In commemoration of the 40th anniversary of Jack Kerouac’s death, F-Stop/Atlantic Records will present the new documentary One Fast Move or I’m Gone: Kerouac’s Big Sur. The film will open theatrically for one night only in New York and Los Angeles on Thursday, October 15 with additional screenings in top 40 markets on Tuesday, October 20.
The film goes on a journey through the locations that inspired Jack Kerouac’s soul-searching memoir Big Sur, including the Beat haunts of New York’s Greenwich Village, San Francisco’s North Beach, and an isolated cabin in a fog-banked Big Sur canyon. Over 30 musicians, actors, writers, and poets join us to tell the story of Big Sur and help unearth what made the book a classic work today. Featured in the film are writer Sam Shepard, singer Patti Smith, singer Tom Waits, actress Amber Tamblyn (The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants), actor Donal Logue (Max Payne), actor John Ventimiglia (The Sopranos), poet Lawrence Ferlinghette, poet Aram Saroyan, and many more.
While recording several songs for the documentary, musicians Benjamin Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie) and Jay Farrar (Son Volt), having never previously met, discovered a mutual kinship in their passion for Kerouac’s work. After the initial San Francisco recording session, the project was developed further to create an album using Kerouac’s own words from the book as the lyrics. Jim Sampas, who also produced the albums Badlands: A Tribute to Bruce Springsteen’s Nebraska and Kerouac: Kicks Joy Darkness, is executive producer of the album, which will be released October 20.
One Fast Move or I’m Gone: Kerouac’s Big Sur, is directed by Curt Worden and produced by Gloria Bailen and Jim Sampas of Kerouac Films. On Tuesday, October 20, a Limited Edition Box Set including an excerpt of unpublished manuscript from Kerouac, never before seen photos, the classic Penguin book of Big Sur by Kerouac, and much more will be available. The CD will also be available individually or as part of a package with a DVD of the film. The album will additionally be released on 180 gram vinyl with the DVD included.