It took 37 years, but Aretha Franklin's miraculous performance at the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Los Angeles, in 1972, was finally released to the public in 2019. Mind you, it was originally scheduled for release in late 1972, but more about that in a moment.
Aretha Franklin, was hands down, the finest Gospel singer of her's or any generation. She rose to superstardom not as a gospel singer, but as a pop singer, selling millions of records, and being awarded just about every award there was to be won. In this extraordinary documentary, she returns to her first love--Gospel music. Her performance was staged in a Black Baptist church--not in her native Detroit Michigan church (where she developed her incredible singing talent) but in Southern California. It was a gala occasion, attracting a host of celebrities from both coasts, including two devotees of her art: Mick Jagger, and Charlie Watts (who were in L.A. putting the finishing touches on the next Rolling Stone's album, "Exile on Main Street).
Aretha Franklin was the main event, singing songs that meant the world to her, songs she had learned as a youth while attending New Bethel Baptist Church in Detroit, Michigan. Recorded live over two nights, her set was comprised primarily of Gospel standards: "Amazing Grace", "What a friend we have in Jesus," "Climbing Higher Mountains", "Mary Don't You Weep", "Old Landmark", "How I Got Over", etc. To these she sang a couple of contemporary tunes: "Climb Every Mountain", by the Broadway songwriting team of Rodgers and Hammerstein, and "You've Got a Friend", by Carol King.
Accompany her was the Southern California Community Choir, under the direction of her father, C.L. Franklin. A four-piece gospel combo provided the musical accompaniment: Kenny Luper on organ, Cornrell Dupree on guitar, Chuck Rainey on bass guitar, and Poncho Moralaes on percussion. The film's footage was shot under the direction of famed movie maker, Sydney Pollack.
The film was scheduled for nationwide release later that year. However, the release was delayed due to difficulty in synchronizing the audio with the visual print, and was relegated to a Warner Brothers vault unit 2007, when producer Alan Elliot purchased the raw footage and attempted to synchronize it, which he managed to do.
The edited footage, 87 minutes in length, was planned for release in 2011. However, Ms Franklin sued Elliot for appropriating her likeness without her permission. Elliott made another attempt in 2015, but Ms Franklin sued him again. After Aretha's death in 2018, her family stepped in and made arrangements for the film's worldwide release, in 2019.
Aretha Franklin is all-business singing her beloved Gospel music, does not speak with the audience, and seldom smiles. That said, her love for these songs is deeply felt, which makes this DVD a revelation.
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