James Brown

Some of the live music clips feel a bit short.

I'm sure it will just frustrate me that the full footage presumably exists but is not available :(

And I am a fan of LL Cool J, and I get having he and Chuck D represent for rap, but sometimes he just offers enthusiasm in his interview clips in this more than knowledge. Sometimes this works as a counterpoint to more staid professors who are interviewed, but sometimes it does not.

I wonder if Brown's family who are involved in the making of this, didn't like RJ Smith's book. He is not in the portions of doc I have watched. Alan Leeds and an older white reporter from Georgia whose name I don't recall are interviewed in this a fair amount. Mick Jagger a bit . Christian Mcbride seems to be the current jazz rep in this.

Questlove is in it too

Isn't Questlove one of the producers? I thought I remember him mentioning on his podcast that he & Black Thought were some of the main movers behind this.

Christian McBride makes sense as he's Questlove's school days buddy and a certified JB obsessive.

Executive Producers Mick Jagger and Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson iirc.

McBride was actually in Brown's band at one point (or at least backed him at a single concert; I forget the story).

I think it was one concert, he tells the story of being in Brown's orbit here (1:11):

https://app.podscribe.ai/episode/83381179