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Good Music Documentaries


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Paul McCartney - In Red Square.  You get a great concert and a great back story about The Beatles in the USSR during the Cold War.  Not really fitting your description, but still a very good watch.

Edited by Mark80
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Not sure what you are into but this one is from 1971... also features some early Flo and Eddie... working on the song sheets is pretty cool, and the cast of characters is pretty diverse. Not for everyone but I check it out every couple of years:

 

 

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I've seen a few recently in the past few years about various unsung heroes of music. 

 

Standing in the Shadows of Motown. It's about The Funk Brothers, the studio band for Motown. Those guys were fantastic. Played on more #1 hits than The Beatles, Beach Boys, and Elvis combined. Unfortunately they were essentially just hired hands, so don't have the bank accounts to show it.

 

The Wrecking Crew, which played on basically any pop song you know from the late 50s until the mid 70s. A whole bunch of Beach Boys (Help me Rhonda, Good vibrations, Surfin' USA to name a few.) You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin fro The Righteous Brothers. California Dreamin. I Got you Babe. Strangers in the Night. These Boots Are Made For Walkin.MacArther Park. Mrs Robinson.Love Will Keep Us Together. 

 

Hired Guns- Musicians that are hired on a contract basis from tour to tour. Paints Billy Joel in a not so pleasant light. 

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38 minutes ago, coloradobillsfan said:

It Might Get Loud (2008) explores electric guitar through interviews with Jimmy Page, the Edge, and Jack White

 

 

To this day, I cannot make sense of the Edge being part of this.

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8 minutes ago, Gugny said:

 

To this day, I cannot make sense of the Edge being part of this.

 

The only reason I can think of is that it loops in the '60's and '70's (Page) with the 80's and 90's (Edge) and then the 2000's (White) so it would have a broader audience.

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1 minute ago, Seasons1992 said:

 

The only reason I can think of is that it loops in the '60's and '70's (Page) with the 80's and 90's (Edge) and then the 2000's (White) so it would have a broader audience.

 

Seems logical.

 

And don't get me wrong ... I love early U2 (through and including Joshua Tree) - but Edge never solos.  There's nothing wrong with that, but Page and White are both rock/bluesy players; Edge is anything but.

 

Always been a mystery to me.

 

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Another dramatized 'documentary' is 24 Hour Party People, about the Manchester Music scene.  If I recall correctly it opens with the Sex Pistols playing in a Church as a new up and coming band, then journeys on through the hey day of the scene through the early-mid 80's.  It's entertaining if you listened to those bands.  OMD, Joy Division, New Order, Sex Pistols etc

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AXS TV, I bet, just saw the one on Terry Kath a couple weeks ago, thought it was outstanding

 

23 minutes ago, BuffaloBud said:

There was a docu on Chicago, another on Lynyrd Skynyrd, and one about Woodstock  All were very good - at least for me.  Unfortunately, I don't remember where I saw them.  The one on Woodstock may have been on AMC or TCM.

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3 hours ago, Gugny said:

 

Seems logical.

 

And don't get me wrong ... I love early U2 (through and including Joshua Tree) - but Edge never solos.  There's nothing wrong with that, but Page and White are both rock/bluesy players; Edge is anything but.

 

Always been a mystery to me.

 

One thing about the Edge, he has a very distinct sound.

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8 minutes ago, Buftex said:

One thing about the Edge, he has a very distinct sound.

 

Absolutely.  He is a master at using delay, too.  Putting a football analogy to this ... it's like having Bruce Smith, Michael Strahan and Adam Vinatieri in a documentary to talk about football.  Although great at what he does, he's not like the others.

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38 minutes ago, The Poojer said:

AXS TV, I bet, just saw the one on Terry Kath a couple weeks ago, thought it was outstanding

 

 

The Kath one was good, as well as the one they broadcast on SRV (2-part docu).

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2 hours ago, BuffaloBud said:

There was a docu on Chicago, another on Lynyrd Skynyrd, and one about Woodstock  All were very good - at least for me.  Unfortunately, I don't remember where I saw them.  The one on Woodstock may have been on AMC or TCM.

There were some great docs on Woodstock and that era a decade ago as we were approaching the 40 year anniversary of Woodstock.  I was expecting to see a similar run this summer as we approach the 50th anniversary but it looks like they are just going to leave it be.  I assume they feel like it has already been beaten to death at this point..which is true.

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5 hours ago, Gugny said:

 

To this day, I cannot make sense of the Edge being part of this.

 

What I got from this is that Jimmy Page is overrated.  Go ahead flame away.  Oh and just so you know I'm also the guy the thinks Neil Peart is overrated.  

 

But to the thread question.  I've seen a ton of them on Prime.  Some good some bad but because I've watched a few lots and lots pop up.  Many more than on Netflix.  

20 minutes ago, Bad Things said:

Funny, I was thinking the same thing about Jack White.

 

If I remember correctly he was the best of the three. 

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2 hours ago, Chef Jim said:

 

What I got from this is that Jimmy Page is overrated.  Go ahead flame away.  Oh and just so you know I'm also the guy the thinks Neil Peart is overrated.  

 

But to the thread question.  I've seen a ton of them on Prime.  Some good some bad but because I've watched a few lots and lots pop up.  Many more than on Netflix.  

 

If I remember correctly he was the best of the three. 

 

I've heard some say both Page and Peart are overrated.  My first question is always, "how much of their music have you listened to?"  Just listening to Fly By Night and 2112 will showcase Peart's talent.  There's ridiculous drumming on both albums.  When people, especially musicians, try to tell me Rush is overrated, I tell them to assemble a 3 piece band who can just nail the guitar solo section of Freewill - and when they can do that, I'll let myself begin to agree with them.

 

Page, even in his prime, was a sloppy player.  But not always.  He is, in my opinion, easily top 10 as far as rock guitarists go.

 

It's important to keep the comparisons in genre.  

 

Personally, I'd put Stewart Copeland ahead of Neil Peart.  But to compare either one of them to Buddy Rich wouldn't be fair - or appropriate.

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2 minutes ago, Gugny said:

 

I've heard some say both Page and Peart are overrated.  My first question is always, "how much of their music have you listened to?"  Just listening to Fly By Night and 2112 will showcase Peart's talent.  There's ridiculous drumming on both albums.  When people, especially musicians, try to tell me Rush is overrated, I tell them to assemble a 3 piece band who can just nail the guitar solo section of Freewill - and when they can do that, I'll let myself begin to agree with them.

 

Page, even in his prime, was a sloppy player.  But not always.  He is, in my opinion, easily top 10 as far as rock guitarists go.

 

It's important to keep the comparisons in genre.  

 

Personally, I'd put Stewart Copeland ahead of Neil Peart.  But to compare either one of them to Buddy Rich wouldn't be fair - or appropriate.

Two things. As you know I’m a drummer so I feel I have the knowledge and experience to critique a drummer. Secondly I was a huge Rush fan. While he is a very good solid drummer he’s not God Status which many crown him with. I think a lot of people who don’t know drumming would say he’s an amazing drummer by looking at his kit without even hearing him play. “Wow!  Look at all those drums!  He’s got to be good!!”  Probably why I bag on him.  It’s almost a silly gimmick in my mind. Probably not a fair criticism but there it is. You look at Jazz drummers with a kick, snare, one ride tom, one floor tom a ride cymbal, a crash and a hi-hat and what they can do with that?  That’s magic. 

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2 minutes ago, Chef Jim said:

Two things. As you know I’m a drummer so I feel I have the knowledge and experience to critique a drummer. Secondly I was a huge Rush fan. While he is a very good solid drummer he’s not God Status which many crown him with. I think a lot of people who don’t know drumming would say he’s an amazing drummer by looking at his kit without even hearing him play. “Wow!  Look at all those drums!  He’s got to be good!!”  Probably why I bag on him.  It’s almost a silly gimmick in my mind. Probably not a fair criticism but there it is. You look at Jazz drummers with a kick, snare, one ride tom, one floor tom a ride cymbal, a crash and a hi-hat and what they can do with that?  That’s magic. 

 

I agree with you wholeheartedly re: jazz drummers.

 

I also agree that Peart is over-hyped, likely based on aesthetics more than substance.  I just think that, as far as rock goes, the substance is actually there.

 

 

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On 7/23/2019 at 1:44 PM, The Real Buffalo Joe said:

Anybody know of some good documentaries about rock music? Ones that focus more on the music than the artists personal life? Something that goes in depth about the songwriting/recording process? I really enjoyed the "Classic Albums" series that VH1 Classic used to air. 

Sgt. Pepper's Musical Revolution that aired on PBS had quite a bit on the recording techniques used and created for this album, The album was a game changer in how music was recorded. 

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27 minutes ago, Gugny said:

 

I agree with you wholeheartedly re: jazz drummers.

 

I also agree that Peart is over-hyped, likely based on aesthetics more than substance.  I just think that, as far as rock goes, the substance is actually there.

 

 

 

Oh no doubt dude had chops. Now the Ulrich guy?  ?

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1 hour ago, Chef Jim said:

 

Oh no doubt dude had chops. Now the Ulrich guy?  ?

 

Funny .... I was trying to figure out how to incorporate him into the discussion!!  HA!

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