Compromised histories : the impact of production pressures on the construction of historical narratives in popular music documentaries

The music documentary has gained popularity since the 1970s as a medium through which not only to narrate the history of popular music but to allow fans to access “behind the scenes” information through the collation of new and archival footage and audio. Popular music has increasingly become the subject of historic revision via documentaries in recognition as something worth preserving, given its value to society across the twentieth and into the twenty-first century (Brandellero et al. 2014). Recognized now as “heritage”, popular music’s recent past is celebrated in a range of heritage institutions, including museums and galleries (Baker, Istvandity and Nowak 2019), and through a variety of formats, such as anniversary reissues/remasters (Bottomley 2016), reunion tours (Bennett 2009), and tribute bands (Homan 2006). The presentation of popular music heritage through music documentaries offers the viewer an intimate experience with artists through firsthand accounts and “never-before-seen” footage