Great documentaries about music and musicians
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- DirectorBao NguyenStarsLionel RichieHarriet SternbergWendy ReesOn January 28th 1985, dozens of the era's most popular musicians gathered in Los Angeles to record a charity single for African famine relief. Setting egos aside, they collaborated on a song that would make history.
- In January 1969, The Beatles set out to write and record new songs for their first live show in more than two years, culminating in an impromptu concert atop their Savile Row studio.
- DirectorJulien TempleStarsShane MacGowanThe PoguesSiobhan MacGowanA look at the life of Irish singer/songwriter and Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan.
- StarsRick RubinRowan SmythDavid PluebellThis four-part docu-series focusses on creative conversation and the emotional side of music-making, using legendary music producer and Def Jam Records co-founder Rick Rubin's iconic Malibu, CA studio as the backdrop.
- StarsHoward GoodallDaisy FancourtNicola BenedettiMaster musician Howard Goodall, puts his knowledge into power in various moving and inspirational episodes dealing from the beginning time, the birth of music. From cavemen to Lady Gaga, he highlights the importance of the forming of music and the musicians that helped bring the brilliant art into the world.
- DirectorMidge CostinStarsGary RydstromSteven SpielbergTeresa EcktonAn exploration of the history and emotional power of cinema sound, as revealed by legendary sound designers and visionary directors, via interviews, clips from movies, and a look at their actual process of creation and discovery.
- StarsDermot MulroneyTodd BoydQuestloveSoundbreaking explores the history of recorded music. Featuring more than 150 original interviews, the series charts a century's worth of innovation and experimentation, and offers a behind-the-scenes look at the birth of brand new sounds.
- DirectorDavis GuggenheimStarsJimmy PageThe EdgeJack WhiteA documentary on the electric guitar from the point of view of three significant rock musicians: The Edge, Jimmy Page, and Jack White.
- StarsSam DunnScott IanBruce DickinsonMetal Evolution is broken down into episodes about a different piece of metal history. The series includes interviews with and about Alice Cooper, Slash, Lemmy, Rob Zombie, members of Megadeth, Metallica, Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Slayer, Judas Priest, Van Halen, Whitesnake, Def Leppard, The Stooges, ZZ Top, Soundgarden, Mötley Crüe, Poison, Rage Against the Machine, Alice in Chains, Korn, Slipknot, Lamb of God and more.
- DirectorPål AasdalMartin LedangStarsVarg VikernesKjetil ManheimNecrobutcherInterviews with central members of early Norwegian black metal bands about Mayhem, the early black metal scene and the crimes they committed.
- DirectorBen TurnerGabe TurnerStarsBerry GordySmokey RobinsonStevie WonderDocumentary film that focuses on the period beginning with the birth of Motown in Detroit in 1958 until its relocation to Los Angeles in the early 1970s.
- 20211h 58mPG-138.0 (14K)96MetascoreDirectorQuestloveStarsDorinda DrakeBarbara Bland-AcostaDarryl LewisDocumentary about the legendary 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival which celebrated African-American music and culture and promoted Black pride and unity.
- DirectorSami SaifStarsMerle AllinArleta BairdGG AllinIn New Hampshire, a legend is buried. GG Allin, the most outrageous singer in rock'n roll history. He was known for defecating on stage, fighting and having sex with the audience. He died a mythological death from a heroin overdose in 1993, aged 37. Directed by the award-winning director Sami Saif, THE ALLINS is a loving and entertaining look at the family of the departed rock singer. Twenty years on from his all too premature passing in 1993, we meet GG's mother Arleta and brother Merle, each of whom in their own personal way has tried to come to terms with GG's death. Arleta tackles her grief by having her son's gravestone removed from the cemetery in New Hampshire. She is tired of watching his fans pay tribute to GG by vandalizing his grave. That is not the son she wants to remember. She wants to remember GG, the man - a loving son and brother. Brother Merle, on the other hand, keeps himself and the myth about the world's most destructive rock'n roll musician going by selling merchandise and by breathing life into their old joint band, Murder Junkies. As the family story unfolds - from an impoverished childhood ruled by a tyrannical, brutal father to an adult life marked by a complete lack of boundaries, which in GG's case ended in drugs, violence and prison - Arleta and Merle try to find themselves and their common past.
- DirectorSteve LoveridgeStarsM.I.A.Spike JonzeMadonnaDrawn from a never-before-seen cache of personal footage spanning decades, this is an intimate portrait of the Sri Lankan artist and musician who continues to shatter conventions.
- DirectorAlan HicksRashida JonesStarsQuincy JonesRashida JonesKareem Abdul-JabbarAn intimate look into the life of icon Quincy Jones. A unique force in music and popular culture for 70 years, Jones has transcended racial and cultural boundaries; his story is inextricably woven into the fabric of America.
- DirectorMatt SchraderStarsMarco BeltramiJon BurlingameLeonard MaltinA look at the cinematic art of the film musical score, and the artists who create them.
- DirectorTom VolfStarsFanny ArdantJoyce DiDonatoMaria CallasAn intimate look at the life and work of Greek-American opera singer Maria Callas, as told in her own words.
- DirectorMalik BendjelloulStarsRodriguezStephen 'Sugar' SegermanDennis CoffeyTwo South Africans set out to discover what happened to their unlikely musical hero, the mysterious 1970s rock n roller, Rodriguez.
- DirectorPaul RachmanStarsGreg GinnIan MacKayeJames DrescherThe History of American Punk Rock 1980-1986
- DirectorDavid MarkeyStarsSonic YouthKim GordonLee RanaldoDavid Markey's documentary of life on the road with Sonic Youth and Nirvana during their tour of Europe in late 1991. Also featuring live performances by Dinosaur Jr, Babes In Toyland, The Ramones and Gumball.
- 1985– 3h 28mNot Rated8.4 (12K)TV EpisodeDirectorMartin ScorseseStarsBob DylanB.J. RolfzenDick KangasA chronicle of Bob Dylan's strange evolution between 1961 and 1966 from folk singer to protest singer to "voice of a generation" to rock star.
- DirectorBruce WeberStarsChet BakerCarol BakerVera BakerDocumentary on the life of jazz trumpeter and drug addict Chet Baker. Fascinating series of interviews with friends, family, associates and lovers, interspersed with film from Baker's earlier life and some modern-day performances.
- DirectorJeff FeuerzeigStarsDaniel JohnstonMabel JohnstonBill JohnstonDaniel Johnston, manic-depressive genius singer/songwriter/artist is revealed in this portrait of madness, creativity and love.
- DirectorMichael WadleighStarsJoan BaezRichie HavensRoger DaltreyOscar-winning musical chronicle that brilliantly captures the three-day rock concert and celebration of peace and love that became a capstone for the Sixties.
- DirectorBrett MorgenStarsKurt CobainWendy O'ConnorDon CobainAn authorized documentary on the late musician Kurt Cobain, from his early days in Aberdeen, Washington to his success and downfall with the grunge band Nirvana.
- StarsShadLL Cool JBig Daddy KaneMC and journalist Shad Kabango meets with Hip-Hop's biggest stars to retrace how Hip-Hop became the world's most popular music, but realizes that Hip-Hop's true legacy is something much more profound.
- 20101h 56mNot Rated7.6 (1.9K)68MetascoreDirectorJohn ScheinfeldStarsGerry BeckleyLee BlackmanPerry Botkin Jr.The life and work of the enigmatic folk rock singer-songwriter.