I had never heard of the artist before as its not a name that tends to crop in documentaries about music, probably because made what is basically folky guitar music. Which just doesn't have the same glamourous and dangerous image as rock does, so it's simply not sellable to a young audience. And there are very few young people in this documentary.

Unlike many docs this does not go into a massive deep dive into childhood from birth, but instead focuses on the career. Which is a welcome angle.

The documentary is enriched by audio of interviews and hand written notes from the artist discussing her music, in particular tracks which have significant resonance.

This artists story is very common however, as they say that on a record label, 90% of the artists never make it, despite the label spending on promotion. And of the 10% who do, they feel they should have been paid more, based on sale. However that money went on the other 90% of artists hoping they would make it. She was firmly in the 90% in terms of popularity. Her issue was her style of music didn't have the commercial edge and a record label is really just a band looking for commercial success.

This artist had issues with heroin use and likely mental health issues, which were never really addressed in the doc, nor did it seem by her. She was injured badly in a car accident, however there was scant detail as to why. A common pattern for substance users is they will use, have a significant injury through an accident, then spiral back into heavier use. This to me seems hinted at but not confirmed. Thought its a well know phenomena if you have worked in this domain.

While it is interesting to see that young people are taking to her music, its obvious that she could have been around today to see her new wave of popularity if she wasn't on drugs. Its hardly a spoiler as she passed away many years ago, like so many in the alternative scene.

Certainly an interesting watch and may spur some people to go and listen to her music, but this is still another doc about an artist who has passed on who had no say in its making.

"I heard he pushed her down the stairs while drunk."

In response to Lost Angel: The Genius of Judee Sill, Rosace Publications denounces the unsubstantiated claim by Russ Giguere that David Bearden pushed Judee Sill down a flight of stairs. With no eyewitness to the event, such a claim rests on dubious hearsay and unfairly pins Bearden as a catalyst for Sill's demise.

On June 3, 1977 (case number: SB117694), Sill filed and won a lawsuit against the Del Mar Motel for unsafe conditions that caused the fall. David's brother, James Bearden, drove 60 miles to bring his stereo to the Santa Barbara County Courthouse so Sill could play her music for the judge. James recalls Sill's romantic girlfriend accompanying her at the time, and she fell because it had just rained and the porch was wet.

Bearden himself refuted Russ's story in his lifetime. In the notes to 2005's Judee Sill - Dreams Come True, Bearden claimed that Russ Giguere never forgave him for sleeping with his lady Caroline.

David Bearden's surviving family and friends are disappointed in the film's one-note portrayal of their relationship. They feel the film focuses solely on the misgivings of former colleagues and fails to convey the scope of Sill and Bearden's professional involvement.

Bearden, a published poet, was a principal contributor to Sill's second album, Heart Food, which was dedicated to him with love. He penned "When the Bridegroom Comes," contributed lyrics to various other songs, and performed harmonica and slide guitar on the LP. Bearden also toured with Sill in the UK at the Albert Hall and many venues where "he was wildly cheered," noted Sill in their joint diary. (Bearden, D. O. (2018b). The Mental Traveler: Poems of David Omer Bearden (1st ed.). Rosace Publications.)

While Sill's and Bearden's relationship was admittedly volatile, excluding a proper introduction about David and the creative value he contributed is disserving to both Bearden and Sill. The film's failure to present a rounded telling of these events (Pat Blessing was a close friend of Bearden's until he died in 2008-why was she not asked in the documentary?) undermines its credibility. It slanders the reputation of the deceased, who sadly cannot speak back.