stones concert film Shine a Light, a testament to his dedication to the iconic British band, which he first saw perform in 1970. As fans know all too well, he has included many of their songs in his movies, such as ‘Jumpin’ Jack Flash’ in Mean Streets, and four different tracks in Casino, including ‘Can’t You Hear Me Knocking’ and ‘Heart of Stone’.
Another favourite ‘60s band for Scorsese was Cream. He shared: “I still love to sit alone in a room and wrap myself up in that music. They created an amazing fusion of blues and hard rock, and some of their most beautiful songs were covers.” Cream are often considered the first supergroup, with their blues-infused rock also incorporating a psychedelic sound that allowed them to become one of the decade’s most definitive acts. The band can be found on the soundtrack to one of Scorsese’s films, with ‘Sunshine Of Your Love’ playing in Goodfellas.
Martin Scorsese’s favourite musicians:
- The Ronnettes
- The Shirelles
- The Marvalettes
- John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers
- Fleetwood Mac
- The Rolling Stones
- Cream
