SLIFF 2016 – GYPSY: ROCK & ROLL NOMADS Screens Nov. 5th

GYPSY: ROCK & ROLL NOMADS screens Saturday, Nov. 5 at 2:00pm at The Tivoli Theater as part of this year’s St. Louis International Film Festival. Director Goodyear, producers Jack Twesten and David C. Mueller, and subject Ron Stevens will all be in attendance. Ticket information can be found HERE.

One of the bedrock bands on which KSHE built its foundation as a progressive-rock powerhouse, Gypsy has a long and deep relationship with St. Louis. Although the band never quite achieved widespread fame on the national level, the band became a KSHE favorite and developed a rabid local fan base. Though it’s had many lineup changes and several incarnations over the years — the only original member still performing with the group is keyboardist/vocalist James “Owl” Walsh — Gypsy retains a large following of St. Louis devotees, as sold-out shows at the Wildey Theatre in Edwardsville continue to attest.

Evolving out of regionally successful Twin Cities band the Underbeats, Gypsy changed its name in 1968 when its members headed west to LA, where they soon landed a gig as the house band at the Sunset Strip’s storied Whisky a Go Go. As the documentary traces the band’s evolution over more than 50 years, St. Louis connections abound: Ron Stevens, a former KSHE DJ, is a featured interview; significant attention is devoted to the band’s appearance at the 1977 Superjam at Busch Stadium; and the film concludes with footage from a 2015 concert at the Wildey.