Washington Post Magazine calls her "a living legend of American music; a national treasure."

Others call her the personification of the music she sings.

They’re talking about Hazel Dickens, who is featured in a newly released documentary from Appalshop Films.

The documentary, Hazel Dickens: It’s Hard to Tell the Singer From the Song, profiles the singer-songwriter who powerfully combines the deepest roots of American musical tradition with a contemporary perspective.

From the coalfields of West Virginia to the factories of Baltimore, Dickens has lived the songs she sings. She is a pioneering woman in bluegrass and country music, and has influenced generations of songwriters and musicians. Her songs of hard work, hard times and hardy souls have bolstered working people on picket lines and at union rallies throughout the land.

The documentary features interviews with Dickens and fellow musicians, along with performance footage reaching back 30 years. It also features recent concerts and 16 of her most powerful songs.

Dickens’ recollections are interwoven with comments from musicians she inspired, including Alison Krauss, Naomi Judd, Dudley Connell, Lynn Morris and Mike Seeger.

Dickens has recently been recognized for her distinguished career – one that dates back 40 years. In 2001, the National Endowment for the Arts awarded her with a National Heritage Fellowship, the nation’s highest honor in folk and traditional arts. She was the first woman to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Bluegrass Music Association and in February 2002 she will receive a similar honor from the Folk Alliance.

For more about the documentary, contact Appalshop Films, 91 Madison Avenue, Whitesburg, Kentucky, 41858, or check out their Web site at www.appalshop.org.

Another recent Applashop production is The Ralph Stanley Story, which looks at Stanley’s unique contributions to bluegrass music.