While most people have heard of The Supremes, The Temptations, Marvin Gaye, and Diana Ross, only the most dedicated music fan knows about The Funk Brothers. In this fascinating flashback to 1958, when the sound of Motown was born in Detroit, director Paul Justman uncovers the force behind the music: the forgotten musicians themselves.
Comprised of a loose arrangement of drummers, bassists, guitar-strummers, and even the odd bongo-basher, The Funk Brothers provided these singers with a distinctive and original sound.
Without them, Motown would never have been born. But, in an all-too-typical quirk of history, they've never received the respect they deserve. It's ironic, since, as drummer Steve Gordon points out, it was the music, not the lyrics or the singers, that made Motown so famous. "Anyone could have sung them. You could have had Deputy Dawg singing on some of this stuff," he reflects.
A timely retrospective, this fascinating film is full of anecdotes, archive footage, and interviews. Although these musicians have found a certain grace and nobility in their challenged circumstances - playing in rundown dives, living on tips and goodwill while the singers they worked with have become multi-millionaires - it's not enough to hide the disappointment they feel at being consigned to the footnotes of musical history.
By the time the Motown era ended, they were left out in the cold as Motown producer Berry Gordy decided to move the label from Detroit to Los Angeles. He put up a notice on the studio doors telling the Funk Brothers that their services were no longer required. As keyboard player Joe Hunter recalls, it was devastating: "When the dust cleared, it was all over and we realised we were being left out of the dream."
Hopefully this excellent documentary will go some way towards redressing the wrongs of the past.
Standing in the Shadows of Motown (2003)
