The best B.B. King’s documentary movies

B.B. King

B.B. King

16/09/1925- 14/05/2015
We present our ranking of the best B.B. King’s movies. Do you love cinema? Or are you looking for a movie of your favorite actor to watch tonight? Surely you have some to see or that you did not know yet about B.B. King.
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Live Aid

Live Aid
8.5/10
Live Aid was held on 13 July 1985, held simultaneously in Wembley Stadium in London, England, and the John F. Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, United States. It was one of the largest-scale satellite link-ups and television broadcasts of all time: an estimated global audience of 1.9 billion, across 150 nations, watched the live broadcast. It's twelve noon in London, seven AM in Philadelphia, and around the world it's time for: Live Aid...

Summer of Soul (...or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)

Summer of Soul (...or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)
8/10
During the same summer as Woodstock, over 300,000 people attended the Harlem Cultural Festival, celebrating African American music and culture, and promoting Black pride and unity. The footage from the festival sat in a basement, unseen for over 50 years, keeping this incredible event in America's history lost—until now.

When We Were Kings

When We Were Kings
7.9/10
  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release: 25/10/1996
  • Character: Himself
It's 1974. Muhammad Ali is 32 and thought by many to be past his prime. George Foreman is ten years younger and the heavyweight champion of the world. Promoter Don King wants to make a name for himself and offers both fighters five million dollars apiece to fight one another, and when they accept, King has only to come up with the money. He finds a willing backer in Mobutu Sese Suko, the dictator of Zaire, and the "Rumble in the Jungle" is set, including a musical festival featuring some of America's top black performers, like James Brown and B.B. King.

Live Aid

Live Aid
4 × DVD, The broadcast of the biggest benefit concert in history, organized by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise funds for Ethiopian famine relief. This entry is for the compilation box set released in 2004.

Genius. A Night for Ray Charles

Genius. A Night for Ray Charles
6.4/10
A meld of legendary performers and contemporary artists of today who have been influenced by Ray's music perform in this concert extravaganza.

The 25th Anniversary Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Concerts

The 25th Anniversary Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Concerts
8.5/10
On October 29th and 30th, 2009, rock 'n' roll royalty held court at Madison Square Garden for what have been called 'the best concerts ever,' and 'where rock 'n' roll history was made.' The concerts featured a who's who of rock 'n' roll from the '50s to the '90s and included artists performing together in unprecedented combinations that will most likely never be witnessed again. 'The 25th Anniversary Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Anniversary Concerts' included sets by Crosby, Stills & Nash; Stevie Wonder; Paul Simon; Simon & Garfunkel; Aretha Franklin; Metallica; U2; Jeff Beck and Bruce Springsteen & the E-Street Band. Joining this iconic line up on stage were special guests including: Jerry Lee Lewis, Bonnie Raitt, Jackson Browne, Smokey Robinson, B.B. King, Annie Lennox, Lou Reed, John Fogerty, Mick Jagger, Fergie and others. A 4-hour special of the concerts aired on HBO to high ratings, and was seen by tens of millions. Now this historic event is available on DVD.

B.B. King: The Life of Riley

B.B. King: The Life of Riley
7.4/10
Documentary charting the life of blues guitarist B.B. King, with contributions from fellow musicians.

Soul Power

Soul Power
7.1/10
  • Genre: DocumentaryMusic
  • Release: 04/09/2008
  • Character: Himself (archive footage)
Soul Power is a 2008 documentary film about the Zaire 74 music festival in Kinshasa which accompanied the Rumble in the Jungle heavyweight boxing championship match between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman in October 1974. The film was made from archival footage; other footage shot at the time focusing on the fight was edited to form the film When We Were Kings.

Lightning in a Bottle

Lightning in a Bottle
7.6/10
On February 7th, 2003, renowned artists across multiple music genres and generations commandeered the stage at New York City's Radio City Music Hall to pay tribute to their common heritage and passion - the blues. Shared with thousands of fans in attendance, legendary performers from roots, rock, jazz and rap joined forces for a once-in-a-lifetime "Salute To The Blues" benefit concert whose proceeds went to musical education.

John Mayer: Someday I'll Fly

John Mayer: Someday I'll Fly
John Mayer: Someday I'll Fly chronicles the musical evolution of one of the most influential solo artists of his generation. Featuring rare demos, interviews and live performances; it is told in it's entirety from Mayer's perspective. Centered mostly on his career and professional accomplishments, Someday I'll Fly strips away the typical gossip surrounding Mayer to provide an intimate look at the life and career of a lauded musician. Produced and edited by Eastwood Allen

The Ten Commandments of Creativity

The Ten Commandments of Creativity
5.9/10
  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release: 01/02/2000
  • Character: Himself
Having struggled to crack his brief, Dennis Hopper decides the only honourable act is to throw himself off a roof. Before this final act, Sir Peter Ustinov appears and bestows the Ten Commandments of Creativity upon the desperate advertising executive. The Ten Commandments become a template to navigate the state of creativity. Featuring Tarantino, Jeff Koons, Sean Penn, and Malcolm McClaren.

B.B. King: Into the Night

B.B. King: Into the Night
6.8/10
A short documentary about B.B. King and his time working on the score for the 1985 movie "Into the Night" starring Jeff Goldblum and Michelle Pfeiffer.

Black Woodstock

Black Woodstock
8.8/10
The Harlem Cultural Festival, also known as "Black Woodstock", was a series of music concerts held in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City during the summer of 1969 to celebrate African American music and culture and to promote the continued politics of black pride. The concerts took place in Harlem's Mount Morris Park on Sundays at 3PM from June 29, 1969 to August 24, 1969. The manifestation came soon after the Watts Riots, and the assassinations of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King.

Bluesland: A Portrait in American Music

Bluesland: A Portrait in American Music
7.6/10
Blues as a genre shaped the sound of jazz in the early 20th century and directly led to the creation of rock 'n' roll in the '50s. The scales, chords, and progressions of blues as a musical form can be found in styles from jazz to rock to contemporary R&B.

Willie Nelson: The Big Six-O

Willie Nelson: The Big Six-O
7.7/10
Willie Nelson and friends celebrate his sixtieth birthday in a star-studded concert event.

Wired for Sound: A Guitar Odyssey

Wired for Sound: A Guitar Odyssey
Wired For Sound documents the role of the Gibson guitar throughout the evolution of rock music.

Born In Chicago

Born In Chicago
8.3/10
"Born In Chicago" is a soulful documentary film that chronicles a uniquely musical passing of the torch. It’s the story of first generation blues performers who had made their way to Chicago from the Mississippi Delta and their ardent and unexpected followers – young white, middle class kids who followed this evocative music to smoky clubs deep in Chicago’s ghettos. There, against all odds, they were encouraged by the greats who had became their musical mentors and learned the art of the blues at the feet the masters, going on to make the music their own.

Louder Than Love: The Grande Ballroom Story

Louder Than Love: The Grande Ballroom Story
8.4/10
The greatest untold story in Rock and Roll history as revealed by the musicians,artists and people that lived it

Monochrome: Black, White & Blue

Monochrome: Black, White & Blue
7.4/10
From America's deep South, to Detroit and New York this captivating and enlightening documentary special traces the evolution of blues through pivotal moments in American history. Brewer discovers that there was no music called 'the blues' when its creators just stepped into a new feel of musical expressionism… just a means of releasing a lifetime of pain and oppression, from which music, momentarily, set them free.

B.B. King: Live In Africa '74

B.B. King: Live In Africa '74
8.2/10
In 1974, Muhammad Ali and George Foreman held their heavyweight title fight in Zaire, billing it as the "Rumble in the Jungle". A three-day music festival was staged concurrently, and B.B. King was the headlining act. Anyone who has ever had the fortune to see B.B. King play live, even in his later, seated years knows that he is a consummate showman. B.B. King: Live in Africa '74 presents the man at the peak of his powers, as a performer and as a player.

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