In the early 1970s a young guitarist from Austin, Texas began to make his name on the local blues circuit, committed to a musical form many thought outdated. A decade on, that same guitarist became an international superstar. A player of passion, energy and awe-inspiring technical virtuosity, Stevie Ray Vaughan not only brought the blues heritage of his home state to a global audience, he reinvigorated the genre itself, introducing it to a new generation of listeners in the process. This film reveals and dissects the formative years of Stevie Ray Vaughan's career; his influences, his first recordings and the bands with whom he honed his craft and traces the history of Texas blues itself, identifying Vaughan's place within this larger tradition. It is the journey of both a musical form and the single-minded musician who brought it firmly back into the spotlight after decades of neglect.
During the Great Depression, identical twins are separated at birth. One, Drexel Hemsley becomes a wildly successful '50s rock star, while the other, Ryan Wade, struggles to balance his passion for music and pleasing his parents, who want him to become a preacher. Finally, Ryan rebels against his parents' wishes and launches his own music career -- performing the hits of Drexel Hemsley. Ryan later learns the truth about Drexel when their fates tragically collide.
Wacken Open Air is the biggest 3-day-rock- and metal-festival in the world. It's three days of raw energy, non-stop Heavy Metal music at full blast and 80.000 fans on a party frenzy. A true legend, taking place annually since 1990 in the sleepy German country town of Wacken, it attracts fans from all over the world.
Cellist Ilse de Ziah travels around Ireland searching for undiscovered secrets of ten Irish Airs, and playing these slow and intensely beautiful pieces in the places they come from.
Heaven Adores You is an intimate, meditative inquiry into the life and music of Elliott Smith. By threading the music of Elliott Smith through the dense, yet often isolating landscapes of the three major cities he lived in -- Portland, New York City, Los Angeles -- Heaven Adores You presents a visual journey and an earnest review of the singer's prolific songwriting and the impact it continues to have on fans, friends, and fellow musicians.
Sam Cooke died at the age of 33 on December 11, 1964, at the Hacienda Motel, at 9137 South Figueroa Street, in Los Angeles, California. Answering separate reports of a shooting and of a kidnapping at the motel, police found Cooke's body, clad only in a sports jacket and shoes but no shirt, pants or underwear. He had sustained a gunshot wound to the chest, which was later determined to have pierced his heart. The motel's manager, Bertha Franklin, said she had shot Cooke in self-defense after he broke into her office residence and attacked her. Her account was immediately questioned and disputed by acquaintances.
James Brown changed the face of American music forever. Abandoned by his parents at an early age, James Brown was a self-made man who became one of the most influential artists of the 20th century, not just through his music, but also as a social activist. Charting his journey from rhythm and blues to funk, MR. DYNAMITE: THE RISE OF JAMES BROWN features rare and previously unseen footage, photographs and interviews, chronicling the musical ascension of “the hardest working man in show business,” from his first hit, “Please, Please, Please,” in 1956, to his iconic performances at the Apollo Theater, the T.A.M.I. Show, the Paris Olympia and more.
The film shadows Justin Peck, wunderkind choreographer of the New York City Ballet, as he undertakes the Herculean task of creating the company’s 422nd original piece. Following the creative process from its embryonic stages to its highly anticipated premiere, BALLET 422 is a powerful celebration of the skill and endurance of New York’s most talented dancers—as well as those who remain hidden in the wings.
A Mother’s Love is a story that captures the rollercoaster relationship between a mother and daughter. This hit musical stages Kandi Burruss as a member of a girl group dealing with the trials and tribulations of the industry all while balancing her personal turmoil with the all differences between her mother and new love. This story depicts how tough it can be for a mother to let go and allow her daughter to make her own decisions when it comes to love. Torn between accepting the life her daughter wants and forcing the life she thinks her daughter should have, this is A Mother’ s Love.
The First Nations girl Shana is a very gifted musician. But to bring her violin to sing, she must follow the wolf. Nino Jacusso has filmed this captivating coming-of-age drama with sensational beauty and spiritual tenderness.
Take Me to the River is a film about the soul of American music. The film follows the recording of a new album featuring legends from Stax records and Memphis mentoring and passing on their musical magic to stars and artists of today.
Duran Duran: Unstaged is a multimedia event that takes the audience on a cinematic journey with one of the most successful acts in the world during their performance at the Mayan Theater in Los Angeles.
The Who's seminal double album 'Tommy', released in 1969, is a milestone in rock history. It revitalized the band's career and established Pete Townshend as a composer and Roger Daltrey as one of rock's foremost frontmen. The first album to be overtly billed as a 'rock opera', 'Tommy' has gone on to sell over 20 million copies around the world and has been reimagined as both a film by Ken Russell in the mid-seventies and a touring stage production in the early nineties. This new film explores the background, creation and impact of 'Tommy' through new interviews with Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey, archive interviews with the late John Entwistle, and contributions from engineer Bob Pridden, artwork creator Mike McInnerney plus others involved in the creation of the album and journalists who assess the album s historic and cultural impact.
This film, from the makers of Eric Clapton - The 1960s Review, follows Clapton's bold musical journey through the seventies. Featuring new and archive interviews, rare performance footage, contributions from the likes of Bonnie Bramlett, Bobby Whitlock, The Albert Brothers , George Terry, Willie Perkins, Bill Halverson, Clapton biographer Marc Roberty and others, plus a host of other features.
When the Sleepy Hollow Heights Horror Club learns their local grindhouse will be shut down, they plan a 24-hour horror-movie-marathon as a last-ditch effort to save the theater. Unbeknownst to them, a derelict called The Phantom will stop at nothing to keep the meddling kids from ruining his sanctuary - and things go from bad to worse as The Phantom falls for the girl of his dark dreams.