Standing in the Shadows of Motown

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source: Standing in the Shadows of Motown

Somewhere I do hope there is a special hell for Berry Gordy, who milked the talents of these hard-working natural gods, paying them scale, and selling their golden fruits by the millions. I guess it's a good thing that little of that was directly mentioned in the movie, because it would have made it that much more bittersweet. Still, these guys did seem to have had a great time while it lasted, and they got to be part of a very special family who all meant the world to each other. To see the old fellas in their sailor caps at the reunion concert, they don't really look so much like the groovemonsters they once were, more like some guys hanging out at the corner barbershop, but plenty of photos and interviews show that old spark just fine. Lots of songs in the reunion groove along pretty well, but I definitely thought that was the weakest part of the show. Big stretched out epic endings, totally inappropriate for such compact soulfulness, and moreso, a definite feeling of damn, how the hell did this take so damn long to happen. I found almost all of the featured marquee-name vocalists to be a yawn. I guess they felt like they should pipe down and not overshadow the real stars, but with material like this, I think you need to bring it, or step aside. Joan Osbourne in particular turned it all the way up to 7, and Msh'l Ongedoodly made me roll my eyes with her mannered clichés. Ben Harper didn't even belong near the stage; definitely set my teeth on edge when they talked about the nice split groove of "Heard It Through the Grapevine", then he comes in dead square on the beat and makes the band hurry and play catch-up to his empty ersatz. Bootsy, well he's just Bootsy, ever-lovable showman, can't really fault him. The only performer that really carried it right was Chaka Khan, with her easy confidence, not even trying to live up to the original passion of "What's Going' On" (why even try, what a gem), but shining grand all the same. And then it all comes home with the vast jumble of song titles fluttering up at the end; so hard to believe all of those great timeless classics were actually written, just grew organically out of the talents of a scruffy basement full of under-appreciated geniuses. Hey Mr. Gordy, have a nice look at yourself in the mirror.

The success of the Motown sound was equal parts amazing songwriting, dynamic performers, tight production, talented musicians and Barry Gordy's genius for creating a sound and marketing it. This documentary would like you to believe that the success of Motown relied solely on this corps of studio musicians. Not only untrue, but the musicians are likely the least critical contributors to that success. A more interesting film would have a complete telling of the Motown phenomenon giving the musicians their due in proper perspective - or even an exploration of studio musicians in general. The performances are fun, but the esoteric singers seem to draw attention away from the Funk Bros. and end up making a stronger case for the greatness of the songwriting than for mastery of the musicians.

"Standing In The Shadows Of Motown" is a wonderful insight into the sessions musicians who played on practically every track that Motown Records produced between 1959-1972. Known as "The Funk Brothers", these talented men helped craft a sound that became distinctive around the world. They were, the musical backbone of the legendary record label. Directed by Paul Justman, this documentary highlights the trials and tribulations of "The Funk Brothers". With interviews from the surviving members, and concert footage of classic songs from many of today's artists such as Joan Osbourne, Ben Harper, Me'Shell Ndegeocello and several others, this is an entertaining and thoughtful look at the accomplishments these men have made to contemporary American music and the imprint they have left behind. Fascinating, touching, amusing and at times tragic, this documentary is well worth checking out. For lovers of music and for those who enjoyed a good solid documentary, "Standing In The Shadows Of Motown" delivers the goods on both counts. See how things were done - Old school style.....

The Funk Brothers, as they came to be known, were (and are) a group of about 20 extremely talented jazz musicians who were recruited by Barry Gordy to be studio musicians for Motown Records, which was just starting out at the time. Cut to a few years later, and the Funk Brothers had played on more number 1 hits than the Beatles, Elvis, and the Rolling Stones combined. If you hear a Motown record by any number of great artists, like Marvin Gaye, the Temptations, Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, the Supremes or dozens of others, that's them playing that great backing music. "Standing In The Shadows Of Motown" is a movie that finally salutes these unsung heroes, without whom the music of Motown might not have been half so brilliant. The best part of the movie, without a doubt, is the new concert footage. All the surviving Funk Brothers were recently reunited for a concert in Detroit (the home of Motown) to play some of their biggest hits, with a diverse group of singers. These live scenes are so powerful and breathtaking, that it only reinforced my opinion that the Motown music of the 60's and 70's is some of the best music ever recorded. Pop music never, ever (before or since) sounded so pure and beautiful as that music does. All these performances are great, but my favorites have to be The Four Tops' "Reach Out I'll Be There" sung by Gerald Levert (which kicks off the movie with fire and energy) and Jimmy Ruffin's "What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted?" sung passionately by Joan Osbourne. The rest of the movie is pretty regular documentary stuff, featuring lots of insightful interviews with the musicians and narration by Andre Braugher. It goes on a little too long (like I said in my review for "Bowling For Columbine", 2 hours is usually pushing it for a documentary) and some of the re-enactments aren't as effective as intended. But man, those performances. There isn't much music I like more than classic soul, and if you have at least a passing interest in it, you'll be wanting to get up and dance in the aisle just like me.

I just wanted to say that I think that this is going to be a great docudrama, and it really gives a good look into what really went on during the early days of Motown. I was an extra in the movie so I have to say......Its gonna be good. Hope you enjoy it as much as i did participating in the project. I'm just an extra so dont look for anything more than my pretty little face.

STANDING IN THE SHADOWS OF MOTOWN sets the record (or literally records) straight at last, and does what Berry Gordy should've done AGES ago...reveal the true source of the "Motown sound" that served as the soundtrack for my entire childhood, and most of my early adult life. I'm not surprised that they had more hits than the top five rock and R&B acts in history combined. But what's even more amazing about them, is how "river deep, mountain high" their influence has been. So much so, in fact, that I knew who they were without KNOWING who they were. It is mentioned in the documentary that they only received credit on an LP for the first time in 1970, for their efforts on Marvin Gaye's seminal classic "What's Going On." But that was not my first real encounter with the Funk Brothers. That happened a few years later. More than likely inspired in part by Marvin's groundbreaking work, producer Norman Whitfield created his own song cycle about love, loss, struggle, sorrow and hope in an urban setting. With The Temptations, he crafted one of Motown's (and The Temps) finest albums ever, which shamefully has long been out of print. The name of the album said it all: "MASTERPIECE." The most amazing thing about it to me, even more than the music locked within the vinyl grooves, is that Whitfield saw fit to thank every musician who worked on the album: Melvin "Wah Wah" Ragin, Bob Babbitt, Richard "Pistol" Allen, Earl Van Dyke, Uriel Jones, Jack Ashford. And about a dozen more. Spellbound, I had no idea even then, that I had just made the acquaintance of the Funk Brothers. Now nearly thirty years later, with this documentary, it's like meeting them all for the first time. To my knowledge, none of the singers who shot to fame thanks to the Brothers' talents had ever publicly acknowledged their worth, (and maybe Mr. Gordy knows the reason for that.) But the documentarians have my eternal gratitude for righting this terrible wrong...Maybe not in time enough for James Jamerson, Bobby White or Earl Van Dyke, but at least while a lot of the Old Masters are still with us. For a little while longer. IMHO, the highlights: Joan Osborne, Gerald Levert with Tom Scott, Chaka Khan, both alone and with Montell Jordan, and Bootsy Collins, whose good-timey vibe is still as infectious as ever. But the shining stars of the piece are and now forever will be, The Brothers. Don't rent this baby...BUY it. You'll be glad you made the investment, because you'll find yourself playing the concert cuts over and over again...just like an old Gordy, Tamla or Motown 45.

I really loved this documentary. Three key points: (1) I applaud the spirit and energy to put the project- long overdue recognition and praise for great musicians- together. I happen to be a fan of the Temptations movie and saw this DVD next to it. Had I not bought it on a whim, I would be so much more empty. (2) James Jamerson-I would love a documentary on him alone. Not because of his quirks, but because of his tortured spirits; a great movie-making project! Also, upon my research of this topic after seeing this film, I came across an extensive web site, bassplayer.com, with a great tribute page to Jamerson. Among the most outrageous discussions that have not been resolved to my knowledge- who played bass on Stevie Wonder's "I Was Made to Love Her"? The majority of folks strongly contend it was James Jamerson, however, a woman named Carol Kaye states she was the actual bass player for the song. I don't know the truth, but I do know that after never hearing the bass in the song for the 30+ plus that this has been one of my all-time favorite songs, I ONLY hear the bass line. That bass line is so masterful, so exceptional, and so unrelentingly funky, that I believe only a virtuoso could have done it. The fact that that song and bass line were done in 1966/67, amidst so many hundreds of other Motown hits and other songs, tells me that the Funk Brothers and James Jamerson were truly blessed talents. (3) Chaka Khan's rendition of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" is undoubtedly the very best performance I have ever seen her do and is among the top performances ever recorded. That she won a Grammy for the song is amazing. She actually sang it in 2000; the movie was released in 2002 and won the Grammy in 2003! I get teary every time I hear her singing the song in the movie(I replayed this section at least 10 times when I first saw the movie) and I don't think she will ever have another brilliant performance that would match that intensity. Bottom line: I strongly recommend this movie and subsequent deeper research into other great R&B music roots. Rod Walker

Why wasn't Motown and former Motown acts, many are still around and touring, used in the movie? What about the background singers like the Andantes who sang on nearly as many recordings as the Funk Brothers played on? Did anybody talk to any of Motown's producers, the guys who hired the Funk Brothers for their sessions? What about the arrangers, who actually "wrote" the music. And why do the movie give the impression the Funk Brothers were paid poorly? Earl Van Dyke, at the height of Motown's rise in the sixties, said he was making $80,000 a year. This was good money for the sixties. As for not being listed on album covers until Marvin Gaye's What's Going On album. What pop\soul musicians of the sixties were? The movie gives the impression that the Funk Brothers were the main reason for Motown's success. Not true.