Where Are You, Jay Bennett?
| Where Are You, Jay Bennett? | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Gorman Bechard Fred Uhter |
| Produced by | Fred Uhter Gorman Bechard |
Production company | What Were We Thinking Films |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 105 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Where Are You, Jay Bennett? is a 2021 documentary film directed by Gorman Bechard and Fred Uhter. It is about the life of American musician Jay Bennett, best known for his work with the band Wilco.[1][2][3][4]
Production
Where Are You, Jay Bennett? is the sixth rock documentary by Bechard, whose previous music documentaries include Color Me Obsessed, What Did You Expect?, and Every Everything: The Music, Life & Times of Grant Hart.[5][6][7]
Release
The film had its world premiere at the Davis Theatre in Chicago on November 15, 2021.[8]
It was released on DVD and BluRay on April 19, 2022 ,[9] and as a special edition Record Store Day 2022 release packaged with Bennett's last two albums being released on vinyl for the first time.[10]
Reception
In the Loop Magazine wrote, "Where Are You, Jay Bennett? is one of the most intimate portraits of a musician ever filmed."[11]
Writing in Americana Highways, Steve Wosahla said,"The new film does a wonderful job of capturing the quirkiness, inventiveness and brilliance of someone who never met an instrument he couldn't play."[6]
In a New York Times article, Lindsay Zoladz quoted Bechard and wrote, "Personally, I wish they had stayed together because I think they could have literally become the next Lennon and McCartney or the next Jagger/Richards, Bechard said in an interview promoting his documentary. After spending time with this exhaustive boxed set, though, I can't possibly imagine a universe where that version of Wilco could have stayed together long enough to make that happen."[7]
Jeremy Porter in Pencil Storm wrote, "The underlying theme of the movie is Jay's talent as a musician. His contributions to Wilco's second and third albums Being There and Summerteeth propelled them into another universe."[12]
In The Medium, Keith R. Higgons wrote, "If you're a Wilco fan and have seen the Sam Jones documentary I Am Trying To Break Your Heart . . . it's required viewing to watch Where are you, Jay Bennett? — Bechard's film is the ballast to Jones' film. It provides much needed context to the Wilco/Yankee Hotel Foxtrot story and drama."[4]
References
- ^ Porter, Jeremy (May 7, 2022). "Documentary Review: Where Are You, Jay Bennett?". Pencil Storm. Retrieved August 3, 2025.
- ^ Hughes, Rob (May 27, 2022). "Where are you, Jay Bennett?". UNCUT. Retrieved August 3, 2025.
- ^ Gonzales, Dillon (May 27, 2022). "'Where Are You, Jay Bennett?' Blu-Ray Review - Under-Appreciated Wilco Performer Gets His Deserved Spotlight". Geek Vibes Nation. Retrieved August 3, 2025.
- ^ a b Higgons, Keith R. (July 23, 2023). "Rock Doc Auteur". etc. Magazine. Retrieved August 3, 2025.
- ^ "Where are you, Jay Bennett? (2021)". What Were We Thinking Films. Retrieved August 2, 2025.
- ^ a b Wosahla, Steve (April 21, 2022). "Jay Bennett, Gone Too Soon (Where are you, Jay Bennett?--Film Review) • Americana Highways". Americana Highways. Retrieved August 2, 2025.
- ^ a b "Behind Wilco's 2001 Masterpiece, a Band Breaking Its Heart (Published 2022)". October 3, 2022. Retrieved August 2, 2025.
- ^ Wilkinson, Sean (November 10, 2021). "A documentary on Jay Bennett is coming to the Davis Theater in Chicago". Smile Politely. Champaign, Illinois. Retrieved September 27, 2025.
- ^ "What Were We Thinking Films". whatwerewethinkingfilms.eventive.org. Retrieved August 2, 2025.
- ^ "Where are you, Jay Bennett?". recordstoreday.com. Retrieved August 3, 2025.
- ^ "Wilco's Jay Bennett rocks his own documentary from directors Gorman Bechard & Fred Uhter". In the Loop Magazine. Chicago. February 23, 2022. Retrieved September 27, 2025.
- ^ Porter, Jeremy (May 7, 2022). "Documentary Review: Where Are You, Jay Bennett?". Pencil Storm. Retrieved August 3, 2025.