Gibbard, Farrar write songs around Kerouac's Big Sur

Death Cab For Cutie's Ben Gibbard and Son Volt frontman Jay Farrar have created the soundtrack for an upcoming documentary about Beat Generation author Jack Kerouac, according to Rolling Stone magazine.

The two used prose and poetry from Kerouac's 1962 novel Big Sur to write 12 songs for One Fast Move or I'm Gone: Kerouac's Big Sur, directed and produced by Curt Worden.

Among the songs is one based on the Kerouac poem, Sea: Sounds of the Pacific Ocean at Big Sur.

The novel Big Sur is based on the period Kerouac spent holed up in a cabin on the California coast.

The documentary tells the story of how Kerouac's fame after the publication of On the Road in 1957 drove him into isolation and how his search for inner peace helped to stir up his personal demons. Kerouac was struggling with alcohol and drug addiction and would eventually die in 1969 at age 47.

It features interviews with singer Tom Waits, writers S.E. Hinton and Sam Shepard and punk rocker Patti Smith, all of whom count Kerouac as among their influences.

Farrar and Gibbard have been working together on the soundtrack since 2007 and plan to create a stand-alone album of the 12 songs.

Both are followers of Kerouac and Gibbard refers to the writer in his album Narrow Stairs.

The documentary started on the festival circuit this year, but there is as yet no release date.