One of the pleasures of watching and writing about new releases is being exposed to new things. New music in particular. While I listen to almost everything, there are moments I have discovered new bands while watching movies that I wasn't aware of. Morphine can be included in that list. Learning their story it saddened me to know that I came across them this late.The movie tells their story from start to finish. The leader of the band was Mark Sandman, a guitarist/singer in several bands in the Boston music scene of the late 80s/early 90s. As various bands were forming and breaking up with him in it, he came across the sound he was looking for. Playing a two string guitar with a slide and joining up with drummer Jerome Deupree and saxophonist Dana Colley, Sandman created the band Morphine.The sound of Morphine has been defined as a combination of jazz and blues mixed with a bit of rock to form a singular sound all their own. Described by the band as "low rock" it is amazing to listen to. The movie provides plenty of opportunity to do that. A combination of performance footage mixed with music videos gives us that. The narrative of their story is told in their own words via interviews with all band members, including Billy Conway who took over for Deupree when he became ill. The movie also talks to numerous people who were involved in the band behind the scenes as well. Their road tech, Sandman's girlfriend Sabine, their manager and various artists from Henry Rollins to Joe Strummer are interviewed. All of it comes together to show the band in their early stages through to their final performance. For me what made the movie even better was that it wasn't a film about the overindulgences of a band. Most documentaries of bands tend to focus on their usage of drugs, personal disputes within the band or fights among the hangers on that erupt in problems for the band itself. In the case of Morphine, with one small exception, there is none of that. It seems all was swell and peaceful in the band at all times. The movie talks about their success critically and of one album that seemed to be ready to catapult them to mainstream success as well. But for one reason or another it never happened. There were no major hit singles that took them from college radio to mainstream airplay. And yet anyone who saw them perform live loved them. SPOILER ALERT! Eventually we learn of what became of the band and that leads the viewer new to their music down a sad path. At a concert in Italy all was going well. The music festival was running on all gears, the band being loved by the crowd when Sandman collapsed on stage. Rushed to the hospital he died of a massive heart attack. To learn this just as you discover their music is disturbing.The one good thing to note is that the music lives on. The recordings are still out there to be enjoyed. The other band members got together for various tribute tours and concerts and still play music. And with this movie more people will be exposed to that music as well. A better legacy could not be expected. Find this movie and watch it. And when it's over find the music as well. I know that's my plan.

Fantastic, moving documentary exhibiting the Morphine story. Will delight fans of this incredible band and new discoverers alike. Where Cure for Pain: The Mark Sandman Story (2011) focused on an introspection of Mark's personal life and psychology, Journey of Dreams is the long-awaited 'companion' which beautifully showcases the origins of the band itself, and their meteoric rise to prominence. All of the major players are featured -- recounting the Morphine experience in their own words -- along with excellent commentary from several of the band's notable rock contemporaries. The narratives are stitched together wonderfully, the film quality is excellent, the new concert / private footage is killer, and the memories proffered are saturated with genuine, compelling emotion. Hated that we had to wait two years before it's full release, but here it is and it was well worth the patience. It truly delivers, bringing the Morphine journey to life, and gives fans a refreshing new way to connect with the music.

50 plus years into the evolving history of rock 'n' roll, it's not easy to produce a groundbreaking biographical documentary about any band, but Mark Shuman has done so with "Morphine Journey of Dreams". The interweaving of audio and video recordings made by the man who was Morphine's creator and backbone, Mark Sandman, recent reflections by the people who surrounded him, from before the band formed, until Mark's tragic death, combined with distinctly unique tour journals by Dana Colley, master sax-man, being read by the man himself, conjure a depth of inside information rarely found in any biography, especially one in which the main person is no longer living. (We can only hope that Colley finds a way to edit his writing down to create a written autobiographical experience for Morphine fans the world over.) "Journey" flows seamlessly from the days before Treat Her Right, to the inception of Morphine and it's tragic conclusion nearly 16 years ago on a scorching hot day in central Italy. Shuman found a way to bring Sandman back to life, to make him a part of this well crafted work. Morphine was one of the most innovative bands of their day, and this film is a superb way to keep their legacy available for generations to come.