Interesting documentary following the careers of the bands that played the music for Motown acts in the 1960s-1970s. These men have never been acknowledged--until now. At first I thought "What's the big deal? The stars put these song across!" Boy, was I wrong! As one person says in the film "Anyone could sing these songs--it's the music that delivers". This film proves it wonderfully. There are many great stories from the musicians still alive (sadly, some have passed away) and some musical guests (Joan Osbourne, Chaka Khan among them) recreate some fantastic Motown songs with the original musicians. There's one especially incredible moment where we see each instrument, one by one, added together to create the "Motown" sound. And it all ends on a fantastic rendition of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough".
There's plenty of truly wonderful moments here, but it is too long (almost 2 hours) and some of the recreation just don't work. Still, this is worth seeing--especially if you love Motown.
There's plenty of truly wonderful moments here, but it is too long (almost 2 hours) and some of the recreation just don't work. Still, this is worth seeing--especially if you love Motown.