Music DocumentariesOn January 28, 1985, as famine devastated the African continent, a stellar roster of musical talent entered a recording studio in Los Angeles, CA, to make a record dedicated to alleviating hunger in the Third World. The song was called "We Are the World," the collected artists billed themselves as "USA for Africa," and the single became a phenomenon, raising over $60 million for African famine relief. We Are the World: The Story Behind the Song is a documentary which examines how the song was written, how producer Quincy Jones and songwriters Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie persuaded some of the most popular performers in America to donate their services to the project, and offers a behind-the-scenes look at the marathon recording session that produced the single. Performers include Ray Charles, Bruce Springsteen, Tina Turner, Bob Dylan, Stevie Wonder, Billy Joel, Willie Nelson, Paul Simon, Bette Midler, Diana Ross, and many more.
Music DocumentariesFrom BAFTA Award-winning director Asif Kapadia (SENNA), AMY tells the incredible story of six-time Grammy-winner Amy Winehouse – in her own words. Featuring extensive unseen archival footage and previously unheard tracks, this strikingly modern, moving and vital film shines a light on the world we live in, in a way that very few can. A once-in-a-generation talent, Amy Winehouse was a musician that captured the world’s attention. A pure jazz artist in the most authentic sense – she wrote and sung from the heart using her musical gifts to analyze her own problems. The combination of her raw honesty and virtuosity resulted in some of the most unique and adored songs of the modern era. But her massive success resulted in relentless and invasive media attention, which coupled with Amy’s troubled relationships and precarious lifestyle, saw her life tragically begin to unravel, resulting in her untimely death in July 2011 at the age of 27.
DocumentaryOn Thanksgiving Day, 1976, The Band gave its farewell concert at Winterland in San Francisco. On hand to help say goodbye to this influential rock group were some of the most acclaimed musicians of the late 1960s and '70s. This film is not only a vibrant documentary of that historic evening, but also a commentary on the rock world at the time. Most of the picture is concert footage of The Band and their guest performers -- highlighted by interviews with members of the group, who eloquently articulate their personal involvement in the history of rock and roll.
DocumentaryMusic lovers will be astonished at the influence The Wrecking Crew wielded over rock and pop music in the 1960s and early 1970s. These unsung instrumentalists were the de-facto backing band on hit records by The Beach Boys, Phil Spector, Frank Sinatra, Nancy Sinatra, Sonny & Cher, Elvis, The Monkees and many more. These dedicated musicians brought the flair and musicianship that made the American “West Coast Sound” a dominant cultural force around the world.
DocumentaryFor Mexicans and Latinos in the Americas, there is no music more popular today than narcocorridos. These bloodthirsty and explicit odes to the exploits of narco traffickers and drug lords of Mexico openly glorify violence, narcotics and money. Like gangsta rap in the nineties, "Narco" is a movement threatening to burst into the mainstream. Featuring powerful footage from the front lines of the drug wars and performances from some of the hottest Narcocorrido artists (including El Komander and Buknas de Culiacán) Narco Cultura takes viewers behind the scenes of the most explosive and violent music subculture in America.
DocumentaryThe greatest concert film of all time, "Stop Making Sense" brings to the screen Talking Heads at Hollywood's Pantages Theater in December 1983: David Byrne, Tina Weymouth, Chris Frantz, and Jerry Harrison, alongside an ecstatic ensemble of supporting musicians, capturing the iconic band at their exhilarating best. Directed by Academy Award Winner Jonathan Demme and newly restored to celebrate its 40th anniversary.
DocumentaryFor over three decades, there's been one singular sensation: A Chorus Line, the groundbreaking hit musical inspired by the emotional lives of dancers during the audition process. Now the story comes full circle as a new documentary offers a revealing, unprecedented look at the auditions for the Broadway revival of the perennial classic, including interview footage with Bob Avian, Michael Bennett, Charlotte d'Amboise, Marvin Hamlisch and Donna McKechnie to name a few. The music, the moves and the real-life drama - they're all here in a documentary that brings you closer to the footlights than you ever thought possible.
DocumentaryJoan Baez I Am A Noise is an unusually intimate psychological portrait of legendary musician and activist Joan Baez. Neither a conventional biopic nor a traditional concert film, this immersive documentary follows Baez on her final tour and delves into her extraordinary archive, including newly discovered home movies, diaries, artwork, therapy tapes, and audio recordings. Throughout the film, Baez is remarkably revealing about her life on and off stage – from her lifelong emotional struggles to her civil rights work with MLK and a heartbreaking romance with a young Bob Dylan. A searingly honest look at a living legend, this film is a compelling and deeply personal exploration of an icon who has never told the full truth of her life, as she experienced it, until now.
DocumentaryAcclaimed producer David Wolper ("Roots," "The Thorn Birds," "North and South") brings us the first fully authorized look at the man behind the myth. This definitive biography of the legendary hero combines documentary footage with sequences of actors playing Presley at various stages of his life. Including 38 of Presley's greatest hits; it's the Elvis movie the fans have been waiting for. From the director of the acclaimed rock documentary, "Imagine: John Lennon."
Concert FilmsShot over the course of Ghost’s two sold-out shows at Los Angeles' hallowed Kia Forum, Rite Here Rite Now fully immerses viewers in the technicolor melodrama of the vaunted live ritual that has helped to propel Sweden's foremost theatrical rock export to Grammy-winning, chart-topping, arena-headlining status the world over. Rite Here Rite Now is, however, so much more than a concert movie. Ghost’s debut feature film combines live performance from the two-night finale of the band's Re-Imperatour U.S.A. 2023 with a narrative story that picks up plot threads from the band's long-running webisode series. The result is an utterly unique phantasmagorical blend: Flesh and bone renditions of favorites from all five of Ghost's albums as well as the RIAA platinum-certified "Mary On A Cross" and more are interwoven with the silver screen debuts of a few faces familiar to the band's legions of fans- all interacting behind the scenes with Ghost's Papa Emeritus IV, as his future and fate lay in
Music DocumentariesHailed as one of the most innovative and intimate documentaries of all-time, experience the life of Kurt Cobain like never before in the only fully authorized portrait of the famed music icon. Academy Award® nominated filmmaker Brett Morgen expertly blends Cobain’s personal archive of art, music, never-before-seen movies, animation and revelatory interviews from his family and closest friends. Wildly creative and highly acclaimed, follow Kurt from his earliest years in this visceral and detailed cinematic insight of an artist at odds with his surroundings. Fans and those of the Nirvana generation will learn things about Kurt Cobain they never knew while those who have recently discovered the man and his music will know what makes him the lasting icon that he still is today.
Music DocumentariesDocumentary of the July 3rd, 1973 concert at London's Hammersmith Odeon Theatre and notable for this is the last time David Bowie would perform under the Ziggy Stardust persona.
DocumentaryA Year and a Half captures the band working in the studio on their groundbreaking 1991 album, Metallica (over 30 million worldwide sales). Featuring the videos "Enter Sandman," "The Unforgiven" and "Nothing Else Matters", the film also covers the saga of Metallica on tour as it unfolds through concert performances, jam sessions and daily adventures in locker rooms, hotel rooms and arenas around the world.
DocumentarySan Francisco was the epicenter of the American rave scene and witnessed some legendary events that began in the early ‘90s. These all-night electronic-music dance parties attracted a diverse cross-section of people. Culturally iconic and socially important, the parties became a catalyst in the lives of so many of the people who experienced them. So many people went on to be huge players in Silicon Valley, the global dance music scene, and the world of activism. We created a deep and poetic film that examines the do-it-yourself mentality and psychedelic community spirit that the San Francisco Bay Area rave scene epitomized. The early '90s was a magical time of musical creation and renegade promotion. We believe that the subject matter is as socially and culturally significant today as it was 30 years ago. Whether you were/are part of the scene, or have never been to a rave, this is a fascinating story that will resonate with a broad global audience. We hope that you too will be energ
Shannon Hoon, Danny Clinch, Taryn Gould & Colleen Hennessy
DocumentaryShannon Hoon, lead singer of the rock band Blind Melon, filmed himself religiously from 1990-1995 with a video camera, recording up until a few hours before his sudden death at the age of twenty-eight. His camera was a diary and his closest confidant. In the hundreds of hours of footage, Hoon meticulously documented his life—his family, his creative process, his television, his band’s rise to fame, and his struggle with addiction. He filmed his daughter’s birth, and archived the politics and culture of the 90s, an era right before the internet changed the world. Created solely with his own footage, voice, and music, this rare autobiography is a prescient exploration of experience and memory in the age of video. It is also Hoon’s last work, completed twenty-three years after his death.
DocumentaryThe late Syd Barrett was a major cult figure and rock music legend. The charismatic and brilliant lead guitarist of the early Pink Floyd, he created a unique psychedelic sound and wrote wonderfully eccentric songs including the hits “Arnold Layne”, “See Emily Play” and “Bike”. Syd Barrett left Pink Floyd in 1968 when his increasingly erratic behaviour made his continued participation in the band impossible. After two extraordinary solo albums he disappeared from music altogether. “The Pink Floyd & Syd Barrett Story” tells the full bizarre, tragic but also celebratory story of Syd Barrett with contributions from all the members of Pink Floyd plus friends, managers and lovers.
DocumentaryIn the spring of 1971 the Rolling Stones departed the UK to take up residence in France as tax exiles. Keith Richards settled at a villa called Nellcôte in Villefranche-sur-Mer and this became the venue for the recording of much of the band s masterpiece Exile On Main Street . Stones In Exile tells the story in the band s own words and through extensive archive footage of their time away from England and the creation of this extraordinary double album, which many regard as the Rolling Stones finest achievement.
DocumentaryWhile debate rages on about Heavy Metal and its merits as a musical genre, most commentators agree that Heavy Metal kicked off in the 1960s with the blues-based rock of bands such as Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and Deep Purple. The evolution continued with harder rocking British bands Judas Priest and Motorhead, and the more punk-influenced Iron Maiden and Def Leppard. Over in America, Aerosmith, Alice Cooper and Kiss were strapping on the high heels and layering on the make up. The really theatrical era of Heavy Metal was embraced in the 1980s with bands like Motley Crue, and bands like Megadeth and Metallica developed yet another sub-genre: Thrash Metal. Following that we’ve seen the evolution of Progressive Metal, Speed Metal, Doom Metal, Black Metal, Gothic Metal, Nu Metal and Viking Metal to name a few... Now celebrating more than 40 years of independence from the musical mainstream, the ‘Elder Statesmen’ of Heavy Metal share their thoughts on life, love, the music, the band
DocumentaryThe Los Angeles punk music scene circa 1980 is the focus of this film. Featuring legendary punk bands Alice Bag Band, Black Flag, Catholic Discipline, Circle Jerks, Fear, Germs, and X. THE DECLINE OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION is an immersive tour of in-your-face filmmaking and music that's "a bracing, stimulating and technically superb close-up look at the L.A. punk scene." - Variety
DocumentaryA rare and true icon of modern music, Herbie Hancock continues to bring audiences new and inventive visions of music. In August 2005, the Possibilities album was released, featuring the collaborative talents of a legendary lineup of artists. The film, Herbie Hancock: Possibilities, showcases this musical project in development and design, as Herbie interacts with Christina Aguilera, John Mayer, Paul Simon, Annie Lennox, Sting, and others. A leader of musical innovation, Herbie explores the creation of fresh music through collaboration and expansion upon his and others’ experiences, and what results is a collection of poignant musical imprints.
DocumentaryAt 14, two Toronto schoolmates — Steve ‘Lips’ Kudlow and Robb Reiner — made a pact to rock together forever. They meant it. Forming the band Anvil in 1982, the duo released one of the heaviest albums of all time — Metal on Metal — influencing some of the biggest names in rock including Metallica, Slayer and Anthrax. But while those bands went on to sell millions of albums and achieve international fame, Anvil’s career took a different path – straight to obscurity. Until now... Director Sacha Gervasi brings us ANVIL! THE STORY OF ANVIL – a brilliant, achingly hilarious, and surprisingly touching documentary about Anvil’s last-ditch quest for fame and fortune. He joins the band members, now in their 50s, as they perform all over the world, record a new album and struggle to make ends meet. Providing an intimate, insightful look into the band members’ ever-supportive, yet long-suffering families, ANVIL! THE STORY OF ANVIL is also a tale of survival – and the passio
Music DocumentariesIn this exclusive documentary, Joni Mitchell, one of the foremost singer- songwriters and poets of our time, tells her story with in-depth interviews interwoven with her words and music. Rare performance footage of her work reflects both the pain and joy of her extraordinary life as an artist. The programme also features interviews with the artists who know her personally and who have worked with her, such as David Crosby, Graham Nash, Neil Young, Judy Collins and Bob Dylan and the contemporary artists she has influenced, Janet Jackson (“The Beat of Black Wings”), Amy Grant (“Big Yellow Taxi”), Tori Amos (“A Case of You”), Prince (“A Case of You”), Sarah McLachnan (“A Case of You”), Bonnie Raitt (“Woodstock”) and Bjork (“Boho Dance”).
DocumentaryJohn Lennon: Love is All You Need is a fitting documentary to one of the most influential musicians of the twentieth century, with some truly unique interviews and previously unseen footage from those who really knew John Lennon.
Documentary“Wish You Were Here”, released in September 1975, was the follow up album to the globally successful “The Dark Side Of The Moon” and is cited by many fans, as well as band members Richard Wright and David Gilmour, as their favorite Pink Floyd album. On release it went straight to Number One in both the UK and the US and topped the charts in many other countries around the world. This program tells the story of the making of this landmark release through new interviews with Roger Waters, David Gilmour and Nick Mason and archive interviews with the late Richard Wright. Also featured are sleeve designer Storm Thorgerson, guest vocalist Roy Harper, front cover “burning man” Ronnie Rondell and others involved in the creation of the album. In addition, original recording engineer Brian Humphries revisits the master tapes at Abbey Road Studios to illustrate aspects of the songs’ construction.
DocumentaryChristmas just isn't Christmas without Andy Williams. To millions around the world Andy Williams always arrived just before Santa. This Christmas collection features 24 of the greatest songs of the holiday season, including "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year," "White Christmas," "It's A Holiday Season," "Silver Bells," "I'll Be Home for Christmas," "Jingle Bells," "Christmas Song," "Ave Maria," "Mary's Boy Child," "Silent Night," and "O Holy Night." Andy is joined by the entire Williams clan and the Osmond Brothers. Year after year, Andy Williams put the Christmas wreath on the door, set up a tree with all the trimmings and made sure there were chestnuts roasting on an open fire. Now you can enjoy the best of Andy Williams Christmas Shows.
Music DocumentariesIn the late nineteen seventies Van Morrison reappeared after several years on hiatus, a period during which he had gone from being one of the world's biggest stars to a memory from rock n roll's past - and music had moved on during his absence. On his eventual return, Morrison was a transformed figure: teetotal and motivated, but also garrulous and confrontational. Over the course of the years that followed, he embarked on a journey in which he sought to find independence as artist and explore spirituality in his music; this film is the story of that journey. Using rare archive, live and studio footage and brand new interviews with many of those who worked with Van across the decade covered by this program, a rare glimpse into the world of this very private musician, performer and writer is revealed - one that many fans of his music may find both surprising and enlightening.
John Entwistle, Pete Townshend, Roger Daltrey, Keith Moon, Chris Stamp, Queenie Johns, Chris Entwistle, The Who & The John Entwistle Band
Music DocumentariesIn 1964, The Who became one of the key figures of the British Invasion, taking the American music scene by storm. While Roger Daltrey, Pete Townsend and Keith Moon took the spotlight with their on stage antics, John Entwistle, stood in the shadows poised to become the biggest bass player in rock and roll. In 2002, after years of touring his solo project the John Entwistle Band, Entwistle couldn't resist the lure of bringing back one of the greatest bands in rock and roll history. Tragically, plans for The Who's North American Reunion Tour were cut short when on the eve of the first show John was found dead in his Las Vegas hotel room. "The Ox," as Entwistle was affectionately known, left behind many fans and several unfinished projects. With his passing, the world lost a musical legend, dubbed Guitar Magazine's "Bassist of the Millennium." Narrated by Peter Frampton, John Entwistle: An Ox's Tale covers the life of John Entwistle, from his first public performance at the age of 14 to hi
Music DocumentariesUntil The Light Takes Us tells the story of black metal. Part music scene and part cultural uprising, black metal rose to worldwide notoriety in the mid-nineties when a rash of suicides, murders, and church burnings accompanied the explosive artistic growth and output of a music scene that would forever redefine what heavy metal is and what it stands for to other musicians, artists and music fans world-wide. Until The Light Takes Us goes behind the highly sensationalized media reports of "Satanists running amok in Europe" to examine the complex and largely misunderstood principles and beliefs that led to this rebellion against both Christianity and modern culture. To capture this on film, directors Aaron Aites and Audrey Ewell moved to Norway and lived with the musicians for several years, building relationships that allowed them to create a surprisingly intimate portrait of this violent, but ultimately misunderstood, movement. The result is a poignant, moving story that's as much abou
Music DocumentariesA celebration of an artist’s life in the purest sense, RYUICHI SAKAMOTO OPUS is the definitive swan song of one of the world’s greatest musicians. In late 2022, as a parting gift, Ryuichi Sakamoto mustered all of his energy to leave us with one final performance: a concert film featuring just him and his piano. Curated and sequenced by Sakamoto himself, the twenty pieces featured in the film wordlessly narrate his life through his wide-ranging oeuvre. The selection spans his entire career, from his pop-star period with Yellow Magic Orchestra and his magnificent scores for filmmaker Bernardo Bertolucci to his meditative final album,"12." Intimately filmed in a space he knew well and surrounded by his most trusted collaborators, including director Neo Sora, his son, Sakamoto bares his soul through his exquisitely haunting melodies, knowing this was the last time he would be able to present his art.
Music DocumentariesEstonia's coveted position between Europe and Russia has lured wave after wave of occupiers. The nation's darkest chapter, though, dawned in 1939 with the arrival of the Soviets. It seemed this time that the Estonian nation might vanish completely; yet the Estonians waited, and fought, and sang, and ultimately, survived. "The Singing Revolution" narrates the remarkable story of this tiny nation's struggle for independence, illuminating how the Estonians kept their identity alive - even under the oppressive weight of the Iron Curtain - through a rich tradition of song. Here, people have joined voices for centuries, and their Laulupidu (immense song festival) offered glimmers of Estonian culture and connectedness in even the bleakest periods, proving to "The Singing People" that their national spirit still smoldered. When the Soviet nation finally began to crumble in the 1980s, the Estonians saw their opportunity: free speech became song, and song became a soaring anthem of independence.
Music DocumentariesMultiplatinum-selling rappers like DMX, Method Man, Jay-Z and others take you where you've never been before: behind the scenes of the hottest hip-hop concert tour ever! Hip, irreverent and real, Backstage rides along with the groundbreaking, 50-city "Hard Knock Life Tour" and doesn't hold anything back! From the tour bus to the hotel to the stage, cameras are there to capture all the craziness as the show rolls from city to city! Also featuring the powerful performances of Redman, Ja Rule, Beanie Sigel -- and a red-hot soundtrack by DJ Clue -- you don't want to miss this exclusive chance to see what really happens when Rap hits the road!
Music DocumentariesIn the early to mid 1970s a handful of bands from the Deep South reinvigorated American popular music by fusing blues, country and rock 'n' roll styles into a new and unique form . But the man who had sparked this renaissance and who had struggled to gain acceptance in an industry firmly established in the North and out West, was by then just a memory. Duane Allman, the lead guitarist and driving force behind Southern Rock pioneers The Allman Brothers Band, lived a tragically short life, but during his brief career he changed music forever... This film looks at Allman's life, work and musical output, from his early days in Florida to his influential session work in Muscle Shoals, his monumental collaboration with Eric Clapton in Derek & The Dominos and the inimitable virtuosity with which he set the Allman Brothers Band alight. Featuring contributions from; the men who forged the Allman's and the Dominos' sound, engineers & producers the Albert Brothers; Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section fo
DocumentaryFrom 1974-1994, Studio One and its adjoining live music venue, The Backlot, became symbols of hope and community for gay men during tumultuous times. Amidst the rise of gay rights, disco's heyday, and the devastating AIDS crisis, the club offered sanctuary from rampant homophobia and police oppression. It was where legends like Chita Rivera and Eartha Kitt performed, and rising stars like Roseanne Barr and Rosie O'Donnell ignited their careers. Fast forward 26 years, and as West Hollywood faces the demolition of this iconic building, a community uproar emerges to preserve its history. Through personal accounts, the documentary delves into Studio One's story against the backdrop of a progressing gay liberation clashing with 80s conservatism and the escalating AIDS nightmare. It's a testament to an era, immortalizing the club's legacy for future generations.
Music DocumentariesGeorge Michael: A Different Story is a deep dive into the life of the late great British singer. It covers major turning points in George Michael’s life, from forming Wham! in his teens, the worldwide success to why he chose to embark on a solo career, as well as the more controversial moments in Michael’s career.
Concert FilmsFilmed throughout the band's 2009 rehearsals and acclaimed summer tour, No Distance Left to Run finds the four members of Blur together for the first time in nine years. With previously unseen archive material alongside revealing new interviews and reportage, the film recounts Blur's highs and lows, from Colchester and Goldsmiths, to their headline return at Glastonbury and Hyde Park. No Distance Left To Run is the story of an English band and a portrait of enduring friendship and resolution.
Music DocumentariesWings for Wheels: The Making of Born to Run chronicles the definitive story of Bruce Springsteen’s breakthrough album from songwriting to production and beyond. Includes archival film shot between 1973 and 1975 but never shown publicly.
DocumentaryThis Oscar®-nominated film follows the story of a blind blues musician and his triumphant trek to the forgotten land of Tuva and the mysterious art of khöömei, or throat-singing, a seemingly impossible form of singing that produces multiple vocal tones simultaneously. Featuring the late blues legend B.B. King.
DocumentaryThis episode of the classic albums series details the making of U2′s chart-topping album through interviews with band members, archival film footage and live performances.
Documentary'Aja’ was the first British Top 10 hit for Steely Dan and was also the first album by Becker and Fagen as a duo. Becker and Fagen, renowned for their relentless perfectionism in the recording studio, recall the history of an album that was year in the making, but rewarded by a prestigious Grammy Award and three major hit singles, “Peg”, “Deacon Blues” and “Josie”. Steely Dan's ‘Aja’ has proved to be one of the most outstanding jazz-rock albums in the history of popular music. This is a vivid portrait of a 70s record that is still as fresh and as memorable decades after its release, a true Classic Album.
DocumentaryIn this episode of the Classic Albums series, the surviving members of Def Leppard discuss the making of "Hysteria" as they sort through and explain the original multi-track tapes. In addition, some impromptu acoustic performances and musical demonstrations further dissect this classic album.
DocumentarySCOTT WALKER: 30 CENTURY MAN is a rare glimpse into the creative world of the most enigmatic figure in rock history, tracing the undeniable impact he has had on popular music through casual interviews with some of his biggest, highest profile fans.
DocumentaryOne of the most acclaimed music documentaries of all time, SAY AMEN, SOMEBODY is a joyous, funny, and deeply emotional celebration of Gospel music from director George Nierenberg. A line-up of earth-shaking performers including Thomas A. Dorsey, Willie Mae Ford Smith, The Barrett Sisters and The O'Neal Twins is just one reason why this tremendous film has garnered rave reviews around the world.
DocumentaryDrummer Stewart Copeland narrates the rise of legendary rock band the Police using a decades-old archive of intimate, behind-the-scenes footage shot with his own movie camera.
DocumentaryAnita O’Day was one of the greatest of American jazzsingers and this is her astonishing story—a journey of survival, and above all the endurance of her talent, told in a number of frank interviews with her and with those who knew her. Her career was long and eventful, spanning seven decades, her last album recorded when she was 84. This documentary of a legend was co-directed by Robbie Cavolina and Ian McCrudden who produced with Melissa Davis. Anita O’Day only ever wanted to be a singer and the film showcases performances that date back to the 50s with such artists as Gene Krupa, Roy Eldridge, Stan Kenton, Louis Armstrong and Hoagy Carmichael. She is shown teaching Billy Taylor how to be a jazz vocalist. She speaks candidly, always candidly, with Dick Cavett, Bryant Gumble and David Frost, with clips from interviews done on 60 Minutes and CBS This Morning. Bert Stern, commenting on his experience filming Anita perform Sweet Georgia Brown for his film Jazz on a Summer’s Day, sa
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