SPIKE LEE FIRED FROM JAMES BROWN BIOPIC

  




According to EBONY magazine and ROLLING OUT.COM,   Spike Lee has been fired as director of the upcoming JAMES BROWN movie.  

 Spike has always been my number one choice to directory JB,s story and while no explanation was given as of yet,  I hope that this film does well.
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The news that he is being replaced by the guy that directed "THE HELP" (who is white by the way)  is a little unsettling.

  Not the fact that he is white, but he doesn,t have much of a track record ( aside from the aftermentioned movie).  But everyone has to start somewhere and he just might turn out to be a GREAT director!

It,s not about the color folks! I believe that Spike would have done justice to the JAMES BROWN story; a prime example would be the film MALCOLM X.

I don,t care if the director is BLACK, WHITE, BLUE, GRAY or POLKADOT as long as the script and the cast is right.

Another way of looking at it is by hiring a white director the film won,t be looked at as being a BLACK FILM PROJECT only, gaining more universal and hopefully international attention.

About the new director, regardless of color,  I just want to see a GREAT film about Mr. Brown done.

Steven Spielberg did an EXCELLENT job with "THE COLOR PURPLE", delivering a powerful, emotional film that has and will always stand the test of time. 

  I wish Spike was still on board but let,s give this new guy a chance, along with our support and wish him the best!

WHITNEY HOUSTON: TRAGIC LOSS OF A LEGEND

I am shocked and saddened, as are many others around the world, by the death of  beloved superstar Whitney Houston.


She was a true diva, despite her troubles in the past few years.  We have lost  Whitney, along with Etta James and Jimmy Castor, among others.


Although the real cause of death has not being released yet,  most likely drugs and alcohol have some place in it.  God Himself only knows what trials and tribulations she had to endure. 


Many of us wish for fame and fortune and there is nothing wrong in that.


The danger is that if one doesn,t have God first these things are likely to take the place of things we really treasure, the things money can,t buy.


Family, love, trust, caring, kindness, freedom; they can,t be bought at any price.


Please don,t misunderstand; I am not trying to judge Whitney. I have not walked in her footsteps or lived her life.


Although her voice was damaged by drugs and she couldn,t perform at the level she used to, she was still loved and adored by the masses, many who were rooting for her to make a comeback.




Remember Whitney Houston as a true superstar, who broke many records and for her great acting in the films, "WAITING TO EXHALE",  "THE BODYGUARD", and "THE PREACHER,S WIFE".
 She was human and subject to mistakes like any other human being.  I was overjoyed when it was announced there would be a "WAITING TO EXHALE PT.2"!
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I knew that she still had her acting ability and she could go on to make some great films, like in the past.


Sadly now, that won,t be the case.

Whitney Houston is gone, but she won,t be forgotten.

NEW DEFINITIVE OTIS REDDING DVD

Great news, old Soul Music Video Lovers!

The first full-length DVD of Otis Redding, undisputedly one of the greatest soul singers of all time has been released on dvd.

Zelma Redding, Otis' widow, has faithfully maintained her husband's legacy for the last 40 years. The 90 minute dvd features 16 complete performances filmed throughout America and Europe showcasing why Otis is considered one of the greatest soul singers of all time.

This DVD includes songs such as "I,VE BEEN LOVING YOU TOO LONG", "TRY A LITTLE TENDERNESS", and "RESPECT".

Interviews  include not only Zelma Redding, Steve Cropper (who not only played guitar on Otis,s recordings but co-wrote many of his songs, but a few brief but rare interviews featuring Otis himself!

Below is a list of complete performances on this dvd;

Complete Performances:

1. Pain In My Heart (1965)
2. Mr. Pitiful (1965)
3. Just One More Day (1965)
4. I Can't Turn You Loose (1966)
5. I've Been Loving You Too Long (1967)
6. Satisfaction (1967)
7. My Girl (1967)
8. Don't Mess With Cupid (1966)
9. Any Ole Way (1966)
10. My Lover's Prayer (1966)
11. Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa (Sad Song) (1967)
12. Tramp (1967)
13. Shake (1967)
14. Glory Of Of Love (1967)
15. Try A Little Tenderness (1967)
16. Respect (1967)
 This review is from: Dreams To Remember: The Legacy of Otis Redding (DVD);
 

 

 "This is a DVD documentary on a truly great artist done ABSOLUTELY RIGHT and as Otis would say in "Hard to Handle"-yessiram!
Unlike most documentaries of musicians, these guys understand that this is the DVD age where they are not limited by time for commercials. 

They put the films of Otis' songs IN THEIR ENTIRETY balancing this with enough interview footage from those who really know him (no second-guessing talking head academics here). These combine to make this DVD a TEN-star winner.
Surprisingly, no footage from Otis' classic 1966 appearance on the British TV show Ready Steady Go (which occasionally appeared on American Cable TV in the late 80s.

  It was available on VHS for a brief spell)  but  it's hardly missed here since what we have is so excellent and The Big-O's likeable charisma shines through on even the lip-synchs.
The songs from "The!!!Beat" (1966) in color, especially a rarely heard tune called "Don't Mess With Cupid" is loads of fun with our man dancing with some really sumptious soul sisters (hard to believe these women are probably now in their sixties!).
The promotional clip of "Tramp" (minus Carla Thomas on film) is quite a hoot!

Otis makes fun of his country image by bumbling around his farm in Macon with overalls and riding bareback on a donkey (that actually moves in time to the song). 

Then we see our hero transformed with a green suit to match the dollar bills that fall from his pockets (eerily, he also poses with the very plane that he lost his life in)!

I recall one book saying that there is a lost TV clip of Otis and Carla doing a "Black honeymooners" routine to this song. That would be interesting to see.

The last two clips of our humble hero performing "Try a Little tenderness" and "Respect" in Cleveland n the day before his death with the original Bar Kays (who also died on that plane crash).

These guys really did perform as if it's their last day on earth and Otis' interjection of Aretha Franklin's version of his famous tune will knock you out of your seat!


The Redding Family, musicians Steve Cropper and Wayne Jackson, as well as Stax head honcho Jim Stewart make clear their affection for our man and what made him so special.

After you see this wonderful DVD, you too will understand. Support DVD's like this to get more domestic bootleg-free classic R&B on DVD."

ROY C : LIVE CD AND (HOPEFULLY)SOON TO BE RELEASED CONCERT DVD

                                     


The legendary  ROY C has released a live album  entitled ROY C-LIVE!

If you listened to and saw him back in the late 60s and 70s you remember his soulful sounds (just right for lovemaking!).

Also  a documentary of ROY C  is being prepped for release also! 

I had the  pleasure of seeing him perform twice in the early 70s and word is he is just as good as he was back then. 

                                               Roy C Live: "The Blues Is Alright" Tour



A filmed concert of Roy C performing live has not been released due to differences between Roy and the producer(s).

Anyone wishing to see this DVD of this great rhythm and blues performer be released, please contact the website, www.roycforever@blogspot.com.

MARVA WHITNEY ,S SOON-TO-BE RELEASED AUTOBIOGRAPHY

Soul Diva Marva Whitney has collaberated with Bank House Books to soon released "God, The Devil and James Brown", an autobiography of her life and career.

Here, in an exclusive preview, is the ‘flashback’ that opens Marva’s book:

James Brown is holding a gun against my head. I think I’m about to die. I can feel the cold metal pressing against the side of my skull. I’m terrified. It’s 1969. We’re in James’s suite at the Beverley Comstock Hotel in Beverley Hills, Los Angeles.

A few minutes earlier, downstairs, I’d told him I had decided to leave his show and stay with some friends in LA. James didn’t want that. He turned on his charm and persuaded me not to go. He said he was going to change and I believed him.

So I went with him and Charles Bobbitt, his manager, into the hotel elevator to go up to his room. As I walked into the elevator a sharp, violent kick to my backside pushed me to the floor. I lay there while James kicked me, over and over. Charles Bobbitt stepped over me but did nothing to help.

A few minutes later I’m being bundled into James’s room. ‘So you were goin’ to leave me, Whit?’ he grunts. ‘I tell you what you gonna do. You’re gonna [Censored] and fall back in it. [Censored] and fall back in it!’ He almost spat the words out as he pulled a gun on me.

So now I’m praying. Help me, Lord, I’m saying to myself, help me, Lord, and wondering how I got into this mess in the first place. 

If you enjoyed Fred Wesley,s  "HIT ME FRED" biography, along with  the James brown books, "I FEEL GOOD", "GODFATHER OF SOUL", and  "SAY IT LOUD!", this book will be a welcome  and interesting read.

Read ‘God, The Devil and James Brown’ to find out how Marva ‘got into this mess’, and the whole long inspiring story of how she got out of it. 


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(As of this date Marva,s book still hasn,t been released but hopefully soon!)