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Standing in the Shadows of Motown

The soul behind the sound.

Genres

DocumentaryMusic

Overview

In 1959, Berry Gordy Jr. gathered the best musicians from Detroit's thriving jazz and blues scene to begin cutting songs for his new record company. Over a fourteen year period they were the heartbeat on every hit from Motown's Detroit era. By the end of their phenomenal run, this unheralded group of musicians had played on more number ones hits than the Beach Boys, the Rolling Stones, Elvis and the Beatles combined - which makes them the greatest hit machine in the history of popular music. They called themselves the Funk Brothers. Forty-one years after they played their first note on a Motown record and three decades since they were all together, the Funk Brothers reunited back in Detroit to play their music and tell their unforgettable story, with the help of archival footage, still photos, narration, interviews, re-creation scenes, 20 Motown master tracks, and twelve new live performances of Motown classics with the Brothers backing up contemporary performers.

Details

Budget

$0

Revenue

$0

Runtime

116 min

Release Date

2002-09-11

Status

Released

Original Language

English

Vote Count

45

Vote Average

6.889

Cast
Meet the talented actors who bring the movie to life.

Richard 'Pistol' Allen

Himself

Jack Ashford

Himself

Bob Babbitt

Himself

Benny 'Papa Zita' Benjamin

Himself (archive footage)

Eddie 'Bongo' Brown

Himself (archive footage)

Bootsy Collins

Himself

Johnny Griffith

Himself

Ben Harper

Himself

Joe Hunter

Himself

James Jamerson

Himself (archive footage)

Uriel Jones

Himself

Montell Jordan

Himself

Chaka Khan

Herself

Gerald Levert

Himself

Joe Messina

Himself

Meshell Ndegeocello

Herself

Joan Osborne

Herself

Rudy Robinson

Himself

James Jamerson Jr.

Himself

Paul Riser

Himself

Andre Braugher

Narrator

Gary Bosek

Young Bob Babbitt

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