CommentsXp Best movie ever!

SpunkySelfTwitter It’s an especially fun movie from a director and cast who are clearly having a good time allowing themselves to let loose.

SeeQuant Blending excellent reporting and strong storytelling, this is a disturbing film truly stranger than fiction

Raymond Sierra The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

capone666 20 Feet from StardomThe worst part of being a backup singer is you're in the path of the lead singer's farts.Mind you, Mick Jagger would be the one emitting gas in this documentary.In the shadow of the spotlight, women, like, Darlene Love, Merry Clayton and Sheryl Crow, have been overlooked in the annals of music history for their supporting role – until now.From their inception due to breakouts within existing girl groups - The Supremes – to Caucasian rockers - Bruce Springsteen, Sting - who utilize African American singers to add credibility to their ditties, 20 Feet from Stardom explores every angle of this misunderstood contributor.Through interviews with the backups themselves as well as the artists and producers they work with, viewers are treated to a fascinating account of the recording industry's true underdog.And contrary to popular belief, backup singers weren't invented because Phil Spector might shoot the lead singer.Green Lightvidiotreviews.blogspot.ca

mdroel20 This music documentary, unlike any of its predecessors, focuses on artists not usually the center of attention in the music industry, the backup singers. This film portrayed the careers of the unsung forces behind many notable cuts from the past fifty years.The essence of these great backup singers is rooted in gospel music and black culture. In the 60s, singers like Darlene Love, Merry Clayton, Patti Austin, and many other black women (and a few men) became the sound of many legendary cuts, for which they did not receive the recognition they deserved. Many songs from that era's catchy hooks came from these artists, but unless you are a music historian, you wouldn't be aware. This movie sheds light on the hidden stars behind some of the most famous tunes in history.And the colored girls go/"Doo do doo do doo do do doo …" – Lou Reed Walk On The Wild SideThe only artist of the bunch that I knew anything about previous to this film was Darlene Love from her previous encounters with Bruce Springsteen, but this movie was extremely enlightening about her rise,fall, and resurrection. It chronicled her days as (in)famous record producer, Phil Spector's go-to-girl in creating hit after hit in the 60s. He helped spark her career as lead singer of The Blossoms, but also had her record hit songs such as He's A Rebel, and then release them under a faux group name and have a group lip sync them for performances (in the case of He's A Rebel, it is credited to The Crystals). Even when Love finally broke free of Spector's hold, he ultimately bought her back in, thus putting a damper on her hopes and dreams until much later in her career. Her eventual election into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame in 2011 is one of the movies, and her careers, high points. Most of the other backup vocalists did not have the same amount of success Love had, but their stories were fascinating nonetheless.Through all the hardships these singers faced, there is a great story of liberation that came with rock 'n' roll, specifically from the United Kingdom. Many artists from the UK were fascinated by the soulful harmonies produced by these early backup vocalists and wanted that sound replicated in their recordings. Musicians from Joe Cocker, David Bowie, and The Rolling Stones all feature these vocalists on some of their most classic recordings. Merry Clayton's tale marking one of the most prolific and strongest vocals in rock history is truly an amazing thing. Her chilling screams of "Rape, murder/It's just a shot away" in The Rolling Stones' Gimme Shelter sends chills down the spine of anyone who hears it. The Rolling Stones have continued to recruit black, female vocalists to this day including Lisa Fischer, whose career is also highlighted in this film. A most poignant point in the movie depicts four images of Fischer fading in, harmonizing with herself, and then fades out until we are left with nothing but a single microphone as we are told of the lessening of demand for backup vocalists in today's industry.Towards the end of the film Sting plays with the idea that maybe it is just pure luck that those who have "made it" are where they are. Patti Austin comments that one needs a certain amount of "ego" to make it in the music business. Maybe it is a combination of both.This film is a must see for any music lover, as it is extremely entertaining and enlightening as a great untold story of the music business.

dlmcd325 20 Feet from Stardom was about 5 background singers that never quite made it to the top but were very talented. I think this was to show people the struggle from being a background singer to being a Solo artist. Their names are Merry Clayton, Darlene Love, Claudia Lennear, Lisa Fischer, and Judith Hill. I liked how they could look back on their memories with a smile on their face. I learned that it's not easy to make it somewhere in this world but that doesn't mean it's not worth trying. It surprised me how well these ladies could sing, how talented a lot of background singers are. I would recommend this documentary to anyone.

rooprect I watched this movie last night and enjoyed it. This morning I came to write a glowing review, but I decided to read a few other reviews first. Imagine my shock when I saw several informed reviews criticizing the film for its blatant fabrication of facts. So I paused to do some research on my own.The worst fudging seems to be regarding the career of Darlene Love which, to me was the most interesting part of the documentary. It's interesting because Darlene makes the claim, backed by documentarian Morgan Neville, that Darlene was the real lead singer on several songs which ended up being credited to other artists. It blames Phil Spector (you know, the guy who is currently serving 19 years for 2nd degree murder of actress Lana Clarkson) for maliciously manipulating Darlene Love and tricking her with promises of a solo career but instead crediting other singers for Darlene's work. Journalists were unable or unwilling to reach Phil Spector in prison to check facts; the world would much sooner believe a poor victimized singer who is forced to clean houses for a living than a rich & powerful murderer.The truth is convoluted (if you're curious, there's a pretty credible analysis on songfacts.com, search for the song "Da Doo Ron Ron"). The official record stands that Darlene Love has since retracted her claim that she sang lead. Last year the NY Times issued a correction to its article which had praised this film, stating that Darlene Love did NOT sing "Da Doo Ron Ron", but maintained that Darlene sang backup on it. But the real truth is that Darlene's voice wasn't on that song at all. The backup singers were Fanita James, Gracia Nitzsche & Cher.There's more, but you probably get the point. Not only is this documentary inaccurate, it may be deliberately fraudulent for the sake of weaving an underdog story that never was. It's really sad that the film screwed up on that account, because there's plenty of other things it could have focused on instead of claiming that these singers were cruelly manipulated.Like the far superior documentary "Standing in the Shadows of Motown", this film could have focused on the inspirational story of musicians who are simply proud that they helped make musical history--regardless of if they became superstars. In "Shadows" we don't get a weepy pity party for anyone; instead we get a triumphant revelation that the greatest session musicians were just ordinary Joes & Janes who never craved the spotlight. In "20 Feet From Stardom" we get conflicting messages: on one hand that the backup singers are content to remain in the background, on the other hand we get the picture that these backup singers were cheated out of stardom by sleazy producers. And lo & behold, those claims aren't even true.So, like my title says, I feel horribly cheated and manipulated myself. I had come here ready to write a rave review of what I thought was a polished & informative documentary deserving of its Academy Award (make no mistake, the cinematography and intimate studio footage are excellent), but 10 minutes researching the truth showed me that this documentary can't be trusted.Check out "Standing in the Shadows of Motown" instead. If you like other styles of music (like metal, for example) check out a wonderfully heartwarming & unintentionally hilarious documentary called "Anvil! The Story of Anvil". The music world is full of interesting stories without documentarians needing to manufacture them.