Rodriguez's music became Anti-Apartheid anthems in the 70's, and no one in South Africa knew what happened to the mysterious musician. Did he kill himself on stage? Various myths arose, and two South Africans attempt to piece the story together in this moving, well-shot documentary.
I once had the pleasure of seeing legendary reclusive outsider artist Jandek perform live. Up until a few years ago, almost nothing was known of the performer of atonal blues who had self-released almost 60 albums. He did no interviews, never performed live, and only a couple of photos of him existed. Suddenly in 2004, a handful of gigs happened featuring 'a representative of Corwood Industries (Jandek's own record label)', and fans finally caught a glimpse of him.
Even when the show was announced when I saw Jandek live, I still refused to believe it. I assumed an impostor would show up, if anyone showed up at all. I arrived at the gig where signs were posted that said "The artist requests no photos", and the stage was bare except for a chair and a guitar. It was quite thrilling. Sure enough, a tall thin man dressed in black and wearing a fedora sat down on the stage and began performing his strange, otherworldly blues.
I'm still shocked I got to experience this event.
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