Wylie and the Wild West (2016)

I watched this movie on the PBS website after a friend who lives in Montana told me how much he liked Wylie Gustafson, had attended his concerts, and how "just to hear his voice makes me feel rooted." Wylie Galt Gustafson (born 1961) is a fourth generation Montana horse and cattle rancher, roper, singer, songwriter, yodeler, and the front man for his band "Wylie & The Wild West." After you spend a little time on his website, you realize that he's that sort of internationally famous person that you've never heard of — which is exactly why PBS made this film about him. This documentary starts off with "Yodel Boogie," and then proceeds through a dozen songs, interspersed with six interviews in which he explains his efforts to channel his sense of land ("the empty sprawl of northern Montana"), his cowboy life, and what he calls the "hum and vibe" of Big Sky country into his music. With over twenty albums released, Wylie and the Wild West continue to record and tour all over the world on a regular basis. For more on Gustafson, see his website: http://www.wyliewebsite.com/

Dan Clendenin: dan@journeywithjesus.net