MUSIC docs
List activity
79 views
• 0 this weekCreate a new list
List your movie, TV & celebrity picks.
42 titles
- DirectorMelissa HaizlipSam PollardStarsBlair UnderwoodSidney PoitierMichael JacksonBefore Oprah, before Arsenio, there was Mr. SOUL. Ellis Haizlip ensures that the Revolution would be televised with "SOUL!," America's first "Black Tonight Show." From 1968 to 1973, the public-television variety show SOUL!, guided by enigmatic producer and host Ellis Haizlip, offered an unfiltered, uncompromising celebration of Black literature, poetry, music, and politics--voices that had few other options for national exposure, and, as a result, found the program an improbable place to call home. The series was among the first to provide expanded images of African Americans on television, shifting the gaze from inner-city poverty and violence to the vibrancy of the Black Arts Movement. With participants' recollections and illuminating archival clips, Mr. SOUL captures a critical moment in culture whose impact continues to resonate, and an unsung hero whose voice we need now more than ever, to restore the SOUL of a nation.
- DirectorMatt TyrnauerStarsIan SchragerSteve RubellDonald RubellThe story of the notorious 1970s New York City nightclub.
- DirectorSophie HuberStarsRobert GlasperAmbrose AkinmusireMarcus StricklandA revelatory, thrilling and emotional journey behind the scenes of Blue Note Records, the pioneering label that gave voice to some of the finest jazz artists of the 20th and 21st centuries.
- DirectorIara LeeStarsArthur BakerAfrika BambaataaCarl CoxThe evolution of electronic music and its many genres. How the wide range of styles and scenes formed through experimentations on sound formation.
- DirectorStephen Nomura SchibleStarsYellow Magic OrchestraRyuichi SakamotoA portrait of genius music composer Ryuichi Sakamoto.
- DirectorRaoul PeckStarsSamuel L. JacksonJames BaldwinMartin Luther KingWriter James Baldwin tells the story of race in modern America with his unfinished novel, Remember This House.
- StarsShadLL Cool JBig Daddy KaneMC and journalist Shad Kabango meets with Hip-Hop's biggest stars to retrace how Hip-Hop became the world's most popular music, but realizes that Hip-Hop's true legacy is something much more profound.
- DirectorHal TulchinStarsThe 5th DimensionGladys Knight & The PipsJesse JacksonThe Harlem Cultural Festival, also known as "Black Woodstock", was a series of music concerts held in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City during the summer of 1969 to celebrate African American music and culture and to promote the continued politics of Black pride.
- 20211h 58mPG-138.0 (14K)96MetascoreDirectorQuestloveStarsDorinda DrakeBarbara Bland-AcostaDarryl LewisDocumentary about the legendary 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival which celebrated African-American music and culture and promoted Black pride and unity.
- DirectorNelson GeorgeStarsQuestloveJames BrownBootsy CollinsFinding the Funk is a road trip in search of the past, present and future of Funk music. Starting with Funk's roots in Jazz and the James Brown bands of the '60s we travel to the Bay Area to celebrate Sly & the Family Stone, then to Dayton the birthplace of so many of Funk's originators, then onto Detroit where from the ashes of Motown, P-Funk's Mothership arose, and then to LA where a new crop of musicians are creating their own Funk history. On our journey into Funk, we talk to legends Sly Stone, Bootsy Collins, George Clinton, Nona Hendryx, Maceo Parker, Bernie Worrell, and Steve Arrington and their descendants Mike D, D'Angelo, Sheila E, Shock G and Sade's Stuart Matthewman. Narrated by Ahmir 'Questlove' Thompson of the Roots.
- DirectorDominik SpritzendorferElena TikhonovaStarsAlexey BorisovStanislav KreichiDmitriy MorozovElektro Moskva is an essayistic documentary about the Soviet electronic age and its legacy. The story begins with the inventor of the world's first electronic instrument, Leon Theremin, unveiling the KGB's huge pile of fascinating devices, some of which were musical. They all came into existence as a by-product of a rampant defense industry. Nowadays, those aged and abandoned 'musical coffins', as solidly made as a Kalashnikov, are being recycled and reinterpreted by the post-Soviet generations of musicians, sound collectors and circuit benders. The story of the Soviet synthesizers as an allegory to the everyday life under the Soviet system: nothing works, but you have to make the best out of it. An electronic fairy tale about the inventive spirit of the free mind inside the iron curtain- and beyond.
- DirectorLisa RovnerStarsJean-Michel JarreKim GordonWendy CarlosFollows the story of electronic music's female pioneers, composers who embraced machines and their liberating technologies to utterly transform how we produce and listen to music today.
- DirectorTom SurgalStarsRashied AliAlbert AylerCarla BleyA look at the history and evolution of the free jazz movement of the 1960s and 1970s.
- DirectorEric FriedlerStarsHerbie HancockQuincy JonesSonny RollinsIn 1939, Alfred Lion and Francis Wolff founded the legendary jazz label Blue Note Records in New York. This is the story of two friends, united by a passionate love for jazz, and their belief in equality and freedom for every person.
- DirectorMichael WinterbottomStarsSteve CooganLennie JamesJohn ThomsonIn 1976, Tony Wilson sets up Factory Records and brings Manchester's music to the world.
- DirectorJohn ConeyStarsSun RaRaymond JohnsonChristopher BrooksIn an effort to bring unity and equality to African-Americans, an interstellar traveler and musician lands on earth and duels with an evil overlord for the souls of people.
- DirectorRobert MuggeStarsSun RaRobert Mugge filmed jazz great Sun Ra on location in Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C. between 1978 and 1980. The resulting 60-minute film includes multiple public and private performances, poetry readings, a band rehearsal, interviews, and extensive improvisations. Transferred to HD from the original 16mm film and lovingly restored for the best possible viewing experience.
- DirectorJeff BroadwayStarsPeanut Butter WolfTalib KweliA-TrakOur Vinyl Weighs a Ton is a feature-length documentary about avant-garde Los Angeles-based record label Stones Throw Records. The film weaves together rare concert footage, never-before-see archival material, inner-circle home video and photographs and in-depth interviews with the artists who put Stones Throw Records on the map. Our Vinyl Weighs a Ton gives an exclusive look into the label's left-of-center artists, history, culture, and global following. The film features exclusive interviews with Kanye West, Snoop Dogg, Common, Questlove, Talib Kweli, Mike D (The Beastie Boys), Tyler the Creator, and many more.
- DirectorVolker SchanerStarsAshley BeedleDennis BovellJomo CharlesLee Scratch Perry's Vision of Paradise is a unique project in many ways. It is the life story of the legendary musician, but it is not a biography, it is a fairytale documentary! The director followed Lee Perry for thirteen years and discovered an unbelievable story, a revelation, told about and with one of the major protagonists of contemporary music, the other half of the story that has never been told. The movie can be seen as a guide for how to change the world with music, with a positive attitude, mindset or, as Lee Perry calls it, vibration.
- CreatorRich CohenMick JaggerMartin ScorseseStarsBobby CannavalePaul Ben-VictorP.J. ByrneRichie Finestra, a shrewd record executive from New York, tries to promote American Century, his music label, amidst the changing music scene in the 1970s.
- DirectorWim WendersStarsCompay SegundoIbrahim FerrerRubén GonzálezAging Cuban musicians whose talents had been virtually forgotten following Castro's takeover of Cuba, are brought out of retirement by Ry Cooder, who travelled to Havana in order to bring the musicians together, resulting in triumphant performances of extraordinary music, and resurrecting the musicians' careers.
- DirectorAlbert MayslesDavid MayslesCharlotte ZwerinStarsMick JaggerKeith RichardsMick TaylorWhen three hundred thousand members of the Love Generation collided with a few dozen Hells Angels at San Francisco's Altamont Speedway, the bloody slash that transformed a decade's dreams into disillusionment was immortalized on this film.
- DirectorGrant GeeStarsRichard BoonAnton CorbijnKevin CumminsA chronological account of the influential late 1970s English rock band.
- DirectorAnton CorbijnStarsSam RileySamantha MortonCraig ParkinsonA profile of Ian Curtis, the enigmatic singer of Joy Division whose personal, professional, and romantic troubles led him to die by suicide at the age of 23.
- DirectorDerek JarmanStarsAdam AntRichard O'BrienIan CharlesonQueen Elizabeth I travels 400 years into the future to witness the appalling revelation of a dystopian London overrun by corruption and a vicious gang of punk guerrilla girls led by the new Monarch of Punk.
- DirectorTony SilverStarsDemonKase 2Eric HazeA documentary that exposes the rich growing subculture of hip-hop that was developing in New York City in the late '70s and early '80s, specifically focusing on graffiti art and breakdancing.
- DirectorSpike JonzeStarsDaft PunkCatherine KellnerTony MaxwellA music video to promote the 1997 Daft Punk single 'Da Funk' from the album Homework.
- DirectorHervé Martin-DelpierreStarsThomas BangalterGuy-Manuel De Homem-ChristoSkrillexDocumentary about the entire career of Daft Punk, from their start in early 90's with their first group called Darlin', until their grammy awards in 2014. We learn how the artists have built their music, their image and all aspects of their inspiration.
- DirectorStan LathanStarsRae Dawn ChongGuy DavisJon ChardietAn aspiring DJ from the South Bronx and his best friend, a promoter, try to get into show business by exposing people to hip-hop music and the local culture.
- DirectorPeter SpirerStarsB-RealKurtis BlowDa BratA study in the world of hip-hop, done mostly with interviews, in order to see why it is as popular as it is today and what the future holds.
- DirectorErnest R. DickersonStarsOmar EppsTupac ShakurJermaine HopkinsFour inner-city teenagers get caught up in the pursuit of power and happiness, which they refer to as "the juice".
- DirectorDoug PrayStarsThe AlliesA-TrakCrazeThe story of the hip-hop DJ from the birth of hip-hop to the invention of scratching and "beat-juggling" vinyl, to the more recent "turntablism" movement. Underdogs and virtuosos who have radically changed the way we hear and create music.
- DirectorMichael RapaportStarsQ-TipPhife DawgAli Shaheed MuhammadMichael Rapaport documents the inner workings and behind the scenes drama that follows this innovative and influential band to this day.
- DirectorDan ForrerStarsGene SimmonsQuestloveRoosevelt GrierA documentary that reveals how a forgotten record by the Incredible Bongo Band helped cement the foundation of hip hop when DJ Herc extended its percussion by playing them back to back, creating an anthem on the streets of the Bronx.
- DirectorByron HurtStarsCarmen Ashurst-WatsonYasiin BeyChuck DHip-Hop: Beyond Beats & Rhymes provides a riveting examination of manhood, sexism, and homophobia in hip-hop culture.
- DirectorAlex GibneyStarsFela KutiYeni KutiFemi KutiA look at the life and music of Nigerian singer Fela Kuti.
- DirectorMichel GondryStarsDave ChappelleYasiin BeyLauryn HillA mix of Dave Chappelle's sketch comedy and musical interludes, inspired in part by the 1973 documentary Wattstax.
- DirectorMat WhitecrossStarsPaul ArthursChristine BillerMark CoyleOasis's breakthrough years documented into a detailed depiction of the infamous brothers from Manchester forming the band in the early 90's leading up to the legendary performance at Knebworth.
- DirectorEliane HenriStarsRobert GlasperHerbie HancockRoy HargroveHARGROVE the Documentary feature: Jazz trumpet legend Roy Hargrove up close and personal like you have never seen him before is deemed by his peers as a musical prophet. The film follows Grammy award winning Roy Hargrove from Los Angeles, Paris, New York, Vienne, Perugia, Sète, Sorrento and Marseille during a summer European tour in what would be the last year of his life. An epic love letter from first time director Eliane Henri, the film features interviews and live performances by Roy inclusive of musical icons Erykah Badu, Herbie Hancock, Mos Def, Robert Glasper, Wynton Marsalis and Sonny Rollins who reflect on the magic of his music, Roy's impact on the next generation and his place in the history of jazz. Key conversations reverberate beyond Roy's personal story and enter the terrain of what it means to be an artist, particularly in the American context.
- DirectorAhmed El MaanouniStarsLarbi BatmaNass-El GhiwaneAbderrahman PacoThe very popular Moroccan group Nass-El Ghiwane are filmed, in performances, meetings, interviews, and collaborations with other musicians.
- DirectorChristine FranzStarsAndrew FearnSteve IgnorantSleaford ModsBritish punk duo Sleaford Mods have been called "the voice of Britain" by their fans, "Britain's angriest band" by the Guardian and "The world's greatest rock 'n' roll band" by Iggy Pop. "Bunch of Kunst" follows them on their two-year journey from Nottingham bedroom recording sessions to chart success.
- DirectorShaun PettigrewStarsKilling JokeJaz ColemanJimmy PageA music documentary exploring the turbulent, controversial and often unbelievable 30 year history of British post-punk industrial band Killing Joke.