Funk/Soul Music Documentaries

Soul music has conquered the world in the last 50 years - growing from the raw, electric rhythms of the black underclass, it is now a billion dollar industry with R&B and hip-hop dominating the world's charts. It's been the soundtrack to some of the most extraordinary social, political and cultural shifts. And, together with the civil rights movement, it has challenged the white hegemony, helped breakdown segregation and encouraged the fight for racial equality.

The raucous adventures of musicians such as Johnny Paycheck, Jerry Lee Lewis, George Jones and Tammy Wynette, as told by those who knew them best. Season 2 covers the legends of funk.

Finding 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.

Documentary about the legendary 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival which celebrated African-American music and culture and promoted Black pride and unity.

Documentary film that focuses on the period beginning with the birth of Motown in Detroit in 1958 until its relocation to Los Angeles in the early 1970s.

Documentary about the Funk Brothers, a group of Detroit musicians who backed up dozens of Motown artists.

A look at the music career of musician James Brown beginning with his first hit song, "Please, Please, Please," in 1956.

This documentary tells the story of funk, exploring the music and artists who created a positive soundtrack at a negative time for African-Americans.

The untold true story: The rise and fall of the greatest funk band ever, Parliament Funkadelic.

A profile of legendary funk/R&B icon Rick James capturing the peaks and valleys of his storied career to reveal a complicated and rebellious soul, driven to share his talent with the world.

Funk Queen Betty Davis changed the landscape for female artists in America. She "was the first..." as former husband Miles Davis said. "Madonna before Madonna, Prince before Prince". An aspiring songwriter from a small steel town, Betty arrived on the 70's scene to break boundaries for women with her daring personality, iconic fashion and outrageous funk music. She befriended Jimi Hendrix and Sly Stone, wrote songs for the Chambers Brothers and the Commodores, and married Miles - startlingly turning him from jazz to funk on the album she named "Bitches Brew". She then, despite being banned and boycotted, went on to become the first black woman to perform, write and manage herself. Betty was a feminist pioneer, inspiring and intimidating in a manner like no woman before. Then suddenly - she just vanished. Betty Mabry Davis is a global icon whose mysterious life story has until now, never been told. Creatively blending documentary, animation and nonfiction techniques, this movie traces the path of Betty's life, how she grew from humble upbringings to become a fully self-realized black female pioneer the world failed to understand or appreciate, revealing the mystery of her 35-year disappearance and her battle with mental illness and poverty. After years of trying, the elusive Betty, forever the free-spirited Black Power Goddess, finally allowed the filmmakers to creatively tell her story based on their conversations.

The Film captures the life and the sound of an overlooked and eccentric musical mastermind who has been compared to Beethoven, Duke Ellington and Jimi Hendrix

One man's search for the prolific funk legend, Sly Stone.

Biography of the singers who formed the hit Motown musical act, The Temptations.

The story of R&B singer Al Green, who gave up a successful singing career to become a gospel minister.

An intimate look into the life of icon Quincy Jones. A unique force in music and popular culture for 70 years, Jones has transcended racial and cultural boundaries; his story is inextricably woven into the fabric of America.

A documentary that celebrates Rick Hall, the founder of FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, and the signature sound he developed in songs such as "I'll Take You There", "Brown Sugar", and "When a Man Loves a Woman".

The story explores the rise in popularity of rhythm and blues music, details the heyday of the R&B movement, and investigates the reasons for its decline amidst various other forms of music, such as rap and hip-hop.

Alumni from Houston's storied Kashmere High School Stage Band return home after 35 years to play a tribute concert for their beloved band leader who turned the struggling jazz band into a world-class funk powerhouse in the early 1970s.

Keep on Burning tells the fascinating story of the world's most enduring underground music movement : Northern Soul! Featuring interviews with key DJ's, journalists and promoters, including soul radio pioneer Tony Blackburn, this new documentary was filmed on location at Manchester's iconic Twisted Wheel and London's 100 Club. Wigan Casino founder Russ Winstanley and Blue & Soul music journalist Tony Cummings recount the artists, records and stories which have made Northern Soul a way of life for its aficionados. With contributions from record label executives' Tim Brown (Goldmine), Ady Croasdell (Kent), Dave McAleer (Pye/RCA) and Neil Rushton (Inferno), Keep on Burning reveals a unique insight into the music phenomenon that came of age in the clubs of Northern England in the mid-seventies.

The 25th Anniversary of Motown Records is celebrated by its past and present stars playing their greatest hits, plus some new ones.

A film featuring the veteran soul music artists and music of Stax Records.

A filmed account of the Zaire 74 soul music festival, originally intended to be in concert with the famous Rumble in the Jungle bout in Kinshasa, Zaire in 1974.

A documentary examining the life and career of the late singer Otis Redding.

A series that profiles some of the most influential, talented yet forgotten R&B, Soul and Gospel artists of the 1970s, '80s and '90s.