The documentary that made Jesco White famous.
Thirty minutes showcasing mountain step dancing, Elvis worship.
Murder, fried eggs, Freebird, burning up your damn car, guilt.
Filmed in Boone County, West Virginia, forgotten crannie of the American Dream.
This is about as authentic as they come. I’ve been in this neck of Appalachia hundreds of times.
Fame and exploitation soon followed, along with groupies, tattoos, hipsters and phonies.
The sequels are less fun, this is the genuine article.
I first saw this while visiting family , just after the initial airing.
My middle brother had the VHS playing, and for half a tick I thought it was him dancing on that swayback bridge.
“What the hell. Where’d he learn to dance like that?” I wondered.
I realized it was not him, but I knew the Appalachia landscape.
“Where is that?” I asked.
“Boone County. Where Dad lives.”
Like a million other Southerners, I got a VHS copy pronto!
I shared with coworkers who loved it. Jesco’s fame spread like kudzu.
For twenty years, every time I visited Dad in his rural oblivion, I hoped to catch a Jesco concert, jamboree, or step-off. Never happened.
My youngest brother and his band actually met Jesco during 2006’s JescoFest. A benefit concert put on by 60 groups to help Jesco buy firewood for the winter. Three day weekend. Earned $600.00.
It was considered a success.
