Carter was not the first office-seeker to closely align himself with musical artists. In decades past, politicians, while running for office, often relied on kitschy campaign jingles and theme songs. Most famously, John F. Kennedy utilized Frank Sinatra’s “High Hopes” as his campaign’s signature tune. But in “Jimmy Carter Rock & Roll President,” director Mary Wharton makes the case for how Carter was the first mainstream politician to heavily, genuinely align himself with rock ‘n’ roll, the music of the counterculture. Wharton’s wholesome documentary reimagines the peaceful southerner from misunderstood policymaker to musical connoisseur in a brisk yet charming fashion.
For Wharton, much of the filming—barring the various interviews with talking heads—takes place in Plains, Georgia, an idyllic town that still bears signs of its favorite son reading: “Home of the 39th President” and “Presidential Campaign Headquarters.” A montage of a tiny church and his childhood home paint the former-president as totemic of small-town America. When Carter sits for his interview, the only extravagance he flashes is his belt buckle, emblemed with the initials “J.C.” His genteel drawl masquerades even his heaviest of name-drops as delightful yarns.
The future statesman grew up in an area where Black people constituted 80% of the population, in a liberal household, without running water or electricity. A battery-powered radio entertained his family for much of his childhood, and to her credit, Wharton ably connects musical artists to Carter’s personhood. For instance, his love of gospel sprung from his unyielding faith—Wharton provides fantastic archival footage of Mahalia Jackson performing “Down by the Riverside”—while his fascination with Bob Dylan helped him communicate with his son Chip when the pair were at odds. Other stories, such as his first meeting with the Allman Brothers—which as recalled by Gregg Allman included Carter shirtless on a porch, brandishing a bottle of J&B scotch—not only point toward Carter’s genuine love for music, but why he attracted the attention of these famous players. They saw the beacon of the everyman.
