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Self (archive footage)
Self
Ella Fitzgerald visited Australia back in 1960. Gracefully stepping up to the microphone for the celebrated television event 'The BP Super Show', hosted by musician and entertainer Horrie Dargie, Fitzgerald delivered a mellifluous set of legendary songs in an intimate concert setting at The Embers Nightclub in Toorak Road, South Yarra Victoria. This rarely seen B&W television treat is considered to be one of the earliest audio-visual recordings of the 'First Lady of Song', backed by the smooth sounds of the Lou Levy Quartet. Beside Fitzgerald's performance of 14 memorable Jazz and Blues classics, the program also contains original BP musical interludes and jingles from the Horrie Dargie Quartet.
Inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2024, Alabama-born Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thornton defied the gender norms of her time to become one of the greatest blues singers of her generation. Known for her powerful voice and uncompromising style, she rose to fame with the original recording of “Hound Dog” and later wrote “Ball & Chain,” a song that gained iconic status through Janis Joplin’s rendition.
Jake Blues, just released from prison, puts his old band back together to save the Catholic home where he and his brother Elwood were raised.
A thorough look at the 90's Turkish rock scene, one legendary stage band and its two members: Kerim Capli and Yavuz Cetin... An inquiry of their existential battles with the society, the industry and their own minds.
Clapton, live from Los Angeles' Staples Center on August 18, 2002, part of the sold-out worldwide tour that followed Clapton's 2001 album "Reptile." This concert DVD features live material spanning his entire career. Recorded in concert at The Staples Center in Los Angeles, August 18 2001, this performance spans Clapton's entire career and even throws in a cover of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" for good measure. Based around the album REPTILE, which had just been released at the time, this footage also includes the songs "Layla," "Tears in Heaven," "Sunshine of Your Love" and many more.
A struggling band find themselves attached to a fugitive and drawn into a series of old feuds and love affairs, as they try to stay together and find musical success.
A guitar playing car thief meets an autistic savant piano player, and together they transform a group of reluctant halfway house convicts into The Killer Diller Blues Band.
A 16 minute short comprising 2 acts of a 1964 event where an innovative group of musicians performed on a real railroad track. The audience on one side of the tracks and the musicians on the station side.
Following a childhood tragedy, Dewey Cox follows a long and winding road to music stardom. Dewey perseveres through changing musical styles, an addiction to nearly every drug known and bouts of uncontrollable rage.
Blind blues musician Paul Pena is perhaps best known for his song "Jet Airliner". In 1993, Pena heard Tuvan throat singing over his shortwave radio and subsequently taught himself how to reproduce these extraordinary sounds. This documentary follows him to Tuva, where he takes part in a throat singing competition. Languages featured in the film include English, Russian and Tuvan.
The Tuaregs of Tinariwen are the kings of North African blues. All it takes are a few notes to transport the audience at the Nuits de Fourvière to the heart of the Sahara.
This film traces the road of the Blues and takes us on a journey to mythical places: From the banks of the Niger to New Orleans, going up the Mississippi through Memphis to the skyscrapers of Chicago. It tells the story of this culture which faced the worst barriers and shows that Humanity can overcome barbarity.
The 1920s saw a revolution in technology, the advent of the recording industry, that created the first class of African-American women to sing their way to fame and fortune. Blues divas such as Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey, and Alberta Hunter created and promoted a working-class vision of blues life that provided an alternative to the Victorian gentility of middle-class manners. In their lives and music, blues women presented themselves as strong, independent women who lived hard lives and were unapologetic about their unconventional choices in clothes, recreational activities, and bed partners. Blues singers disseminated a Black feminism that celebrated emotional resilience and sexual pleasure, no matter the source.
Boogie Man is a comprehensive look at political strategist, racist, and former Republican National Convention Committee chairman, Lee Atwater, who reinvigorated the Republican Party’s Southern Strategy to increase political support among white voters in the South by appealing to racism against African Americans. He mentored Karl Rove and George W. Bush and played a key role in the elections of Reagan and George H.W. Bush.
A wanna-be blues guitar virtuoso seeks a long-lost song by legendary musician, Robert Johnson.
Delve into the musical influences of iconic rockers Led Zeppelin, whose epic brand of arena rock grew out of a deep love of the blues, the skiffle and folk rock. Music historians and authors join producers Joe Boyd and Larry Cohn, as well as performers John Renbourn, Chas McDevitt and Davey Graham, in their analysis of the band's musical roots. An enthralling section also explores Zeppelin's fascination with the occult.
Derek loves the blues, even outside his on stage perfomances. When the singer wakes up in a mental institution after a suicide attempt, he meets Adam, his devoted fan and a true pain in the ass. A story about two guitars, three chords and the beginning of a friendship.
Dorothy Morrison, Tracy Nelson, Annie Sampson and Angela Strehli, all highly regarded vocalists in their own rights, have joined forces as The Blues Broads. Their self-titled debut CD/DVD set includes both familiar songs associated with their respective august careers, as well as newly written material that underscores the creative might of these four remarkable women. Reflecting more than two centuries of collective experience in blues, country, gospel and rock, this awesome aggregation is nothing less than a roots music "supergroup" of the first order.
Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble burn it up at the El Mocambo, a small club in Toronto, performing a short set list. During the concert Vaughan pulls off some Hendrix style guitar heroics. He does whammy bar tricks, bangs it on he floor, and makes noises with it. He also plays it behind his back.
After years in the limelight, Selena Gomez achieves unimaginable stardom. But just as she reaches a new peak, an unexpected turn pulls her into darkness. This uniquely raw and intimate documentary spans her six-year journey into a new light.
"One Direction: This Is Us" is a captivating and intimate all-access look at life on the road for the global music phenomenon. Weaved with stunning live concert footage, this inspiring feature film tells the remarkable story of Niall, Zayn, Liam, Harry and Louis' meteoric rise to fame, from their humble hometown beginnings and competing on the X-Factor, to conquering the world and performing at London’s famed O2 Arena. Hear it from the boys themselves and see through their own eyes what it's really like to be One Direction.
Part documentary, part concert film, part fever dream, this film captures the troubled spirit of America in 1975 and the joyous music that Dylan performed during the fall of that year.
Martin Scorsese's documentary intertwines footage from The Band's incredible farewell tour with probing backstage interviews and featured performances by Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, and other rock legends.
In this concert film, 'Hannah Montana' star Miley Cyrus performs a slew of hit songs, including 'Just Like You' and 'Life's What You Make It.'
Experience the iconic rock band's legacy in the first major documentary to tell their story. Directed with the era’s avant-garde spirit by Todd Haynes, this kaleidoscopic oral history combines exclusive interviews with dazzling archival footage.
Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire present more golden moments from the MGM film library, this time including comedy and drama as well as classic musical numbers.
See Michael Jackson, one of the most recognizable and popular entertainers of all time, like never before in the feature-length tribute Michael Jackson: The Life of an Icon. Known to millions of fans worldwide for his record-breaking albums, groundbreaking music videos, mesmerizing dance moves and humanitarian efforts, his true story has never really been told...until now. This unprecedented look into the King of Pop's fascinating life includes all-new interviews with his mother Katherine Jackson as well as siblings Tito and Rebbie Jackson, his nephew Jaafar Jackson and niece Tahkyah brings plenty Jackson and Friends ends and music legends such as Smokey Robinson, Dionne Warwick and his 3 children and many more.
A backstage and on-stage look at Justin Bieber during his rise to super stardom.
A musical study of Los Angeles in the late 90s, where homeless teens roam the streets and profess to live a punk lifestyle of music, drugs, and flouting authority.
Backup singers live in a world that lies just beyond the spotlight. Their voices bring harmony to the biggest bands in popular music, but we've had no idea who these singers are or what lives they lead, until now.
Spike Lee pays tribute to Michael Jackson's Bad on the twenty-fifth anniversary of the epochal album, offering behind-the-scenes footage of Jackson recording the album and interviews with confidants, musicians, choreographers, and such music-world superstars as Kanye West, Sheryl Crow, Cee Lo Green and Mariah Carey.
While crafting his Grammy-nominated album "Astroworld," Travis Scott juggles controversy, fatherhood and career highs in this intimate documentary.
SOMETHING FROM NOTHING: THE ART OF RAP is a feature length performance documentary about the runaway juggernaut that is Rap music. At the wheel of this unstoppable beast is the film's director and interviewer Ice-T. Taking us on a deeply personal journey Ice-T uncovers how this music of the street has grown to dominate the world. Along the way Ice-T meets a whole spectrum of Hip-Hop talent, from founders, to new faces, to the global superstars like Eminem, Dr Dre, Snoop Dogg and Kanye West. He exposes the roots and history of Rap and then, through meeting many of its most famous protagonists, studies the living mechanism of the music to reveal 'The Art Of Rap'. This extraordinary film features unique performances from the entire cast, without resorting to archive material, to build a fresh and surprising take on the phenomenon that is Rap.
Christopher Wallace, AKA The Notorious B.I.G., remains one of Hip-Hop’s icons, renowned for his distinctive flow and autobiographical lyrics. This documentary celebrates his life via rare behind-the-scenes footage and the testimonies of his closest friends and family.
This film is released as part of the ongoing 50th anniversary celebration of the Rolling Stones. It tells the story of the Stones' unparalleled journey from blues obsessed teens in the early 60s to their undisputed status as rock royalty. All of the Stones have been newly interviewed and their words form the narrative arc that links together archive footage of performances, news coverage, and interviews, much of it previously unseen. Taking its title from a lyric in "Jumpin' Jack Flash," this film gives the viewer an intimate insight into exactly what it's like to be part of the Rolling Stones as they overcome denunciation, drugs, dissensions, and death to become the definitive survivors. Over a year in the making and produced with the full cooperation and involvement of the Stones, this film is and will remain the definitive story of the world's greatest rock 'n' roll band
In March 2005, Neil Young was diagnosed with a brain aneurysm. Four days before he was scheduled for a lifesaving operation, he headed to Nashville, where he wrote and recorded the country folk album Prairie Wind with old friends and family members. After the successful operation and recovery period, he returned to Nashville that August to play at the famed Ryman Auditorium, once again gathering together friends and family for this special performance.
Giving fans unprecedented access to the real life of the music sensation, Katy Perry: Part of Me exposes the hard work, dedication and phenomenal talent of a girl who remained true to herself and her vision in order to achieve her dreams. Featuring rare behind-the-scenes interviews, personal moments between Katy and her friends, and all-access footage of rehearsals, choreography, Katy’s signature style and more, Katy Perry: Part of Me reveals the singer’s unwavering belief that if you can be yourself, then you can be anything.
A chronological account of the influential late 1970s English rock band.
A portrait of Keith Richards that takes us on a journey to discover the genesis of his sound as a songwriter, guitarist and performer.