Motown records, the sound of young america during its 1960s heyday, was a throwback to the powerful hollywood movie studios of the 1930s and 1940s, running all aspects of its artists careers. Licks gives the reader a snapshot into the ups and downs of one of the greatest unsung musicians. Licks and the allstar list of contributors show you how by sharing jamersons story and getting into the nitty gritty of his music and instrumentation. Aug 20, 2015 standing in the shadows of motown is great entertainment, a piercing and wellexecuted look at a previously undistinguished subject, with clarity of direction and an appealing voiceover by actor.
Gordy originally wants to call it tammie records, after the then popular debbie reynolds film of that title, but the name has already been taken. Motown records, the sound of young america during its 1960s heyday, was a throwback to the powerful hollywood movie studios of the 1930s and 1940s, running all. This is a book for those who love the music made to be heard and those who make the music to be heard. Enjoy a seamless visit to the statue of liberty and ellis island in new york harbor. His tumultuous life and musical brilliance are explored in depth through hundreds of interviews, 49 transcribed musical scores, two hours of recorded allstar performances, and more than 50 rarely seen photos in.
I read and was really impressed with posners case closed kennedy assassination book many years ago and he brings the same level of investigation to this epic account of the rise and fall of the. The song continues to be performed worldwide each year by community, business, and religious leaders wishing to share the message with diverse audiences. The funk brothers standing in the shadows of motown 2004. You cant go by that posner since when is diana happy to share a stage. The phenomenal story of motown has been told many timesso many times in fact that the notion of an untold part of its legacy seems farfetched. Though gordy no doubt had high hopes for his venture, he probably didnt realize hed change the course of popular music, turning out eradefining hits via an everythingunderoneroof talent cultivation, songwriting, and producing system. Rent standing in the shadows of motown 2002 starring andre braugher and earl van dyke on dvd and bluray. Bob babbitt, richard pistol allen, jack ashford, uriel jones, joe hunter, eddie willis, joe messina and johnny griffin. Standing in the shadow of motown is a delightful trip into the past of some of the liveliest music that has ever been made.
Over a fourteen year period they were the heartbeat. The 10 female motown stars you really need to know udiscover. Its most familiar expression in english is by isaac newton in 1675. During paul justmans film documentary standing in the shadows of motown, based on al slutskys book of the same name about the session musicians who played on motown recordings in detroit from the late 50s to the early 70s, one of the interviewees is heard to comment that once those musicians, who dubbed themselves the funk brothers, finished cutting a backing track, it almost didnt matter. Standing on the shoulders, which premiered at official events in washington, d. The metaphor of dwarfs standing on the shoulders of giants latin.
A 10year labor of love for producer sandy passman, the. With the documentary standing in the shadows of motown now streaming on amazon prime video, im reposting my may 21, 2003 interview with allan slutsky, the. But as the documentary film standing in the shadows of motown demonstrates, there was more to the success of the detroitbased label than singing babes in gowns and founder berry gordys business. Standing in the shadows of motown is the soundtrack to the samenamed documentary and book, which recount the remarkable journey of phenomenal unknown greats like drummer benny benjamin. Powell closed her school and joined the motown team in 1964, teaching what she called personal development and growth. The sound of young america longtime motown man barney ales recalls how a trip to the movies with berry gordy led to the supremes buttered popcorn. Oct 11, 2005 i read and was really impressed with posners case closed kennedy assassination book many years ago and he brings the same level of investigation to this epic account of the rise and fall of the epic tamla motown story. Now ask who the instrumentalists were on their records. The musical is based on berry gordys autobiography to be loved. The life and music of legendary bassist james jamersonbassist james jamerson was the embodiment of the motown spirit and groove the invisible entity whose playing inspired thousands. Standing in the shadows of motown movieguide movie.
He also says that standing on the shoulders of giants is the opposite of reinventing the wheel. I have a book called motown, music money, sex and power by gerald posner which is not too bad, but if you are into the behind the scenes story of the musicians, standing in the shodows of motown, the life and musoc of legendary bassist lames jamerson is great. One by one, they trot out a roster of marquee stars. The book made very plain that the family feeling motown music attempted to convey to the public was largely a mirage, especially after the mid60s. In fact, watching this movie without toetapping to the familiar songs and grinning ear to ear is an impossible feat for any viewer, especially for any who lived through the decades that motown dazzled and dominated the music scene in america. His tumultuous life and musical brilliance are explored in depth through hundreds of interviews, 49 transcribed musical scores, two hours of recorded allstar performances, and more than 50 rarely seen photos in this stellar tribute to. Standing in the shadows of motown 2002 pg documentary, music. Bassist james jamerson was the embodiment of the motown spirit and groove the invisible entity whose playing inspired thousands and made it impossible for anyone to sit still while listening to a motown record. His tumultuous life and musical brilliance are explored in depth through hundreds of interviews, 49 transcribed musical scores, two hours of recorded allstar performances, and.
Jul 23, 2016 the musical, about the history of motown records, initially ran for 775 performances on broadway, beginning in 20, and then closed, vowing to return with a slimmeddown production after a. Written by grammywinning session musician allan slutsky, the book was part guitar tutorial complete with accompanying cds and part biography of funk brother james. Or dont even bother, because the question is asked and answered in the affectionate new documentary. Guitar bookbassist james jamerson was the embodiment of the motown spirit and groove the invisible entity whose playing inspired thousands. Standing in the shadows of motown is great entertainment, a piercing and wellexecuted look at a previously undistinguished subject, with clarity of direction and an appealing voiceover by actor. This concept has been traced to the 12th century, attributed to bernard of chartres. The music, the magic, the memories of motown 1994, and on the history of his founding and running of the motown record label, and his personal and professional relationships with motown artists such as diana ross, smokey. This is a book about the musical genius of james jamerson. With the documentary standing in the shadows of motown now streaming on amazon prime video, im reposting my may 21, 2003 interview with allan slutsky, the musicianauthor who spearheaded. In todays style of documentary filmmaking, with grainy blackandwhite mixed with beautiful color photography, the 1. The musical is a jukebox musical that premiered on broadway in april 20. His motown book hot wax, city cool and solid gold is really informative. Nov 15, 2002 paul justmans documentary, based on a book by allan slutsky, gives belated praise to motown s house musicians, the men who played under all the motown hits recorded in detroit. May 17, 2002 standing in the shadows of motown documents the career of the funk brothers, the unknown band behind all of motown s detroitera classics.
Marvin gaye, the temptations, the supremes, the four tops, gladys knight, and others. Motown the musical on broadway new york city 2020 all. The music, the magic, the memories of motown 1994, and on the history of his founding and running of the motown record label, and his personal and professional relationships with motown artists such as diana ross, smokey robinson, marvin gaye. Documentary about the funk brothers, a group of detroit musicians who backed up dozens of motown artists.
Standing in the shadows of motown by paul justman paul. The funk brothers recorded and performed on motowns recordings from 1959 to 1972. Standing in the shadows of motown is a 2002 american documentary film directed by paul justman that recounts the story of the funk brothers, the uncredited a. Almost any student of electric bass will want to peruse this book. The hero of the funk brothers themselves seems to have been the late james jamerson, the bass player who used only one finger but seemed able to keep two times at once. James jamerson standing in the shadows of motown pdf. The life and music of legendary bassist james jamerson, a bass guitar instruction book by allan slutsky, which features a biography of james jamerson along with his bass lines the film covers the. Synopsis bassist james jamerson was the embodiment of the motown spirit and groovethe invisible entity whose bass playing inspired thousands of imitators, and made it impossible for anyone to sit still whenever a motown record was playing. Standing in the shadows of motown 2002 rotten tomatoes. Standing in the shadows of motown is a 2002 american documentary film directed by paul justman that recounts the story of the funk brothers, the uncredited and largely unheralded studio musicians who were the house band that berry gordy handpicked in 1959. Rent standing in the shadows of motown 2002 on dvd and. In the manonthestreet interviews early on in paul justmans documentary standing in the shadows of motown, a few recordstore mavens are asked who they associate with the motown sound.
Bassist james jamerson was the embodiment of the motown spirit and groove the invisible entity whose playing inspired thousands. If you havent seen the film standing in the shadows of motown. I was tamla mad in the sixties and went to this show thinking that they could probably not produce the motown sound live. The funk brothers gathered in detroit last november 2000 for filming. Melinda stang, collection coordinator of the motown museum in detroit, considers the tamlamotown revues arrival in the u. Motown the musical on broadway new york city 2020 all you. Standing in the shadows of motown live home facebook. You hold decades of pop musical history in your mind. In 1959, berry gordy gathered the best musicians from detroits thriving jazz and blues scene to begin cutting songs for his new record company.
Standing in the shadows of motown turner classic movies. The funk brothers standing in the shadows of motown. About the funk brothers standing in the shadows of motown, is the documentary film that tells the story of motowns legendary studio band, the funk brothers. Standing in the shadows of motown original soundtrack. Standing in the shadows of motown documents the career of the funk brothers, the unknown band behind all of motowns detroitera classics. This tour benefits from early reserveline access for a roundtrip ferry trip, as well as an optional early morning departure time that puts you ahead of many sightseers. Motown 101 in january of 1959, detroit songwriter berry gordy founded tamla records, launching its sister label motown that fall. Come celebrate the 10th anniversary of standing in the shadows. His work may also make it hard to ever listen to diana rosss music again without pausing to consider how selfabsorbed she was both durng the era with the supremes and throughout her solo career. Melinda stang, collection coordinator of the motown museum in detroit, considers the tamla motown revues arrival in the u. Although motown fanactics didnt know him by name, we certainly knew his sound. The history of soul music and the funk brothers, which is also a history of popular culture, is the subject of standing in the shadows of motown and artisan has done a brilliant job bringing this title to dvd. With joe hunter, jack ashford, uriel jones, richard pistol allen. Think of the supremes, gladys knight, smokey robinson, marvin gaye, martha reeves, stevie wonder and the temptations.
The songs here were recorded at a live concert by the surviving funk brothers including bandleader john hunter, guitarist joe messina, and drummer uriel. During paul justmans film documentary standing in the shadows of motown, based on al slutskys book of the same name about the session musicians who played on motown recordings in detroit from the late 50s to the early 70s, one of the interviewees is heard to comment that once those musicians, who dubbed themselves the funk brothers, finished. The musical, about the history of motown records, initially ran for 775 performances on broadway, beginning in 20, and then closed, vowing to return with a slimmeddown production after a. This useful but often flat history of legendary motown records is the first musicrelated work by posner, who is best known for his books on the assassinations of john f.
The film was inspired by the 1989 book standing in the shadows of motown. During paul justmans film documentary standing in the shadows of motown, based on al slutskys book of the same name about the session musicians who played on motown recordings in detroit from the late 50s to the early 70s, one of the interviewees is heard to comment that once those musicians, who dubbed themselves the funk brothers, finished cutting a backing. Rent standing in the shadows of motown 2002 on dvd and blu. Hes well known for call her miss ross, but many people dont know that was his second ross book. One word you never used in conjunction with maxine.
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