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The Blue Boards / Main Forums / General R&B; Chat / Soul Deep - Story of Soul
  (Posted:  28 May 2005 21:21 )
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Just finished watching "Southern Soul", the latest in BBC2's Story of Soul. So far, the series has been excellent, if a little predictable I think. The technique of underpinng the tale with a key artist works well, but the chosen artists are a little obvious (Sam Cooke, this week Otis Redding). I guess it's understandable, but I would have thought Aretha is worth more than a footnote in yet another appreciation of Redding's unfortunately short career. I would also have preferred an Atlantic story (or Stax or Muscle Shoals or Goldwax to be honest) rather than a Motown special, although I accept Motown's importance in the development of soul music.

Overall though, credit to the BBC for putting together something that does justice to a music that rarely gets the credit or coverage it deserves; an excellent intro for the initiated. What do others think?
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Guest  (Posted:  30 May 2005 18:37 )

Tend to agree with most of your points - however, I watched the "Motown" episode again this morning and I have to say I enjoyed the comparison with Chess that was made throughout the programme, It was interesting to hear that Chess, despite being renowned as an authentic R&B label, knew that it had to make commercial sense to survive - if you don't make any money, you can't put the records out there.
I didn't know, for example, that the Fontella Bass hit "Rescue Me" was an attempt to replicate the success of the Motown sound and was a much needed hit at a time when Chess was struggling to compete.

Overall, a well put together series. I wonder if it's attracting the casual viewer in anything like enough numbers to make a difference?
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Guest  (Posted:  11 Jun 2005 16:52 )

I've also enjoyed the series. I would have liked to have seen more of the other soul greats, especially from the 60s, but using one artist to set the context for each film has certainly worked. Well put together and certainly worth recording for repeated viewings. Some of the archive footage alone is worth hanging on to, do you not think?

Sad to see it finish (tonight is the last one I believe) but credit to the BBC for putting it on the schedule (sadly, they didn't stick to a consistent time every week, nearly missed one because of it)
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  (Posted:  12 Jun 2005 03:20 )
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The show sounds interesting. I don't believe it is shown here in the colonies (Virginia, USA). Are these episodes offered on tape or DVD?
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  (Posted:  12 Jun 2005 13:22 )
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Hi Gerald

I don't know if there are any plans by the BBC to release the series on DVD (anyone else know?) but there is a lot of material on their web site, including some quite good video, interviews etc. Wotth a visit, although I accept it's a poor substitute

BBC Series Soul Deep
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