Clarence
“The Big Man” Clemons, Jr. was a towering legend in music for his saxophonist
work in Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band
as well as guest musical contributions to fellow musicians including Jackson
Browne and Aretha Franklin before tragically leaving this world, widow and four
children behind in 2011, only at the age of 69.
He didn’t leave, however, before spending his final years on a soul-searching
journey that landed him alongside friend and filmmaker Nick Mead and took him
to the other side of the world to China on a spiritual odyssey to enlightenment.
Eight
years after ‘The Big Man’s death, Mead now presents this biographical
film/self-portrait of sorts, Clarence
Clemons: Who Do I Think I Am?
Inspired by an offhand comment a passerby made in China during a moment
where Clemons’ photographer Mead films him playing the saxophone against the
scenic backdrop of the Great Wall, Clarence
Clemons: Who Do I Think I Am? seeks to try and answer that most mysterious
of life’s questions.
Partially
a rock documentary chronicling the life of Clarence Clemons’ time with Bruce
Springsteen and the road life, partially a self-reflexive look into the mirror
during a time Clemons reached his own personal crossroads, it’s a documentary
film in which the gifted musical artist ponders his place in the world
searching for a sense of purpose. Though
his moments on stage with the E Street
Band are indeed unforgettable, it’s the quieter moments of Clemons
examining his own stage in life that resonate the deepest.
Interspersed
with both original and archival interviews including snippets from his many
concert performances in and out of the E
Street Band, Who Do I Think I Am? doesn’t
just leave you with a well-rounded portrait of the man, you also come away
feeling as though you’ve made a friend. Told
through various recollections of his colleagues, friends and family, you come to
know the heart and soul of the E Street
Band as well as come away feeling elated to have known one of American
music’s finest creative artists and the indelible mark he left behind on music
history.
--Andrew Kotwicki
