A Poem Is a Naked Person (1974)

A Poem Is a Naked Person: Directed by Les Blank. With Leon Russell, Eric Andersen, Richard V. Armstrong, Audie Ashworth. Les Blank’s first feature-length documentary captures music and other events at Leon Russell’s Oklahoma recording studio during a three-year period (1972-1974).

“For those of you fortunate enough to have been in a situation where Les Blank personally showed his private copy of this film to a group of non-profits, you might get the title joke. Easily Lesu0026#39;s least seen film for legal reasons, it is nevertheless one of his best. The film documents the recording period of musician Leon Russell in his Oklahoma recording studio from 1972-1974. The film alternates between vignettes of Leon at his sprawling studio, such as the painting of the mural in his pool, and scenes of local Oklahoma flair, like the great goose flight. While oftentimes it features persons who seem to be there to do nothing but lounge and generally disagree, there are those moments when Leon and his crew actually play music, and those moments are wonderful. Itu0026#39;s a shame that Leon refuses to release this film, because it exists as a document of a person in a time that canu0026#39;t be gotten back, yet must be understood. Les is an aging man who may never show his film again so if you come across a situation where it will be shown, go out of your way to see it.”