Suburban Steps to Rockland is a feature-film documentary that revolves around the story of the Ealing Club, a venue recently defined by the prestigious Mojo Magazine as 'The Cradle of British Rock' thanks to its role in creating a new musical movement whose participants continue to influence the sound of contemporary music.
With musical proclamations like 'Mississippi Goddam' and an iconic style, Nina Simone was both loved and feared throughout the 1960s for her outspoken vision of Black Freedom. Today, Nina is more popular eleven years after her death than ever before. President Barack Obama listed 'Sinnerman' in his top 5 favorite songs, and whether re-mixed, re-sampled or in its pure form, Nina's music continues to empower people around the world with its unrelenting appeal for justice. With new insights into her musical journey from Classical Music and the segregated South, the worlds of Jazz and Civil Rights, through her erratic behavior and self-exile, Nina's legacy is chartered all the way to the place where she found freedom.
Melody Maker Magazine's Chief Contributing Photographer(1965-1975), Barrie Wentzell tells the story of the rise and fall of the magazine, which marked the end to a style of rock n' roll journalism that no longer exit's today.
Well known internationally as The Geordie Jazz Man, Keith Crombie was a mystery to many of his Jazz Cafe patrons in Newcastle upon Tyne and, like King Canute, refused to bow to the changing musical tides or even the aging process. A man who would refuse you entry on a whim, a hard man feared from his past though a lover of women - he was the epicenter of a band of similar brothers, musicians, thespians, and alcoholics - the pride of Newcastle Jazz from the 1950's to now. Aside from running an eccentric battered Jazz club, Keith's past included going to school with two of the Shadows, a brief career as a get away driver, dealings with the Krays and choosing to book the Rolling Stones over the Beatles. Eric Burdon, Wynton Marsalis, Harry Connick Junior and Prince Charles all feature. For decades he refused to be filmed, granting me access because I'm his goddaughter. This film celebrates the man, the Jazz movement but mainly a never say die contrary spirit that Keith Crombie took to his.
A humorous and poignant look at the man behind the music; WG. Snuffy Walden has written the soundtrack of our lives. Friends and collaborators share stories, laughs and insights about this gentle soul with a compassionate heart and generous spirit. Overcoming challenges and loss, Snuffy has quietly worked behind the scenes to mentor, inspire and elevate those around him while becoming one of the most successful television composers of our generation.