Standing in the Shadows of Motown

The greatest hit machines from the history of pop were not The Beatles, The Rolling Stones or Elvis, but a group of musicians who have always remained unknown to the general public: The Funk Brothers. In 1959, Berry Gordy, the founder of Motown Records, brought together the best jazz and blues musicians from the Detroit scene. The next fourteen years, this backing group played along on one hit single after the other: I can’t help myself, Heatwave, I heard it through the grapevine, Stop in the name of love, What becomes of the broken hearted. An unsightly basement in a small house served as a studio, nicknamed ‘The snakepit’, later converted into Hitsville USA. STANDING IN THE SHADOW OF MOTOWN is based on the book of the same name by Alan ‘Dr. Licks’ Slutsky, who also acted as a producer and music supervisor. Music by Smokey Robinson, The Supremes and Marvin Gaye is heard and musicians like Martha Reeves and Stevie Wonder appear briefly, but the emphasis is on the musicians themselves: unsung heroes like Joe Hunter, Jack ‘Black Jack’ Ashford, Richard ‘Pistol’ Allen, Johnny Griffith, Bob Babbitt, Uriel Jones, Joe Messina, Eddie Willis. Most band members are still alive and recount amusing golden-oldie stories, thereby filling a void in pop history. A large part of the documentary is devoted to a reunion of The Funk Brothers, featuring guest singers like Bootsy Collins, Chaka Khan, Ben Harper and Joan Osborne.