Music documentaries have been made ever since documentaries became a film genre. But that doesn’t mean that all are worth seeing. Just like films in general, the great ones stand above the rest and make you think about them after the credits roll.
These documentaries contain performances that are as important in understanding these artists and their records. Think of these titles as a time capsule, ready to be opened today, next year, or decades from now but will take you directly to the past.
Let’s count down to the best…
5. ‘Amazing Grace’ (1972/2018)
This documentary is about Aretha Franklin’s two-night live recording session for her gospel album ‘Amazing Grace’ that sat on a shelf for decades, held up first by technical delays and then by legal disputes. It was originally shot in 1972, but the finished version came out three months after Franklin’s death in 2018.
Source: Rolling Stone
‘Amazing Grace’ is a document of a movie crew scrambling to figure out the best way to capture the magic that was happening right in front of their eyes. It’s also the story of the crowds that packed into the chapel on the second night once they heard the electric performances happening inside. And at the center of it all is Franklin, silent when not singing.