Lester Bangs, Cameron Crowe Appear in New ‘Creem’ Magazine Documentary

Legendary rock critic Lester Bangs and his protégé Cameron Crowe appear in the new trailer for Creem: America’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll Magazine, in theaters this summer.

Directed by Scott Crawford, the trailer features vintage videos and various Creem covers throughout the Seventies and Eighties. Several musicians appear in the trailer, including Metallica’s Kirk Hammett, R.E.M.’s Michael Stipe, Suzi Quatro, Chad Smith of the Red Hot Chili Peppers and more. “Most people want to fit in somewhere,” Stipe says. “I wasn’t going to find it in my high school. I found it in Creem magazine.”

“Buying Creem was a little bit like buying Playboy,” actor Jeff Daniels says. “You didn’t want your parents to see either one of them.”

Crawford, who previously directed Salad Days: A Decade of Punk in Washington DC, 1980-90, described the magazine as “a history lesson of sorts.” “There was an undeniable punk aesthetic and its bite-the-hand-that-feeds editorial approach resonated with me instantly,” he recently told Rolling Stone. “The writing was inspired and bratty (yet thoughtful) and encouraged me to listen to music in a way that I hadn’t previously known how to do.”

The film was co-produced by JJ Kramer — son of Creem‘s co-founder and publisher, Barry Kramer — and Jaan Uhelszki, who served as senior editor. Creem alums Ed Ward, Dave Marsh, and others also appear in the film.

The documentary was originally titled Boy Howdy! and premiered at SXSW in Austin, Texas, in 2019. It will screen in theaters when they reopen later this summer.