I Got the Feelin’: James Brown in the ’60s
By Cyril Pearl -- Video Business, 7/14/2008
SHOUT! FACTORYStreet: Aug. 5
Prebook: now
> The Godfather delivers pure soul in vintage concerts and a retrospective doc.
This set contains three excellent programs featuring the late Godfather of Soul, led by pop culture documentarian David Leaf’s new The Night James Brown Saved Boston, concerning Brown’s Boston Garden concert on April 5, 1968, the night following Martin Luther King’s assassination. The second disc is the Boston concert in its entirety as it was videotaped and broadcast that night, and the third is a March 1968 gig from one of Brown’s legendary stands at Harlem’s Apollo Theater. The concerts are remarkable timepieces—the crowds are heated and feisty, the music is urgent and compelling and Brown’s footwork is funky and fancy. The video and audio quality of the concerts aren’t great (neither is the camerawork, for that matter), but considering the age and rarity of the material, these drawbacks should be considered more like scars in fine leather—proof of the genuineness of the article.
Shelf Talk: Though there is historical importance to this release, I Got the Feelin’ is first and foremost a collectible for James Brown fans. His video and audio catalog has seen substantial and steady movement since his death in 2006, and this latest entry should be no exception.
Music, color and B&W, NR (nothing offensive), 410 min., DVD $39.98Extras: additional audio and video footage, bonus song
Directors: David Leaf, others
First Run: The Night James Brown Saved Boston VH1, April 2008; Boston concert WGBH, April 1968; Apollo concert DVD premiere