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[amplifier feedback]
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[electric guitar strum]
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Growing up,
when I discovered
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these incredible women
making rock music,
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I mean, that's, like--
that's the dream.
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People would be like, "Whoa,
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look at that little gal
with that big guitar,"
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like a novelty.
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[Benatar] I wanted
to break the boys' club.
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I wanted to break down
that bullshit.
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[Khan] I said,
"Let me tell you something.
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I'm going to be a star
with or without you."
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[Jett] Growing up, I thought,
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"There's gotta be other girls
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that wanna play rock 'n' roll.
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I can't be the only one."
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[Twain] There's something
very liberating
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about being able to take on
a rock 'n' roll attitude
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and not have to abandon
your femininity
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at the same time.
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[Crow] There were lots of
obstacles along the way for me,
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but I knew the only person
that could drive my ship
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that I felt I could trust
was me.
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[Staples] I'm not a diva.
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I love people.
I'm a people person.
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I'm just Mavis.
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Just Mavis.
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Yeah.
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Oh, my gosh.
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What are you doing with this?
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I remember climbing up
on this airplane.
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People were in the plane.
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And they were looking
out the window at us.
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The photographers say,
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"You Staple Singers,
y'all do anything."
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So, you wanna hear this?
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What do you want me
to do with it?
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♪♪♪
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♪ Oh, huh
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♪ Mm
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♪ I know a place
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♪ Ain't nobody cryin'
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♪ Ain't nobody worried
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♪ No
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♪ Ain't no smilin' faces
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♪ Mm, no, no
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♪ Lyin' to the races
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That's the sound
of America right there.
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You know?
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Mavis Staples,
the best part of America.
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There's no bigger gangsta
than Mavis Staples.
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She's Mavis Staples.
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♪ I'll take you there
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-♪ Oh, oh
-[Jones] It's the truth
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that comes through her songs
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and the way she sings them,
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and it's the love.
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-I get nothing but love.
-♪ I'll take you there
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Mavis' voice told me
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about the joy of life
and the pain of life.
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[Crow] When I get to sing
with Mavis Staples,
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or when I get to sing
with any of these women
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that paved the way for me,
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there's something bigger
than my experience.
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There's something more.
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um, heavenly about it.
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[Khan] There was a lot
of hometown pride
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about the Staple Singers.
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"I'll Take You There,"
when it came out,
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it transcended
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Chicago's petty-ass racism.
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[applause]
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[Staples] My father
started us singing,
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and the first song
that he taught us
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was "Will the Circle
Be Unbroken."
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He called us children
into the living room,
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set us on the floor
in a circle,
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and began giving us
voices to sing
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that he and his sisters
and brothers would sing
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when they were in Mississippi.
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One night,
my Aunt Katie said,
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"Shucks, y'all sound
pretty good.
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I believe I want you all
to sing in my church Sunday."
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And, oh, they would have
to stand me up in a chair,
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'cause I was so little,
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But we ended up having to sing
"Will the Circle Be Unbroken"
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three times.
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Pops said, "Shucks,
these people like us."
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It happened that Vivian Carter,
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who was the president
of Vee-Jay Records,
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she was in the audience
that day,
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and she called Pops
and asked him
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if we could make a record,
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so we learned more songs,
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and we went in the studio
and we recorded "Uncloudy Day."
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"Uncloudy Day" took off,
you know,
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and mostly in the South.
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That was the very first
gospel record to sell a million.
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But in the meantime,
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people are calling us
to come and sing.
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We would go to places
like Atlanta, Georgia.
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New Orleans.
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Memphis.
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But as we started traveling
on "Uncloudy Day,"
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the people
would come on the radio
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and say,
"That's little Mavis Staples.
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"That's this little girl.
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She's singing this song."
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And people
just wouldn't believe it.
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My part was
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♪ Well, well, well, oh
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♪ Lord, they tell me now
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I was singing a lady's bass.
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And we'd get to these towns
and they would tell Pops,
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"People are betting
that's not your daughter
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singing that song."
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So as the four of us
were singing,
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and then, when my part came,
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Pervis, my brother.
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he would step up like it was
gonna be him saying that,
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and you would hear
all over the audience,
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"I told you that wasn't
no little girl.
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I told you
that wasn't no little girl."
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And while they
going through that,
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I'm easing up to the mic,
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and I say,
♪ Well, well, well
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[laughing]
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We--we--
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we would have
so much fun with that.
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[giggling]
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So, I was having fun
singing with my family.
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♪♪♪
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♪ Early one morning
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♪ Yes, sir
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♪ I felt the pain
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♪ Oh, yeah
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-♪ Felt like death
-♪ Mm-hmm
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-♪ Done sung my name
-♪ Oh, yeah
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-♪ I started to tremble
-♪ Whoa, yeah
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♪ Deep down inside, yeah
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♪ And I felt the fear
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♪ Of the swelling tide
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♪ Yeah, yeah
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♪ Wish I had answered
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♪ Wish I
had answered ♪
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♪ Wish I had answered
when he ♪
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♪ Called
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[Clayton]
The Staple Singers would come
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maybe once a year in town,
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and sometimes we were blessed
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to have them at my dad's church
in New Orleans.
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They would come
and do programs,
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and during the program,
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everybody
was assigned records,
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albums, to sell,
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and I would always have
my little five albums,
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and I would walk, you know,
the aisles of the church,
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and people would buy, and I--
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and it would do me
the greatest deed for me
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to be able to go to Pop Staples
and give him the money
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for whatever
the records were I sold.
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So, yes, I have very fond
memories of the Staple Singers,
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and boy, could they sing.
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It felt great
to sing with my family.
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If one of us were off key,
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the other
would help get it right.
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But I'll tell you,
one of my sisters, Yvonne,
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was very proper.
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Now, if you notice how I talk,
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I have a Southern accent
like my mother.
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Where I would say,
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♪ Ev'ry day, ev'ry hour
okay?
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Yvonne said,
♪ Ev-e-ry day, ev-e-ry hour
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and we would just die laughing.
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She would even
be proper singing.
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You know? [laughs]
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But to sing with my family,
to travel with my family,
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that's the best thing
that could happen in the world.
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Kept us loving one another,
kept us together.
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You know? That's home.
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That's home.
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One day,
Pops came in from work.
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He said, "Mavis, guess what?"
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I said, "What, Daddy?"
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He said, "Tabernacle Church
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"wants us to open up
for Mahalia Jackson
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Monday night."
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And, oh, my little heart
just almost came out.
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Lucky for me, we were
in the same dressing room.
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And I walked up to her.
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I said, "Well, hello,
Miss Sister Mahalia Jackson."
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And she looked at me,
and she said,
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"Well, how are you, baby?"
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I say, "I'm fine.
My name is Mavis,
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and I sing too."
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She said, "Well,
I wanna hear you sing."
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I said, "Oh, you'll hear me,
because I sing loud."
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[laughing]
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I--I got through singing.
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Sister Mahalia Jackson,
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she said,
"You a good little ol' singer."
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I was just the happiest
little girl on this planet.
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♪ I've
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00:09:04,544 --> 00:09:08,069
♪ been 'buked and
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♪ I've been scorned
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00:09:13,074 --> 00:09:16,207
[Clayton] Mahalia Jackson
would come to my dad's church
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00:09:16,338 --> 00:09:18,993
and be a guest singer,
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00:09:19,123 --> 00:09:23,040
so I wanted to be
just like Mahalia,
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00:09:23,171 --> 00:09:26,000
and so much so that everything
that she would sing,
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I would emulate.
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And when you sing in church
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as much as Mavis and I
sung in church coming up,
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00:09:36,445 --> 00:09:38,142
that's where you
really develop your voice
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00:09:38,273 --> 00:09:39,927
is in church choirs,
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00:09:40,057 --> 00:09:41,232
singing solos,
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and this was every Sunday.
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♪ God said touch her
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00:09:45,889 --> 00:09:47,804
♪ In my name
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00:09:47,935 --> 00:09:50,154
♪ I rose this morning
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00:09:50,285 --> 00:09:52,809
♪ I rose
this morning ♪
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♪ I rose this morning
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00:09:55,290 --> 00:09:57,945
♪ I feel like shouting
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00:09:58,075 --> 00:10:00,208
♪ I feel like
shouting ♪
224
00:10:00,338 --> 00:10:02,950
♪ I feel like shouting
225
00:10:03,080 --> 00:10:05,213
♪ I feel like
shouting ♪
226
00:10:05,343 --> 00:10:07,955
♪ I feel like shouting
227
00:10:08,085 --> 00:10:09,913
♪ I feel like
shouting ♪
228
00:10:12,350 --> 00:10:14,309
[Staples]
Sister Mahalia was my idol,
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00:10:14,439 --> 00:10:17,834
my friend, and my teacher.
230
00:10:21,185 --> 00:10:23,927
You know, people from
different Southern states
231
00:10:24,058 --> 00:10:28,192
migrate to Chicago,
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00:10:28,323 --> 00:10:31,152
especially
the blues and gospel singers.
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00:10:33,110 --> 00:10:36,157
Mahalia came out
of New Orleans.
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00:10:36,287 --> 00:10:41,162
But all of them, Howlin' Wolf,
Buddy Guy, you know,
235
00:10:41,292 --> 00:10:46,036
and a lot of the gospel people
like Sallie Martin,
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00:10:46,167 --> 00:10:49,083
and my father.
He came from Mississippi.
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00:10:51,433 --> 00:10:57,265
I'll tell ya, for gospel,
blues, R&B, you name 'em,
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00:10:57,395 --> 00:10:59,310
you can't beat Chicago
for music.
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00:10:59,441 --> 00:11:00,921
You just can't do it.
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00:11:03,271 --> 00:11:05,142
[Contreras] That was
really the beginning
241
00:11:05,273 --> 00:11:08,189
of when Chicago was becoming
a mecca for the blues.
242
00:11:10,539 --> 00:11:12,846
The interesting thing
about that scene
243
00:11:12,976 --> 00:11:15,283
for the Staple Singers
244
00:11:15,413 --> 00:11:20,375
is that there were
so many folks that presaged it.
245
00:11:20,505 --> 00:11:25,336
Mavis, in so many ways,
was drawing from artists
246
00:11:25,467 --> 00:11:30,124
like Clara Ward
and her amazing voice.
247
00:11:30,254 --> 00:11:33,344
I'm even thinking
about Lovie Austin
248
00:11:33,475 --> 00:11:37,348
and Ida Cox
back in the 1920s and '30s
249
00:11:37,479 --> 00:11:41,526
with some really amazing,
beautiful blues music.
250
00:11:41,657 --> 00:11:47,141
I--I think there's just such
a long lineage of wild women
251
00:11:47,271 --> 00:11:50,231
that all of these artists
are drawing from.
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00:11:50,361 --> 00:11:54,322
♪ My man's got a heart
253
00:11:54,452 --> 00:11:56,890
♪ Like a rock
254
00:11:57,020 --> 00:12:02,243
♪ Cast in the sea
255
00:12:02,373 --> 00:12:03,984
[George-Warren]
Bessie Smith was
256
00:12:04,114 --> 00:12:05,550
the great,
great blues singer
257
00:12:05,681 --> 00:12:08,075
of the 20th century.
258
00:12:08,205 --> 00:12:11,339
You know, she kind of
made the music industry boom
259
00:12:11,469 --> 00:12:14,429
with her popularity
on Columbia Records.
260
00:12:14,559 --> 00:12:18,215
Without Bessie Smith,
there would be no Janis Joplin.
261
00:12:18,346 --> 00:12:21,262
It's one of those great
tragedies that when she died,
262
00:12:21,392 --> 00:12:23,133
she was forgotten for a while,
263
00:12:23,264 --> 00:12:26,223
but same thing
with Ma Rainey, too.
264
00:12:26,354 --> 00:12:28,356
She was another
great, great blues singer,
265
00:12:28,486 --> 00:12:32,403
and both of these women
were also very entrepreneurial
266
00:12:32,534 --> 00:12:34,362
at a time when women
were barely, you know,
267
00:12:34,492 --> 00:12:37,017
allowed out of the kitchen.
268
00:12:37,147 --> 00:12:38,409
But thank goodness
they left behind
269
00:12:38,540 --> 00:12:41,151
this incredible music.
270
00:12:41,282 --> 00:12:43,110
There were so many
other women in that era
271
00:12:43,240 --> 00:12:44,764
who were sadly forgotten.
272
00:12:46,200 --> 00:12:47,679
[Hendryx]
When I think of the women
273
00:12:47,810 --> 00:12:50,247
who were singing
back at the time,
274
00:12:50,378 --> 00:12:52,423
the first time
I heard Big Mama Thornton,
275
00:12:52,554 --> 00:12:54,382
this was so powerful,
276
00:12:54,512 --> 00:12:56,601
and, yes, it's the name
"Big Mama Thornton,"
277
00:12:56,732 --> 00:12:59,866
but I think the voice was there,
big or not,
278
00:12:59,996 --> 00:13:02,216
And--
279
00:13:02,346 --> 00:13:04,087
I think the other voice would
be Sister Rosetta Tharpe.
280
00:13:06,481 --> 00:13:08,178
[Weymouth] They were big stars.
281
00:13:08,309 --> 00:13:10,137
They were the icons
of their day.
282
00:13:10,267 --> 00:13:12,487
But Sister Rosetta,
283
00:13:12,617 --> 00:13:15,359
I didn't even know who she was
284
00:13:15,490 --> 00:13:18,406
until maybe
the last ten years.
285
00:13:18,536 --> 00:13:21,235
I said, "Who is this?
This is--
286
00:13:21,365 --> 00:13:24,455
"Why did American
network television
287
00:13:24,586 --> 00:13:28,111
deprive us
of these amazing people?"
288
00:13:28,242 --> 00:13:30,113
♪♪♪
289
00:13:43,170 --> 00:13:47,304
♪ Didn't it rain, children?
290
00:13:47,435 --> 00:13:49,045
-[audience cheering]
-♪ Rain? Oh yes
291
00:13:49,176 --> 00:13:50,612
♪ Didn't it? Yes
292
00:13:50,742 --> 00:13:52,092
♪ Didn't it?
You know it did ♪
293
00:13:52,222 --> 00:13:53,484
♪ Didn't it?
294
00:13:53,615 --> 00:13:55,225
♪ Oh, oh, yeah
295
00:13:55,356 --> 00:13:57,053
I loved Sister Rosetta Tharpe
296
00:13:57,184 --> 00:13:58,576
playing the guitar
in her high heels,
297
00:13:58,707 --> 00:14:03,059
in her fur coat, and a dress,
298
00:14:03,190 --> 00:14:05,453
rocking out on the guitar.
299
00:14:05,583 --> 00:14:08,108
I mean, it's just, like,
badassery, you know?
300
00:14:08,238 --> 00:14:11,111
She's just doing her thing.
301
00:14:11,241 --> 00:14:14,070
♪ Oh, my Lord, how it rained
302
00:14:16,420 --> 00:14:18,988
[guitar solo]
303
00:14:22,339 --> 00:14:24,167
Over the years,
304
00:14:24,298 --> 00:14:28,215
we've had some great,
great female singers.
305
00:14:28,345 --> 00:14:32,001
Etta James, I loved her.
306
00:14:32,132 --> 00:14:33,873
Oh, she's a fun person, too.
307
00:14:35,178 --> 00:14:37,093
I love Sarah Vaughan.
308
00:14:37,224 --> 00:14:40,009
And, of course, Aretha.
309
00:14:40,140 --> 00:14:41,445
She's the greatest.
310
00:14:41,576 --> 00:14:43,578
♪ Ooh, your kisses
311
00:14:43,708 --> 00:14:45,362
♪ Sweeter than honey
312
00:14:45,493 --> 00:14:47,103
♪ And guess what?
313
00:14:47,234 --> 00:14:48,539
♪ So is my money
314
00:14:48,670 --> 00:14:51,238
♪ All I need
315
00:14:51,368 --> 00:14:54,632
♪ Is just a little respect
when you get back ♪
316
00:14:54,763 --> 00:14:56,460
-♪ When you get home
-♪ Just a little bit
317
00:14:56,591 --> 00:14:58,419
♪ No doubt about it,
yeah ♪
318
00:14:58,549 --> 00:15:00,334
♪ R-E-S-P-E-C-T
319
00:15:00,464 --> 00:15:02,031
♪ Find out
what it means to me ♪
320
00:15:02,162 --> 00:15:03,772
♪ R-E-S-P-E-C-T
321
00:15:03,903 --> 00:15:05,295
♪ Take care of TCB
322
00:15:05,426 --> 00:15:07,080
♪ Oh
323
00:15:07,210 --> 00:15:10,387
♪ A little respect
Baby ♪
324
00:15:10,518 --> 00:15:12,346
-♪ Just a little bit
-♪ A little respect
325
00:15:12,476 --> 00:15:13,738
-♪ I get by
-♪ Just a little bit
326
00:15:13,869 --> 00:15:15,436
-♪ Keep on by
-♪ Just a little bit
327
00:15:15,566 --> 00:15:17,264
-♪ Whoo
-♪ Just a little bit
328
00:15:17,394 --> 00:15:18,395
-♪ I'm not lying
-♪ Just a little bit
329
00:15:18,526 --> 00:15:20,354
♪ Respect
330
00:15:20,484 --> 00:15:21,746
♪ That's what I want
331
00:15:21,877 --> 00:15:23,400
♪ Respect
332
00:15:23,531 --> 00:15:25,141
♪ Sure what I need
333
00:15:25,272 --> 00:15:26,621
♪ Respect
334
00:15:26,751 --> 00:15:28,144
♪ I gotta have it
335
00:15:28,275 --> 00:15:28,928
♪ Just a little bit
336
00:15:30,407 --> 00:15:33,410
♪♪♪
337
00:15:37,371 --> 00:15:40,548
In the 1950s,
you get these incredible artists
338
00:15:40,678 --> 00:15:42,463
taking different eras of music
339
00:15:42,593 --> 00:15:44,334
and combining it together
340
00:15:44,465 --> 00:15:46,597
and creating
a whole new genre of music.
341
00:15:46,728 --> 00:15:49,339
It was the beginning
of rock 'n' roll.
342
00:15:51,298 --> 00:15:53,343
One of the great
early rock 'n' rollers
343
00:15:53,474 --> 00:15:55,215
was Wanda Jackson.
344
00:15:55,345 --> 00:15:56,564
♪ A hard-headed woman
345
00:15:56,694 --> 00:15:58,218
♪ A soft-hearted man
346
00:15:58,348 --> 00:15:59,393
♪ They've been causing trouble
347
00:15:59,523 --> 00:16:00,960
♪ Ever since the world began
348
00:16:01,090 --> 00:16:04,311
♪ Oh yeah,
ever since the world began ♪
349
00:16:04,441 --> 00:16:05,747
♪ Whoo, yeah
350
00:16:05,877 --> 00:16:07,401
♪ Well, a hard-headed woman
351
00:16:07,531 --> 00:16:10,447
♪ Is a thorn
in the side of a man ♪
352
00:16:10,578 --> 00:16:12,232
♪ Huh-huh-huh-huh-huh
353
00:16:12,362 --> 00:16:13,668
♪ A hard-headed woman
354
00:16:13,798 --> 00:16:15,496
♪ Is a thorn
in the side of a man ♪
355
00:16:15,626 --> 00:16:17,411
Let's go again. Yeah.
356
00:16:20,501 --> 00:16:23,547
Back in the day, Doris Day
was kind of the role model,
357
00:16:23,678 --> 00:16:26,246
just to stand there
and sweetly sing,
358
00:16:26,376 --> 00:16:28,465
and Wanda puts all
this kind of raunch into it
359
00:16:28,596 --> 00:16:30,815
with that amazing voice
and her movement.
360
00:16:30,946 --> 00:16:33,514
her incredible outfits that
her mom made with the fringe,
361
00:16:35,298 --> 00:16:37,257
so I love Wanda Jackson.
362
00:16:37,387 --> 00:16:39,650
She really
kicked down the doors
363
00:16:39,781 --> 00:16:42,175
of the boys' club of
those early rockabilly dudes.
364
00:16:44,612 --> 00:16:47,484
Wanda Jackson is a pioneer,
365
00:16:47,615 --> 00:16:51,271
and I think that--
366
00:16:51,401 --> 00:16:53,534
you know, she was one of
the original bad girls.
367
00:16:53,664 --> 00:16:55,666
She has had a massive influence
368
00:16:55,797 --> 00:16:59,801
over bridging rock 'n' roll
and country music.
369
00:16:59,931 --> 00:17:05,285
Wanda Jackson is
an absolutely crucial
370
00:17:05,415 --> 00:17:07,591
founding figure
in rock 'n' roll,
371
00:17:08,810 --> 00:17:13,597
But, of course, at the
beginning of rock 'n' roll,
372
00:17:13,728 --> 00:17:16,774
rock is colliding
with society's norms.
373
00:17:17,645 --> 00:17:20,561
People were afraid that
this new phenomenon of music
374
00:17:20,691 --> 00:17:22,563
endangered young people.
375
00:17:25,653 --> 00:17:28,438
[Staples] In our home,
I only heard gospel music.
376
00:17:28,569 --> 00:17:31,485
Pops wouldn't allow any other.
377
00:17:31,615 --> 00:17:34,923
So for me
to hear rock 'n' roll,
378
00:17:35,054 --> 00:17:37,621
I had to get to school,
379
00:17:37,752 --> 00:17:41,451
put a quarter in the jukebox,
and play James Brown.
380
00:17:41,582 --> 00:17:43,627
But, um...
381
00:17:43,758 --> 00:17:46,369
it was--it was--
it was not for us to hear
382
00:17:46,500 --> 00:17:48,371
when we were kids.
383
00:17:48,502 --> 00:17:52,680
Black people looked at it
as the Devil's music.
384
00:17:52,810 --> 00:17:55,378
You know,
"I'll Take You There."
385
00:17:55,509 --> 00:17:57,641
When we recorded
"I'll Take You There,"
386
00:17:57,772 --> 00:17:59,643
people started saying,
"The Staple Singers
387
00:17:59,774 --> 00:18:01,645
are singing the Devil's music."
388
00:18:01,776 --> 00:18:04,387
You know, because of the beat.
389
00:18:04,518 --> 00:18:07,608
[singing bass line]
390
00:18:07,738 --> 00:18:09,305
And people
jump up on the floor
391
00:18:09,436 --> 00:18:11,394
and start dancing, you know?
392
00:18:11,525 --> 00:18:13,614
So they just think,
393
00:18:13,744 --> 00:18:15,833
"The Staple Singers
are gone to the Devil."
394
00:18:15,964 --> 00:18:17,748
[Clayton] The church members
would tell me,
395
00:18:17,879 --> 00:18:21,448
"My God, we don't want you
to sing rock 'n' roll
396
00:18:21,578 --> 00:18:24,233
and sing in the church."
397
00:18:24,364 --> 00:18:25,582
It was rock 'n' roll.
398
00:18:25,713 --> 00:18:26,931
[chuckles]
It was--
399
00:18:27,062 --> 00:18:30,979
It was what they would call
"hellish music,"
400
00:18:31,110 --> 00:18:35,244
and it would lead you down
a path that was not very savory.
401
00:18:36,637 --> 00:18:38,595
I believe with all of my heart
402
00:18:38,726 --> 00:18:41,511
that rock 'n' roll music
is a contributing factor
403
00:18:41,642 --> 00:18:43,687
to our juvenile delinquency
of today.
404
00:18:43,818 --> 00:18:45,776
I 100% believe.
405
00:18:45,907 --> 00:18:47,604
And why I believe that
406
00:18:47,735 --> 00:18:50,303
is because I know how it feels
when you sing it.
407
00:18:50,433 --> 00:18:51,826
I know what it does to you.
408
00:18:51,956 --> 00:18:55,960
And I know the evil that
you get into in the beat.
409
00:18:56,091 --> 00:18:58,485
If you talk to the average
teenager of today,
410
00:18:58,615 --> 00:19:00,400
and you ask them what it is
about rock 'n' roll music
411
00:19:00,530 --> 00:19:01,966
that they like,
412
00:19:02,097 --> 00:19:03,533
and the first thing
they'll say is "The beat.
413
00:19:03,664 --> 00:19:05,274
The beat. The beat."
414
00:19:07,755 --> 00:19:09,844
[Staples] When we recorded
"I'll Take You There,"
415
00:19:09,974 --> 00:19:13,674
I remember we were
in Muscle Shoals, Alabama.
416
00:19:13,804 --> 00:19:16,981
That was the first time we had
gone there to make a record.
417
00:19:17,112 --> 00:19:22,509
And these guys,
Barry Beckett, Roger Hawkins,
418
00:19:22,639 --> 00:19:25,425
David Hood, and Jimmy.
419
00:19:25,555 --> 00:19:28,384
they were probably
the best rhythm section
420
00:19:28,515 --> 00:19:30,995
at that time in the world.
421
00:19:31,126 --> 00:19:33,476
They'd had a lot of hits
come out of there.
422
00:19:36,958 --> 00:19:41,571
But long before we were
singing "I'll Take You There,"
423
00:19:41,702 --> 00:19:45,749
we sang strictly gospel songs
424
00:19:45,880 --> 00:19:49,797
for, oh, ten, 12 years.
425
00:19:49,927 --> 00:19:53,627
We started singing in 1949,
426
00:19:53,757 --> 00:19:56,760
and in 1960,
427
00:19:56,891 --> 00:19:59,676
we happened to be
in Montgomery, Alabama
428
00:19:59,807 --> 00:20:02,418
on a Sunday morning.
429
00:20:02,549 --> 00:20:04,464
Pops said, "Listen, y'all.
430
00:20:04,594 --> 00:20:07,641
This man, Martin Luther King,
is here.
431
00:20:07,771 --> 00:20:10,774
I'd like to go
to his 11:00 service."
432
00:20:10,905 --> 00:20:12,733
So we all got in the car
and went down
433
00:20:12,863 --> 00:20:15,431
to Dexter Ave.
Baptist Church.
434
00:20:15,562 --> 00:20:17,825
We heard Dr. King's sermon.
435
00:20:17,955 --> 00:20:19,609
[King]
I'm worried about America.
436
00:20:19,740 --> 00:20:21,655
-Yeah.
-I'm worried about our nation,
437
00:20:21,785 --> 00:20:26,834
because it's sick with racism.
438
00:20:26,964 --> 00:20:31,012
Pops said, "Listen, y'all,
I really like his message,
439
00:20:31,142 --> 00:20:34,624
and I think that if he can
preach it, we can sing it."
440
00:20:35,756 --> 00:20:40,456
And that was the beginning
of our message songs.
441
00:20:40,587 --> 00:20:42,763
"March Up Freedom's Highway."
442
00:20:42,893 --> 00:20:44,460
"Why? [Am I Treated So Bad]."
443
00:20:44,591 --> 00:20:46,375
You know?
444
00:20:46,506 --> 00:20:47,985
♪ Made up my mind
445
00:20:48,116 --> 00:20:49,944
♪ And I won't turn around
446
00:20:50,074 --> 00:20:51,989
♪ Made up my mind
447
00:20:52,120 --> 00:20:53,121
♪ And I won't turn around
448
00:20:53,252 --> 00:20:55,123
Marching up freedom's highway.
449
00:20:55,254 --> 00:20:58,605
♪ Made up my mind
450
00:20:58,735 --> 00:21:00,694
♪ And I won't turn around
451
00:21:00,824 --> 00:21:02,609
Pops used to tell us stories
452
00:21:02,739 --> 00:21:04,306
about how if a white man
453
00:21:04,437 --> 00:21:06,439
was coming towards him
on the same side of the street,
454
00:21:06,569 --> 00:21:08,441
he'd have to cross over,
455
00:21:08,571 --> 00:21:09,746
and I couldn't believe that,
456
00:21:09,877 --> 00:21:12,619
but it was real,
457
00:21:12,749 --> 00:21:15,448
and it was just so sad
that it had to be that way.
458
00:21:16,884 --> 00:21:18,799
But it was.
459
00:21:18,929 --> 00:21:21,497
It took Pops to let me know,
460
00:21:21,628 --> 00:21:23,064
"Unlock your mind, Mavis,
461
00:21:23,194 --> 00:21:25,501
and see what's going on
around you."
462
00:21:25,632 --> 00:21:27,938
You know, I was--
I was the youngest.
463
00:21:28,069 --> 00:21:30,854
I was still having fun.
You know?
464
00:21:30,985 --> 00:21:33,204
I was--I was still a kid,
465
00:21:33,335 --> 00:21:36,512
but I realized
what was going on
466
00:21:36,643 --> 00:21:38,775
because we were living it.
467
00:21:38,906 --> 00:21:41,735
I saw how Black people
were treated in the South.
468
00:21:41,865 --> 00:21:45,478
I saw the signs
for "colored only."
469
00:21:45,608 --> 00:21:47,828
I saw Emmett Till,
470
00:21:47,958 --> 00:21:50,613
I saw Rosa Parks,
471
00:21:50,744 --> 00:21:55,096
and I knew we needed
to sing these songs to help.
472
00:21:55,226 --> 00:21:59,448
Music played a big part
in the change.
473
00:21:59,579 --> 00:22:01,494
A huge part.
474
00:22:03,713 --> 00:22:06,629
♪ And I won't turn back
475
00:22:08,065 --> 00:22:10,503
♪ And I'm on my way
476
00:22:10,633 --> 00:22:12,679
♪ I'm on my way
477
00:22:12,809 --> 00:22:14,768
♪ And I won't turn back
478
00:22:14,898 --> 00:22:16,639
♪ And I won't
turn back ♪
479
00:22:16,770 --> 00:22:18,685
♪ And I'm on my way
480
00:22:18,815 --> 00:22:20,948
♪ I'm on my way
481
00:22:21,078 --> 00:22:22,863
♪ And I won't turn back
482
00:22:22,993 --> 00:22:24,821
♪ And I won't
turn back ♪
483
00:22:24,952 --> 00:22:28,042
♪ I'm on my way
484
00:22:28,172 --> 00:22:32,568
♪ Thank God I'm on my way
485
00:22:32,699 --> 00:22:34,527
[Clayton]
Odetta was a folk singer.
486
00:22:34,657 --> 00:22:37,617
She was very soulful.
487
00:22:37,747 --> 00:22:39,053
And then she would
play this guitar,
488
00:22:39,183 --> 00:22:40,663
and it was just beautiful.
489
00:22:42,709 --> 00:22:45,015
She was like a mom to me,
490
00:22:45,146 --> 00:22:47,583
and she would always
give me great advice
491
00:22:47,714 --> 00:22:49,498
about anything
that I talked to her about.
492
00:22:49,629 --> 00:22:52,196
♪♪♪
493
00:22:52,327 --> 00:22:53,807
[George-Warren]
At the time, folk music
494
00:22:53,937 --> 00:22:56,679
was becoming popular again,
495
00:22:56,810 --> 00:22:59,552
and Odetta was trained
as an opera singer,
496
00:22:59,682 --> 00:23:01,641
musical theater,
497
00:23:01,771 --> 00:23:03,947
but then, she really
fell madly in love
498
00:23:04,078 --> 00:23:06,036
with folk songs, blues,
499
00:23:06,167 --> 00:23:10,563
and, you know, using music
as a form of protest.
500
00:23:10,693 --> 00:23:12,434
She was such
a powerful presence.
501
00:23:14,131 --> 00:23:16,046
[Hoff] There was so much
great folk music
502
00:23:16,177 --> 00:23:18,005
when I was growing up
in the '60s,
503
00:23:18,135 --> 00:23:21,704
and I loved Odetta,
504
00:23:21,835 --> 00:23:25,839
the badass guitar playing
and just the soulfulness,
505
00:23:25,969 --> 00:23:28,015
and I--I like it
506
00:23:28,145 --> 00:23:31,758
when it's just so raw and real,
you know?
507
00:23:31,888 --> 00:23:32,802
And truthful.
508
00:23:34,935 --> 00:23:36,240
[George-Warren]
In the early '60s
509
00:23:36,371 --> 00:23:39,766
with new faces
coming along in the folk scene,
510
00:23:39,896 --> 00:23:42,464
they were in awe of Odetta,
511
00:23:42,595 --> 00:23:45,293
and there were these women
working in the folk tradition
512
00:23:45,424 --> 00:23:48,427
that had very powerful things
to say with their music.
513
00:23:50,516 --> 00:23:52,909
[Hendryx]
The change in this country
514
00:23:53,040 --> 00:23:54,650
that was going on
515
00:23:54,781 --> 00:23:56,870
meant people needed a lot of--
516
00:23:58,219 --> 00:23:59,873
a lot of truth,
517
00:24:00,003 --> 00:24:04,965
so you had to be authentic
and be you.
518
00:24:05,095 --> 00:24:07,881
Even if it was a show,
even if it was entertaining,
519
00:24:08,011 --> 00:24:09,883
it had to be
authentic entertainment.
520
00:24:12,059 --> 00:24:15,018
Nina Simone was just
an incredible artist
521
00:24:15,149 --> 00:24:20,110
who was a musician, singer,
songwriter,
522
00:24:20,241 --> 00:24:24,114
a fierce advocate
for social change,
523
00:24:24,245 --> 00:24:25,942
and a friend as well.
524
00:24:26,073 --> 00:24:29,903
So, you know, she was
a few years older than me,
525
00:24:30,033 --> 00:24:35,865
but just being able
to have a conversation with her
526
00:24:35,996 --> 00:24:39,869
about music and about what
she was fighting against...
527
00:24:41,001 --> 00:24:44,570
that was very much a blueprint
for my foundation.
528
00:24:47,181 --> 00:24:48,138
[Gray] Being a woman
and being Black
529
00:24:48,269 --> 00:24:50,314
in the '50s and '60s,
530
00:24:50,445 --> 00:24:53,100
and being really gifted
and being really smart
531
00:24:53,230 --> 00:24:54,841
made her life really difficult.
532
00:24:56,320 --> 00:24:58,105
So when I listen to her music,
533
00:24:58,235 --> 00:25:00,107
I just feel like
I'm--I'm so blessed.
534
00:25:00,237 --> 00:25:03,893
Like, I'm so blessed
to be able to hear
535
00:25:04,024 --> 00:25:05,634
what came
from somebody like that.
536
00:25:05,765 --> 00:25:08,724
♪♪♪
537
00:25:08,855 --> 00:25:10,987
♪ Alabama's got me so upset
538
00:25:11,118 --> 00:25:14,164
♪ And Tennessee's
made me lose my rest ♪
539
00:25:14,295 --> 00:25:17,080
♪ Everybody knows
about Mississippi ♪
540
00:25:17,211 --> 00:25:20,040
♪ Goddamn!
541
00:25:20,170 --> 00:25:22,129
[Staples]
I loved Nina Simone.
542
00:25:22,259 --> 00:25:25,219
She was tough. She was tough.
543
00:25:25,349 --> 00:25:27,874
And when she'd hit that piano,
544
00:25:28,004 --> 00:25:29,049
and stand up, and--
545
00:25:29,179 --> 00:25:30,877
and turn around, and--
546
00:25:31,007 --> 00:25:32,835
oh, she was powerful.
547
00:25:32,966 --> 00:25:35,011
♪ Everybody knows
about Mississippi ♪
548
00:25:35,142 --> 00:25:38,406
♪ Goddamn!
549
00:25:38,537 --> 00:25:42,192
[Amos] Nina Simone's voice
was a challenge to wake up.
550
00:25:42,323 --> 00:25:43,803
"Mississippi Goddamn."
551
00:25:43,933 --> 00:25:46,109
Wow. "Goddamn"?
552
00:25:46,240 --> 00:25:47,894
As a minister's daughter,
just, Goddamn,
553
00:25:48,024 --> 00:25:49,025
how great is that?
554
00:25:49,156 --> 00:25:51,419
But...wow.
555
00:25:51,550 --> 00:25:53,377
To look at what's happening
556
00:25:53,508 --> 00:25:55,423
and then have the courage
to sing about it,
557
00:25:55,554 --> 00:25:56,642
that's what she stands for.
558
00:25:56,772 --> 00:25:57,817
That's it!
559
00:25:57,947 --> 00:26:00,863
[applause]
560
00:26:03,518 --> 00:26:06,216
[Hendryx] I was able to learn
from someone like a Nina Simone,
561
00:26:06,347 --> 00:26:07,914
Abbey Lincoln.
562
00:26:08,871 --> 00:26:11,744
These women, they had gone
through things
563
00:26:11,874 --> 00:26:13,093
that I didn't have
to go through.
564
00:26:14,355 --> 00:26:16,966
In the early '60s,
565
00:26:17,097 --> 00:26:20,753
I was in the girl group
Bluebelles.
566
00:26:20,883 --> 00:26:22,755
We were dressed alike,
567
00:26:22,885 --> 00:26:24,931
and we had coiffed hair,
568
00:26:25,061 --> 00:26:28,108
and sometimes tiaras, gloves.
569
00:26:28,238 --> 00:26:29,805
You know,
all the sort of, like,
570
00:26:29,936 --> 00:26:31,807
trappings of the feminine.
571
00:26:31,938 --> 00:26:33,548
You know, you were--
572
00:26:33,679 --> 00:26:36,812
you were cute,
you were kind of these...
573
00:26:36,943 --> 00:26:40,120
dolls that were on stage,
574
00:26:40,250 --> 00:26:45,908
and, you know, that was about
a fantasy of women.
575
00:26:47,257 --> 00:26:49,346
People really saw
576
00:26:49,477 --> 00:26:51,914
the girl groups
of the '50s and '60s
577
00:26:52,045 --> 00:26:56,832
as just sort of
a manufactured pop phenomenon,
578
00:26:56,963 --> 00:26:59,792
acting at the behest
of the puppetry
579
00:26:59,922 --> 00:27:01,881
of the, you know,
580
00:27:02,011 --> 00:27:04,187
gleaming male producer
on the mount.
581
00:27:07,190 --> 00:27:10,193
But I really
see girl groups like
582
00:27:10,324 --> 00:27:12,152
Diana Ross and The Supremes
583
00:27:12,282 --> 00:27:16,069
as breaking out
and actually seeking agency.
584
00:27:18,201 --> 00:27:19,899
[Jones] Well, the first one
I noticed, I suppose,
585
00:27:20,029 --> 00:27:21,857
is Diana Ross.
586
00:27:21,988 --> 00:27:25,121
She had an unusual voice,
587
00:27:25,252 --> 00:27:28,255
and when I now try to sing
a Diana Ross song,
588
00:27:28,385 --> 00:27:29,822
the thing that I notice is
589
00:27:29,952 --> 00:27:32,781
she makes everything
sound very easy.
590
00:27:32,912 --> 00:27:34,217
It's so natural,
591
00:27:34,348 --> 00:27:37,873
and the songs
are actually not, any of them,
592
00:27:38,004 --> 00:27:39,745
not easy to sing.
593
00:27:40,702 --> 00:27:42,182
[Ross] We just wanted
to do harmony things
594
00:27:42,312 --> 00:27:44,053
where the three voices blend,
595
00:27:44,184 --> 00:27:46,403
but as we began
to release records,
596
00:27:46,534 --> 00:27:49,450
we separated ourselves into
a lead and background singers,
597
00:27:49,580 --> 00:27:52,018
because in
the rhythm 'n' blues feel,
598
00:27:52,148 --> 00:27:53,062
and rock 'n' roll,
599
00:27:53,193 --> 00:27:55,151
this is the way it is now
600
00:27:55,282 --> 00:27:58,111
with the lead voice
and the back harmony notes
601
00:27:58,241 --> 00:27:59,199
or even
the back unison notes.
602
00:28:01,418 --> 00:28:04,160
The Supremes were kind of
like a girl gang.
603
00:28:04,291 --> 00:28:05,945
They were a little bit
more sophisticated
604
00:28:06,075 --> 00:28:08,034
than, say, the Girl Gang
or The Ronettes,
605
00:28:08,164 --> 00:28:10,950
who had a little meaner,
kind of, tougher stance,
606
00:28:11,080 --> 00:28:13,039
and same thing
with The Shangri-Las,
607
00:28:13,169 --> 00:28:15,998
but these were amazing singers.
608
00:28:16,129 --> 00:28:19,306
They totally knew how
to rock a song.
609
00:28:19,436 --> 00:28:23,136
I loved the girl-group thing
with the look, the hair.
610
00:28:23,266 --> 00:28:24,267
like, lashes out to there,
611
00:28:24,398 --> 00:28:26,530
hair higher than the sky,
612
00:28:26,661 --> 00:28:30,056
and the incredible.
incredible singing,
613
00:28:30,186 --> 00:28:33,407
and it was mostly Black women
614
00:28:33,537 --> 00:28:36,279
that were at the forefront
of all these groups,
615
00:28:36,410 --> 00:28:39,413
and so that kind of coincided
with the Civil Rights Movement.
616
00:28:39,543 --> 00:28:43,199
-♪ No more brothers in jail
-Off the pigs!
617
00:28:43,330 --> 00:28:46,942
-♪ Pigs are gonna get killed
-Off the pigs!
618
00:28:47,073 --> 00:28:48,552
♪ No more brothers in jail
619
00:28:48,683 --> 00:28:52,252
[Hendryx] The period
was very...volatile
620
00:28:52,382 --> 00:28:54,733
in terms
of the country changing...
621
00:28:57,518 --> 00:29:01,522
and the people who peopled
my life very closely,
622
00:29:01,652 --> 00:29:05,134
a lot of them
were poets, writers,
623
00:29:05,265 --> 00:29:08,094
people like Stokely Carmichael,
the Black Panthers.
624
00:29:08,224 --> 00:29:10,096
Angela Davis was a friend,
625
00:29:10,226 --> 00:29:12,098
Nikki Giovanni,
626
00:29:12,228 --> 00:29:13,664
you know, Muhammad Ali.
627
00:29:13,795 --> 00:29:17,233
You know, so all these people
were a part of my life,
628
00:29:17,364 --> 00:29:20,497
and I could see
what was happening to them.
629
00:29:20,628 --> 00:29:24,327
If we do not seize the time,
630
00:29:24,458 --> 00:29:28,505
if we do not realize
that the time is now,
631
00:29:28,636 --> 00:29:32,596
then the time will never come.
632
00:29:32,727 --> 00:29:35,425
So everybody who believes it,
and can say it,
633
00:29:35,556 --> 00:29:37,993
and can fight for it,
all power to the people.
634
00:29:38,124 --> 00:29:40,169
[Hendryx] These were thinkers.
635
00:29:40,300 --> 00:29:42,041
These were people about change.
636
00:29:42,171 --> 00:29:44,608
They were people
about social change.
637
00:29:44,739 --> 00:29:49,396
They were crossing lines,
kicking down doors.
638
00:29:49,526 --> 00:29:52,355
You know,
they were fierce people.
639
00:29:54,270 --> 00:29:57,099
That's what raised
my consciousness.
640
00:30:00,407 --> 00:30:02,975
The change that had happened
in the country,
641
00:30:03,105 --> 00:30:04,237
in the world,
642
00:30:04,367 --> 00:30:06,543
and specifically
in our world,
643
00:30:06,674 --> 00:30:09,155
there was no way of going back
to being that fantasy.
644
00:30:11,200 --> 00:30:14,421
When we were the girl group
Bluebelles,
645
00:30:14,551 --> 00:30:17,467
we felt that we, you know--
646
00:30:17,598 --> 00:30:19,600
that we were being fake,
647
00:30:19,730 --> 00:30:22,821
and that's when we began
the transition to Labelle.
648
00:30:24,823 --> 00:30:28,261
I think Labelle brought
something completely different.
649
00:30:29,218 --> 00:30:35,094
I was interested in writing
music about the future,
650
00:30:35,224 --> 00:30:38,184
writing music
about space travel,
651
00:30:38,314 --> 00:30:40,273
so that also became a part
652
00:30:40,403 --> 00:30:42,928
of what it was
that we were wearing.
653
00:30:43,885 --> 00:30:48,150
Larry LeGaspi and
a whole gaggle of gay guys
654
00:30:48,281 --> 00:30:53,025
who were very into
a futuristic vision
655
00:30:53,155 --> 00:30:56,115
of fashion and design
656
00:30:56,245 --> 00:30:59,988
said, "Get rid
of what you're wearing.
657
00:31:00,119 --> 00:31:02,643
"It doesn't work.
658
00:31:02,773 --> 00:31:05,428
We have some better things,
better ideas for you."
659
00:31:07,343 --> 00:31:09,215
Larry had a vision
660
00:31:09,345 --> 00:31:13,393
about how to bring this
futuristic look to Labelle.
661
00:31:14,307 --> 00:31:16,439
This just happened
about four years ago
662
00:31:16,570 --> 00:31:19,181
when we changed our name
and our everything.
663
00:31:19,312 --> 00:31:20,617
We saw that as Patti LaBelle
and the Bluebelles,
664
00:31:20,748 --> 00:31:23,098
we weren't going
anyplace, really.
665
00:31:23,229 --> 00:31:25,535
And after changing,
we could see the change,
666
00:31:25,666 --> 00:31:27,146
It was very necessary.
667
00:31:27,276 --> 00:31:28,669
But you seem with your music
668
00:31:28,799 --> 00:31:30,236
to really be
taking us somewhere.
669
00:31:30,366 --> 00:31:31,672
I get the feeling
670
00:31:31,802 --> 00:31:33,717
that there's
a lot more to it than--
671
00:31:33,848 --> 00:31:36,285
than the way you--
you know, the space clothes,
672
00:31:36,416 --> 00:31:37,460
and I think
you're saying something.
673
00:31:37,591 --> 00:31:39,027
Am I tuned in there?
674
00:31:39,158 --> 00:31:41,073
The space clothes
675
00:31:41,203 --> 00:31:44,337
came about
just by us being us.
676
00:31:44,467 --> 00:31:47,557
It wasn't an intention
to put something, a facade up
677
00:31:47,688 --> 00:31:50,256
for the people to look at
rather than to listen.
678
00:31:50,386 --> 00:31:52,127
But don't you feel
that you're part of the future?
679
00:31:52,258 --> 00:31:53,781
-Oh, yes.
-Yeah.
680
00:31:53,912 --> 00:31:57,176
Well, in the sense of being
in the future, we're present.
681
00:31:57,306 --> 00:31:58,438
We deal with
what's going on now.
682
00:31:58,568 --> 00:32:01,571
♪ About love
683
00:32:01,702 --> 00:32:03,399
-♪ Oh yeah
-♪ What you say, y'all
684
00:32:03,530 --> 00:32:06,272
♪ Oh yeah
685
00:32:06,402 --> 00:32:07,708
[Hendryx]
What we were wearing
686
00:32:07,838 --> 00:32:12,321
was ornamental
and fun and creative,
687
00:32:12,452 --> 00:32:16,238
but it wasn't
the reason for
688
00:32:16,369 --> 00:32:18,675
our being there on stage.
689
00:32:18,806 --> 00:32:21,374
The reason was to communicate.
690
00:32:23,245 --> 00:32:26,292
We could have
this fantasy look,
691
00:32:26,422 --> 00:32:28,163
becoming these birds.
692
00:32:28,294 --> 00:32:30,165
these bird-like characters,
693
00:32:30,296 --> 00:32:34,953
but also say things like,
694
00:32:35,083 --> 00:32:36,955
"People of color are
going to be in the future."
695
00:32:38,957 --> 00:32:40,567
People didn't know that
that's what we were saying,
696
00:32:40,697 --> 00:32:41,960
but that's what we were saying.
697
00:32:44,049 --> 00:32:45,659
[Contreras]
The audacity of believing
698
00:32:45,789 --> 00:32:47,574
that there is a place
for you in the future
699
00:32:47,704 --> 00:32:49,793
as a Black person
in America,
700
00:32:49,924 --> 00:32:53,449
especially back
in the 1950s, '60s, '70s,
701
00:32:53,580 --> 00:32:55,408
is--is--it's--
702
00:32:55,538 --> 00:32:56,975
you know,
that takes some cojones.
703
00:32:59,455 --> 00:33:03,546
Basically Labelle is just
sort of like a power trio,
704
00:33:03,677 --> 00:33:06,723
because you had Patti LaBelle,
Nona Hendryx,
705
00:33:06,854 --> 00:33:08,290
and then you had Sarah Dash.
706
00:33:10,379 --> 00:33:13,382
Labelle was part of
a larger imagining
707
00:33:13,513 --> 00:33:15,558
that was coming from growing up
708
00:33:15,689 --> 00:33:18,779
around sci-fi movies
and the space race.
709
00:33:18,909 --> 00:33:21,347
If you think about it,
outside of Lieutenant Uhura,
710
00:33:21,477 --> 00:33:24,611
there weren't really any
Black people in those spaces.
711
00:33:24,741 --> 00:33:26,308
You know?
712
00:33:26,439 --> 00:33:28,093
So we're gonna imagine
our own future.
713
00:33:31,444 --> 00:33:34,273
[Hendryx] We knew that people
would want to see us
714
00:33:34,403 --> 00:33:36,710
because of what we looked like,
715
00:33:36,840 --> 00:33:38,755
but then we can inform you
716
00:33:38,886 --> 00:33:41,541
about what was
going on in the world
717
00:33:41,671 --> 00:33:44,761
in a way that
was celebratory
718
00:33:44,892 --> 00:33:48,548
as opposed to beating you over
the head with the issue.
719
00:33:50,289 --> 00:33:52,465
[applause]
720
00:34:01,474 --> 00:34:03,824
[Khan] In the late '60s,
I was still in high school,
721
00:34:03,954 --> 00:34:07,480
and I was going to a lot
of Black Panther rallies.
722
00:34:07,610 --> 00:34:10,831
Black Panthers
were beautiful to me,
723
00:34:10,961 --> 00:34:14,400
because if you put your life
on the line for something,
724
00:34:14,530 --> 00:34:16,054
that's beautiful.
725
00:34:17,620 --> 00:34:19,448
I did join the Panther party,
726
00:34:19,579 --> 00:34:21,102
but they wouldn't let me
do much, you know?
727
00:34:22,712 --> 00:34:26,586
I was a young chick
with jeans on,
728
00:34:26,716 --> 00:34:29,458
and I didn't wear shoes a lot.
729
00:34:29,589 --> 00:34:32,592
I was so cool,
and, um,
730
00:34:32,722 --> 00:34:35,551
I sold kisses
once to raise money.
731
00:34:35,682 --> 00:34:37,640
I started a free breakfast
for children's program
732
00:34:37,771 --> 00:34:39,729
with the Panthers backing,
733
00:34:39,860 --> 00:34:42,428
and I became
very close to Fred Hampton.
734
00:34:42,558 --> 00:34:44,256
-I.
-[crowd repeats]
735
00:34:44,386 --> 00:34:45,866
-Am.
-[crowd repeats]
736
00:34:45,996 --> 00:34:48,434
-A revolutionary.
-[crowd repeats]
737
00:34:48,564 --> 00:34:49,913
-I am.
-[crowd repeats]
738
00:34:50,044 --> 00:34:52,351
-A.
-[crowd repeats]
739
00:34:52,481 --> 00:34:54,744
-Revolutionary.
-[crowd repeats]
740
00:34:54,875 --> 00:34:57,312
[Khan] I loved that man.
741
00:34:57,443 --> 00:35:00,533
And I used to cut class
742
00:35:00,663 --> 00:35:02,709
and beeline
down to LouCity College
743
00:35:02,839 --> 00:35:04,276
and watch
"Battle of the Algiers"
744
00:35:04,406 --> 00:35:05,451
over and over again.
745
00:35:05,581 --> 00:35:06,669
Over and friggin' over again.
746
00:35:06,800 --> 00:35:08,628
It was a Panther movie.
747
00:35:10,978 --> 00:35:12,719
This night watchman came in.
748
00:35:12,849 --> 00:35:14,721
He said, "Y'all
not supposed to be in here,"
749
00:35:14,851 --> 00:35:16,592
so we all rushed him
to the floor.
750
00:35:16,723 --> 00:35:18,028
We didn't hurt him,
751
00:35:18,159 --> 00:35:19,639
but while he was
on the floor, I--
752
00:35:19,769 --> 00:35:22,381
I took the .38 police special,
753
00:35:22,511 --> 00:35:25,384
and everybody thought
I was so...
754
00:35:25,514 --> 00:35:27,777
"right on" doing that, so...
[laughs]
755
00:35:27,908 --> 00:35:29,692
I took it.
I secretly took it home.
756
00:35:33,435 --> 00:35:36,003
And I just had it there.
757
00:35:36,134 --> 00:35:38,571
And in my mindset, I said,
758
00:35:38,701 --> 00:35:39,746
"Well, you know,
if shit goes down,
759
00:35:39,876 --> 00:35:41,008
I'm gonna have to use this."
760
00:35:41,139 --> 00:35:42,749
And I have to make sure--
761
00:35:42,879 --> 00:35:43,924
I've devoted
my life to this shit.
762
00:35:44,054 --> 00:35:45,708
I have to make sure
I wanna die for this.
763
00:35:45,839 --> 00:35:48,450
Do I feel that strong?
764
00:35:48,581 --> 00:35:50,365
And the one main thing
about the Panthers
765
00:35:50,496 --> 00:35:52,628
that I really loved
766
00:35:52,759 --> 00:35:54,500
was that they're willing
to fight for something,
767
00:35:54,630 --> 00:35:55,762
to die for something.
768
00:35:56,806 --> 00:35:59,548
[Bobby Rush] And we are going
to see to it, Freddy...
769
00:36:01,028 --> 00:36:04,553
that you did not die in vain.
770
00:36:04,684 --> 00:36:06,164
[applause]
771
00:36:08,688 --> 00:36:10,951
[Khan] When Fred Hampton
got killed,
772
00:36:11,081 --> 00:36:13,997
that was when
I made the decision.
773
00:36:14,128 --> 00:36:16,652
so I ended up throwing the gun
in Botany Pond.
774
00:36:19,873 --> 00:36:21,396
And that's the first time
I really sat down
775
00:36:21,527 --> 00:36:23,398
and really took stock
776
00:36:23,529 --> 00:36:25,183
of what I was gonna do
for my future.
777
00:36:26,923 --> 00:36:29,317
And that's when I decided
I was gonna do music.
778
00:36:33,930 --> 00:36:36,542
I was with a group
called Life.
779
00:36:36,672 --> 00:36:38,500
We played at five or six clubs
780
00:36:38,631 --> 00:36:41,590
that were on Rush Street
in Chicago,
781
00:36:41,721 --> 00:36:44,767
and we did four or five sets
a night,
782
00:36:44,898 --> 00:36:47,901
but I was 16 when I started
doing that work,
783
00:36:48,031 --> 00:36:50,599
and I had no business
in a club at my age.
784
00:36:50,730 --> 00:36:52,645
Of course,
they didn't card anybody,
785
00:36:52,775 --> 00:36:54,951
but I used to love
peppermint schnapps.
786
00:36:55,082 --> 00:36:56,779
Anybody who loves
peppermint schnapps,
787
00:36:56,910 --> 00:36:59,695
you have to be
pretty young, German,
788
00:36:59,826 --> 00:37:01,915
or really out of your mind,
789
00:37:02,045 --> 00:37:04,439
Right, so I was doing shots
of peppermint schnapps,
790
00:37:04,570 --> 00:37:06,180
and so, they had to, like,
791
00:37:06,311 --> 00:37:08,487
pour me in the car
most of the nights.
792
00:37:10,184 --> 00:37:12,491
But, in retrospect,
793
00:37:12,621 --> 00:37:15,755
singing that much,
it was training,
794
00:37:15,885 --> 00:37:18,497
and I did develop some kind
of stamina and strength.
795
00:37:19,933 --> 00:37:20,847
But those were good days.
796
00:37:20,977 --> 00:37:23,502
I--you know, I was--
797
00:37:23,632 --> 00:37:25,373
I don't think
I can think of a time
798
00:37:25,504 --> 00:37:27,027
where I was happier.
799
00:37:27,157 --> 00:37:28,463
You know, it was
a great place to be.
800
00:37:28,594 --> 00:37:30,726
You'd meet all the bands,
801
00:37:30,857 --> 00:37:32,989
and that's where I met
the guys from Rufus,
802
00:37:33,120 --> 00:37:34,774
'cause they were also
playing the same...
803
00:37:36,689 --> 00:37:38,734
five or six clubs
that were on Rush Street.
804
00:37:38,865 --> 00:37:41,041
So, whenever I had
my 20-minute break,
805
00:37:41,171 --> 00:37:43,565
I'd run across the street
to see Rufus,
806
00:37:43,696 --> 00:37:45,915
because they were doing
all original music,
807
00:37:46,046 --> 00:37:48,396
and this girl
named Paulette McWilliams
808
00:37:48,527 --> 00:37:50,920
was singing lead.
809
00:37:51,051 --> 00:37:54,054
Paulette was very beautiful,
and she knew everything,
810
00:37:54,184 --> 00:37:56,709
and she taught me a lot
about makeup
811
00:37:56,839 --> 00:38:00,930
and, you know, what to wear,
and things like that.
812
00:38:01,061 --> 00:38:03,368
She sort of
really was a big sister.
813
00:38:05,805 --> 00:38:07,720
But then Paulette decided
that she was going to go solo.
814
00:38:08,721 --> 00:38:11,767
The guys immediately
asked me to join them.
815
00:38:12,681 --> 00:38:17,033
That was training
for the rest of my life. Really.
816
00:38:17,164 --> 00:38:19,906
In that day, it wasn't unusual
817
00:38:20,036 --> 00:38:22,952
for a band to be
discovered at a club,
818
00:38:23,083 --> 00:38:26,391
and to sign a record deal
on the spot at the very club.
819
00:38:27,957 --> 00:38:32,658
♪ Love me right
820
00:38:32,788 --> 00:38:36,488
♪ What's the matter with you?
821
00:38:36,618 --> 00:38:41,623
♪ Hold me tight
822
00:38:41,754 --> 00:38:45,714
♪ Why must I tell you
what to do? ♪
823
00:38:45,845 --> 00:38:50,545
♪ Smilin', smilin'
824
00:38:50,676 --> 00:38:54,941
♪ Comes as no surprise, no
825
00:38:55,071 --> 00:38:56,856
♪ So you're smilin'
826
00:38:56,986 --> 00:38:59,728
♪ Ain't hidin'
827
00:38:59,859 --> 00:39:02,470
♪ But what I see in your eyes
828
00:39:02,601 --> 00:39:04,733
♪ The story goes
829
00:39:04,864 --> 00:39:06,822
♪ A little deeper
830
00:39:06,953 --> 00:39:09,434
♪ Than the eye can see
831
00:39:09,564 --> 00:39:10,739
♪ Yeah
832
00:39:10,870 --> 00:39:12,785
♪ Stop runnin' the game
833
00:39:12,915 --> 00:39:14,743
Her artistry,
her gift,
834
00:39:14,874 --> 00:39:17,572
and the legacy
to come from a band
835
00:39:17,703 --> 00:39:19,531
and to be still standing strong
836
00:39:19,661 --> 00:39:21,663
no matter what, you know,
837
00:39:21,794 --> 00:39:24,971
that is
the one and only Chaka Khan.
838
00:39:26,755 --> 00:39:27,974
[Staples] The first time
I heard her sing
839
00:39:28,104 --> 00:39:31,978
was in our basement
at our rehearsal.
840
00:39:32,108 --> 00:39:34,937
I remember her singing
"Amazing Grace."
841
00:39:35,068 --> 00:39:38,071
And, and Pops,
we all talked about this kid,
842
00:39:38,201 --> 00:39:40,639
she has a beautiful voi--
843
00:39:40,769 --> 00:39:43,555
Chaka was no more
than 13, 14 years old.
844
00:39:43,685 --> 00:39:46,253
She just had this high--
845
00:39:46,384 --> 00:39:49,430
and she had a smile on her face
when she would sing.
846
00:39:51,171 --> 00:39:53,173
[Contreras]
To an entire generation,
847
00:39:53,303 --> 00:39:56,742
Chaka Khan represents
Black radical imagination.
848
00:39:56,872 --> 00:40:01,181
So you saw her with her jeans
849
00:40:01,311 --> 00:40:02,922
that were festooned
with feathers
850
00:40:03,052 --> 00:40:04,880
and her little midriff top,
851
00:40:05,011 --> 00:40:07,317
and she was fronting
this bad band,
852
00:40:07,448 --> 00:40:11,017
and she embodied
this joie de vivre
853
00:40:11,147 --> 00:40:14,281
that made you feel like
anything was possible.
854
00:40:14,412 --> 00:40:17,023
Here's the thing
with Chaka Khan.
855
00:40:17,153 --> 00:40:20,896
You can't deejay
a Chaka Khan song
856
00:40:21,027 --> 00:40:24,813
without getting the room
just completely lit.
857
00:40:24,944 --> 00:40:27,425
Like, she's just fire.
858
00:40:29,644 --> 00:40:35,041
[Jones] For me, there were two
great vocalists at that time.
859
00:40:35,171 --> 00:40:38,044
The first was Aretha,
and the next was Chaka,
860
00:40:38,174 --> 00:40:41,047
and they both had licks
they did
861
00:40:41,177 --> 00:40:43,789
that would be emulated
by all singers
862
00:40:43,919 --> 00:40:45,007
for the rest of time.
863
00:40:45,138 --> 00:40:48,968
♪ Yeah is Aretha.
864
00:40:49,098 --> 00:40:53,059
Chaka was ♪ Oh, whoa
865
00:40:53,189 --> 00:40:55,191
It's just this thing they do.
866
00:40:55,322 --> 00:41:00,327
It's a different thing
that you might not even notice,
867
00:41:00,458 --> 00:41:03,069
but as a singer, you go,
"Nobody's done that before.
868
00:41:03,199 --> 00:41:04,592
Nobody's done that before."
869
00:41:04,723 --> 00:41:06,202
They brought it,
870
00:41:06,333 --> 00:41:09,336
and now everybody in its wake
871
00:41:09,467 --> 00:41:11,904
emulates it or imitates it.
872
00:41:12,948 --> 00:41:15,821
[Khan] Rufus was like
a really tight-knit family.
873
00:41:15,951 --> 00:41:18,214
I was the little sister,
874
00:41:18,345 --> 00:41:21,653
and if I had a boyfriend,
the guys had to approve him,
875
00:41:21,783 --> 00:41:22,828
and things like that.
876
00:41:22,958 --> 00:41:24,743
I mean, we were on the road.
877
00:41:24,873 --> 00:41:27,876
They would come to my room,
do a walk-through,
878
00:41:28,007 --> 00:41:29,704
make sure no one
was in the room.
879
00:41:29,835 --> 00:41:32,011
I was a prisoner. I was--
880
00:41:32,141 --> 00:41:34,883
Once I was with Rufus,
I was a prisoner on the road.
881
00:41:35,014 --> 00:41:36,494
I couldn't go anywhere.
882
00:41:39,192 --> 00:41:40,933
Certain members of the band
would make sure
883
00:41:41,063 --> 00:41:44,066
I would stay pretty fucked up,
you know?
884
00:41:44,197 --> 00:41:47,026
So I was, you know, pliant.
885
00:41:47,156 --> 00:41:49,681
It can be
an ugly, ugly world,
886
00:41:49,811 --> 00:41:50,856
an ugly scene, you know?
887
00:41:53,423 --> 00:41:56,035
My A&R man,
his name was Otis Smith,
888
00:41:56,165 --> 00:41:58,341
and he was a very powerful guy.
889
00:41:58,472 --> 00:42:01,083
He was the guy who decided
that the band would be
890
00:42:01,214 --> 00:42:03,912
Rufus featuring Chaka Khan.
891
00:42:04,043 --> 00:42:05,000
That was the beginning
of the end
892
00:42:05,131 --> 00:42:06,741
for Rufus, obviously.
893
00:42:09,048 --> 00:42:13,748
I was working
so hard all the time.
894
00:42:13,879 --> 00:42:15,533
I don't think I'd found...
895
00:42:16,969 --> 00:42:18,057
my power.
896
00:42:20,538 --> 00:42:22,801
When I became a solo artist,
897
00:42:22,931 --> 00:42:26,413
because of the way
I was living before,
898
00:42:26,544 --> 00:42:28,894
was I just went head-on
899
00:42:29,024 --> 00:42:32,898
into some places that
I--I--I shouldn't have.
900
00:42:33,028 --> 00:42:34,856
Or, you know, were dangerous.
901
00:42:37,076 --> 00:42:39,252
Etta James happened to be
at the Warner Brothers offices
902
00:42:39,382 --> 00:42:40,514
when I was having a meeting.
903
00:42:40,645 --> 00:42:42,385
She pulled me aside
and into a room,
904
00:42:42,516 --> 00:42:44,126
and closed the door,
905
00:42:44,257 --> 00:42:46,085
and she said,
"I've been watching you.
906
00:42:46,215 --> 00:42:47,913
"I know--I know
what you're doing.
907
00:42:48,043 --> 00:42:49,218
"You're doing a good job.
908
00:42:49,349 --> 00:42:51,003
"You sound beautiful,
909
00:42:51,133 --> 00:42:52,787
but I don't want you
to end up like this."
910
00:42:52,918 --> 00:42:55,050
She pulled up her sleeve,
911
00:42:55,181 --> 00:42:57,052
and I saw tracks.
912
00:42:58,924 --> 00:43:01,317
There's tracks
up and down her arms.
913
00:43:01,448 --> 00:43:02,884
"I don't want you
to end up like this.
914
00:43:03,015 --> 00:43:04,930
I don't want you like this."
915
00:43:05,060 --> 00:43:06,932
When I saw her tracks,
916
00:43:07,062 --> 00:43:08,150
I was like--
it was high impact.
917
00:43:08,281 --> 00:43:10,022
That was like some wild shit.
918
00:43:10,152 --> 00:43:12,851
I said, "Don't worry, Etta.
Don't worry."
919
00:43:12,981 --> 00:43:14,940
I said, "It's not gonna
happen to me."
920
00:43:15,070 --> 00:43:17,246
[applause]
921
00:43:17,377 --> 00:43:19,248
There's no reason
922
00:43:19,379 --> 00:43:20,815
why I shouldn't
be making as much money
923
00:43:20,946 --> 00:43:22,861
on tours
as the Rolling Stones.
924
00:43:22,991 --> 00:43:24,950
There's no reason
why I shouldn't be.
925
00:43:25,080 --> 00:43:27,735
But I'm not. You know?
926
00:43:30,433 --> 00:43:34,829
There's no way that we are seen
as equals in this game.
927
00:43:34,960 --> 00:43:36,265
Period.
928
00:43:36,396 --> 00:43:38,180
With the guys. Okay?
929
00:43:38,311 --> 00:43:39,921
Forget about it. [laughs]
930
00:43:40,052 --> 00:43:41,836
You know, you just have
to go through them.
931
00:43:41,967 --> 00:43:43,403
You know what I'm saying?
932
00:43:43,533 --> 00:43:44,970
You just have
to just go through them
933
00:43:45,100 --> 00:43:46,798
to get what you want.
934
00:43:50,062 --> 00:43:52,499
I had to fight for that.
935
00:43:52,630 --> 00:43:56,851
I mean, I used to keep my band
in check, you know?
936
00:43:56,982 --> 00:43:59,854
If they started out
a song on stage,
937
00:43:59,985 --> 00:44:01,203
and I didn't like the intro,
938
00:44:01,334 --> 00:44:02,248
I would just say, "Stop!"
939
00:44:02,378 --> 00:44:05,164
[laughs]
940
00:44:05,294 --> 00:44:07,819
I'd say, "Stop everything.
941
00:44:07,949 --> 00:44:10,082
We're gonna do this song
over again."
942
00:44:10,212 --> 00:44:11,866
In front of the audience,
I'd do that.
943
00:44:13,128 --> 00:44:15,000
So...
944
00:44:15,130 --> 00:44:17,002
I--yeah, I was doing
stupid shit like that.
945
00:44:17,132 --> 00:44:18,656
It was--you know, but...
946
00:44:20,527 --> 00:44:21,963
I had to remind them
who the boss was.
947
00:44:26,098 --> 00:44:30,058
You have to be very meticulous
about what is yours
948
00:44:30,189 --> 00:44:32,060
and what you want for it,
949
00:44:32,191 --> 00:44:34,149
because I am
950
00:44:34,280 --> 00:44:39,198
a very strong, opinionated,
ass-kicking woman.
951
00:44:39,328 --> 00:44:41,679
So I took my power back.
952
00:44:44,507 --> 00:44:47,162
When I got pregnant with
my daughter, my first child,
953
00:44:47,293 --> 00:44:49,121
I was 20,
954
00:44:49,251 --> 00:44:51,123
and Otis Smith said to me--
955
00:44:51,253 --> 00:44:52,864
I told him I was pregnant.
956
00:44:52,994 --> 00:44:55,170
He said, "How the hell
957
00:44:55,301 --> 00:44:56,258
"am I going to make
a fucking star out of you
958
00:44:56,389 --> 00:44:58,130
if you're gonna be
having babies?"
959
00:44:58,260 --> 00:45:00,262
I said,
"Let me tell you something.
960
00:45:00,393 --> 00:45:03,352
"I'm going to be a star,
961
00:45:03,483 --> 00:45:06,878
"with or without you.
962
00:45:07,008 --> 00:45:09,184
"With a baby,
or without a baby.
963
00:45:09,315 --> 00:45:10,882
"Any way I come.
964
00:45:11,012 --> 00:45:12,100
I'm gonna be all right."
965
00:45:16,017 --> 00:45:18,063
♪♪♪
966
00:45:21,414 --> 00:45:23,938
[Staples] In the late '60s
and into the '70s,
967
00:45:24,069 --> 00:45:27,202
people were more alert
968
00:45:27,333 --> 00:45:29,509
of what was going on
around them.
969
00:45:29,639 --> 00:45:33,078
People were
so much more ready
970
00:45:33,208 --> 00:45:34,732
to stand up...
971
00:45:36,124 --> 00:45:39,127
and to--to work together
to get it right.
972
00:45:40,563 --> 00:45:43,305
[Khan]
It seemed like a mass...
973
00:45:43,436 --> 00:45:47,222
revelation was happening.
974
00:45:47,353 --> 00:45:50,269
With the Vietnam War,
a lot of the guys that went out
975
00:45:50,399 --> 00:45:51,923
nice, clean,
healthy young guys,
976
00:45:52,053 --> 00:45:54,229
and came back addicts,
977
00:45:54,360 --> 00:45:55,970
and all they wanted to do
was be musicians,
978
00:45:56,101 --> 00:46:00,105
or just--wild out, you know?
979
00:46:00,235 --> 00:46:02,107
And everyone is trusting
980
00:46:02,237 --> 00:46:05,153
and this beautiful,
open-hearted thing was going on.
981
00:46:05,284 --> 00:46:06,241
It'll never happen again.
982
00:46:08,330 --> 00:46:11,333
[Staples] It was just a time
you--you heard music.
983
00:46:11,464 --> 00:46:13,161
Music had a lot to do with it.
984
00:46:14,467 --> 00:46:17,209
I liked all kind of music,
985
00:46:17,339 --> 00:46:19,124
and I've been fortunate
to meet
986
00:46:19,254 --> 00:46:21,300
most of the artists
that I loved.
987
00:46:23,128 --> 00:46:25,086
'Cause there would be times
988
00:46:25,217 --> 00:46:26,522
when we would be on
the same show, you know,
989
00:46:26,653 --> 00:46:28,394
especially, like, festivals.
990
00:46:28,524 --> 00:46:30,613
Tina Turner.
991
00:46:30,744 --> 00:46:35,140
We all went to Ghana together
on the same plane,
992
00:46:35,270 --> 00:46:36,924
and we had big fun.
993
00:46:38,447 --> 00:46:41,407
Another one was Janis Joplin.
994
00:46:41,537 --> 00:46:43,409
I first met Janis Joplin
995
00:46:43,539 --> 00:46:47,108
at Fillmore West
in San Francisco.
996
00:46:47,935 --> 00:46:50,068
Janis came into
the dressing room.
997
00:46:50,198 --> 00:46:53,071
She had
a rabbit-fur shoulder bag
998
00:46:53,201 --> 00:46:56,161
with her Southern Comfort
in there.
999
00:46:56,291 --> 00:46:59,468
You know, and she said,
"Which one of you is Mavis?"
1000
00:46:59,599 --> 00:47:02,384
And the way she said it,
1001
00:47:02,515 --> 00:47:04,560
I was almost afraid
to raise my hand.
1002
00:47:04,691 --> 00:47:07,520
I said--I said, "I'm Mavis."
1003
00:47:07,650 --> 00:47:10,653
She says,
"Oh. I like your voice.
1004
00:47:10,784 --> 00:47:13,395
My name is Janis,
and I'm making a record."
1005
00:47:15,397 --> 00:47:18,270
She hadn't even recorded yet
when I met her,
1006
00:47:18,400 --> 00:47:21,403
but I'd say about
six months after that,
1007
00:47:21,534 --> 00:47:23,841
Janis was on top of the charts.
1008
00:47:25,799 --> 00:47:28,149
Janis had transcended
this "pretty" thing.
1009
00:47:28,280 --> 00:47:30,673
She was so attractive,
1010
00:47:30,804 --> 00:47:36,027
and you wanted to hug her,
as well as become her,
1011
00:47:36,157 --> 00:47:37,593
and I don't know
how she did it.
1012
00:47:37,724 --> 00:47:42,076
She was boyish,
but she was totally a woman.
1013
00:47:42,207 --> 00:47:43,469
She didn't seem to have
1014
00:47:43,599 --> 00:47:45,297
anything to do
with the hippies.
1015
00:47:45,427 --> 00:47:48,256
She was more like
that other generation.
1016
00:47:48,387 --> 00:47:50,302
[Cavett] Why aren't there
more ladies who do what you do?
1017
00:47:50,432 --> 00:47:52,608
-Sing, you mean?
-No, do--the kind you do.
1018
00:47:52,739 --> 00:47:55,655
You're not in the same category
with Kate Smith, or--
1019
00:47:55,785 --> 00:47:58,266
I don't know why.
I always wondered,
1020
00:47:58,397 --> 00:48:00,007
because it
seemed so natural to me.
1021
00:48:00,138 --> 00:48:02,531
But, um. I don't know.
1022
00:48:02,662 --> 00:48:04,490
It's not feminine, maybe,
that's why.
1023
00:48:04,620 --> 00:48:06,535
I mean, to get down
and really get into music,
1024
00:48:06,666 --> 00:48:08,363
get on the bottom side
of the music,
1025
00:48:08,494 --> 00:48:09,364
instead of float around
on the top
1026
00:48:09,495 --> 00:48:10,888
like most chick singers do.
1027
00:48:11,018 --> 00:48:13,586
I think they [vocalizes]
on the top of the melody
1028
00:48:13,716 --> 00:48:15,327
instead of get into
the feeling of the music.
1029
00:48:15,457 --> 00:48:16,502
I don't know.
1030
00:48:18,721 --> 00:48:20,332
[George-Warren]
Janis had to blaze a trail
1031
00:48:20,462 --> 00:48:23,596
because there were no women
1032
00:48:23,726 --> 00:48:26,512
doing the kind of work
that she was doing.
1033
00:48:27,817 --> 00:48:32,735
She wasn't playing the game
of a pretty little girl singer,
1034
00:48:32,866 --> 00:48:36,696
which was a role that had been
"opened" to women.
1035
00:48:36,826 --> 00:48:39,786
Janis just laughed at,
you know?
1036
00:48:39,917 --> 00:48:43,007
She wanted to do things
the way she wanted to do them.
1037
00:48:45,444 --> 00:48:48,316
And it was through
her many influences
1038
00:48:48,447 --> 00:48:52,581
and her own incredible talent
that out came Janis Joplin.
1039
00:48:53,582 --> 00:48:57,456
Whatever the song needed,
she could bring to that song,
1040
00:48:57,586 --> 00:49:00,546
and she was one of the few
women that was in that scene.
1041
00:49:00,676 --> 00:49:03,070
There was Grace Slick
with Jefferson Airplane,
1042
00:49:03,201 --> 00:49:05,333
but when Janis came along,
1043
00:49:05,464 --> 00:49:07,640
there weren't a lot of women
doing it.
1044
00:49:07,770 --> 00:49:11,296
She's driven about 3,000 miles
to get here in her Cadillac,
1045
00:49:11,426 --> 00:49:13,211
which she says is sometimes
gray and sometimes brown,
1046
00:49:13,341 --> 00:49:15,648
but right now is mostly muddy.
1047
00:49:15,778 --> 00:49:19,347
So let's have a big welcome
for Big Mama Thornton.
1048
00:49:19,478 --> 00:49:21,480
[applause]
1049
00:49:25,571 --> 00:49:26,964
[music begins]
1050
00:49:30,793 --> 00:49:33,971
♪ Well, you know
hard luck and trouble ♪
1051
00:49:35,711 --> 00:49:38,105
♪ Is my only friend
1052
00:49:40,325 --> 00:49:43,328
♪ I wanna let you know, baby
1053
00:49:43,458 --> 00:49:47,419
♪ I've been down
ever since I walked in ♪
1054
00:49:47,549 --> 00:49:50,422
♪ You know, I was born
under a bad sign ♪
1055
00:49:50,552 --> 00:49:52,424
[Terkel]
People who influenced you.
1056
00:49:52,554 --> 00:49:53,642
Big Mama Thornton.
1057
00:49:53,773 --> 00:49:54,600
[Joplin]
Yeah, she's still playing.
1058
00:49:54,730 --> 00:49:55,470
We've played with her twice.
1059
00:49:55,601 --> 00:49:57,429
She's fantastic.
1060
00:49:57,559 --> 00:49:58,865
[Terkel] Did you and she
sing together?
1061
00:49:58,996 --> 00:50:00,606
[Joplin] I wouldn't get
on the same stage with her.
1062
00:50:00,736 --> 00:50:02,695
Oh, she'd kill me. [laughing]
1063
00:50:02,825 --> 00:50:04,827
No, but we have played
at the same bill, you know?
1064
00:50:04,958 --> 00:50:09,267
And I was absolutely
terrified. [laughs]
1065
00:50:09,397 --> 00:50:11,008
But it was really
a thrill for me.
1066
00:50:12,879 --> 00:50:14,663
[George-Warren] One of the
great, great rock 'n' rollers
1067
00:50:14,794 --> 00:50:19,233
who came out in the 1950s
is Big Mama Thornton,
1068
00:50:19,364 --> 00:50:22,323
and of course,
as the world turns, you know,
1069
00:50:22,454 --> 00:50:24,325
in the 1960s,
1070
00:50:24,456 --> 00:50:26,284
Janis sees Big Mama Thornton
1071
00:50:26,414 --> 00:50:28,416
playing a little club
in San Francisco
1072
00:50:28,547 --> 00:50:30,636
and hear her do
"Ball and Chain,"
1073
00:50:30,766 --> 00:50:33,378
which had not even
been recorded yet,
1074
00:50:33,508 --> 00:50:36,598
and that really became
Janis Joplin's signature song
1075
00:50:36,729 --> 00:50:39,340
after she and her bandmates
saw her do it.
1076
00:50:39,471 --> 00:50:41,429
She goes backstage,
meets Big Mama,
1077
00:50:41,560 --> 00:50:42,648
and says,
"Hey, can we do your song?"
1078
00:50:42,778 --> 00:50:44,432
And Big Mama was like,
"Yeah,
1079
00:50:44,563 --> 00:50:46,217
as long as you don't,
you know, F it up."
1080
00:50:46,347 --> 00:50:47,479
So that really became
1081
00:50:47,609 --> 00:50:49,263
Big Brother
and the Holding Company's
1082
00:50:49,394 --> 00:50:50,786
breakthrough song for them,
1083
00:50:50,917 --> 00:50:52,788
and what got them, you know,
1084
00:50:52,919 --> 00:50:54,529
their notoriety
when they played it
1085
00:50:54,660 --> 00:50:55,356
at--at Monterey Pop.
1086
00:50:57,532 --> 00:51:01,710
♪ And I said, oh, whoa, whoa
1087
00:51:01,841 --> 00:51:03,886
♪ Well, honey,
this can't be,
1088
00:51:04,017 --> 00:51:07,455
♪ Oh, b-b-b-b-be--be--
baby, no ♪
1089
00:51:07,586 --> 00:51:08,674
♪ In vain
1090
00:51:08,804 --> 00:51:12,678
♪ I said, no, no, no, yeah
1091
00:51:12,808 --> 00:51:14,636
♪ Aah
1092
00:51:14,767 --> 00:51:17,509
♪ And I--
1093
00:51:17,639 --> 00:51:19,728
♪ And I want somebody
to tell me, come on ♪
1094
00:51:19,859 --> 00:51:21,643
♪ Tell me why
1095
00:51:21,774 --> 00:51:23,602
♪ Want to know why
1096
00:51:23,732 --> 00:51:25,952
♪ Oh, people tell me why love
1097
00:51:26,083 --> 00:51:29,782
♪ Honey, why love is like
1098
00:51:29,912 --> 00:51:30,913
♪ Well, it's like
1099
00:51:31,044 --> 00:51:33,655
♪ A ball and
1100
00:51:33,786 --> 00:51:42,360
♪ And a chain
1101
00:51:42,490 --> 00:51:44,710
[cheering]
1102
00:51:44,840 --> 00:51:45,885
[George-Warren]
Everybody remembers
1103
00:51:46,015 --> 00:51:49,889
Mama Cass voicing,
like, "Wow."
1104
00:51:50,019 --> 00:51:51,282
I think it was
just such a shock
1105
00:51:51,412 --> 00:51:53,806
to see someone
1106
00:51:53,936 --> 00:51:57,462
who was able to put it
all out there on the stage
1107
00:51:57,592 --> 00:51:58,854
without holding back.
1108
00:51:58,985 --> 00:52:02,554
It was this kind of opening of,
1109
00:52:02,684 --> 00:52:05,165
"This is who I am
and this is my music,"
1110
00:52:05,296 --> 00:52:08,299
and it was--It just raised
people out of their seats.
1111
00:52:08,429 --> 00:52:09,865
It was like a--
1112
00:52:09,996 --> 00:52:13,434
an orgy and a religious
experience at the same time.
1113
00:52:17,699 --> 00:52:20,659
[Jones]
"Ball and Chain" remains
1114
00:52:20,789 --> 00:52:23,705
one of the greatest
live recordings ever done.
1115
00:52:23,836 --> 00:52:26,621
I don't know why we don't
hear from it more.
1116
00:52:26,752 --> 00:52:28,797
The shame attached to dying
1117
00:52:28,928 --> 00:52:31,931
in a motel by yourself
from heroin?
1118
00:52:32,061 --> 00:52:36,762
Why is she not remembered
and talked about
1119
00:52:36,892 --> 00:52:41,419
as much as any guy
who died by himself in a motel?
1120
00:52:41,549 --> 00:52:43,812
She was left behind
as quickly as they could.
1121
00:52:43,943 --> 00:52:45,510
"Oh, good,
I'm so glad she's gone.
1122
00:52:45,640 --> 00:52:50,254
Let's tie her and go on,
and move into the 1970s."
1123
00:52:55,694 --> 00:52:57,826
♪♪♪
1124
00:52:57,957 --> 00:53:01,700
[Wilson] In the early '70s,
the culture had shifted so much,
1125
00:53:01,830 --> 00:53:03,745
mainly from the Beatles.
1126
00:53:03,876 --> 00:53:05,530
We were just fresh-faced,
1127
00:53:05,660 --> 00:53:07,575
apple-cheeked girls
from Seattle.
1128
00:53:07,706 --> 00:53:10,491
We just had it in our cap
1129
00:53:10,622 --> 00:53:13,538
that we were just gonna
get on those stages
1130
00:53:13,668 --> 00:53:14,843
and rock out on big stages,
1131
00:53:14,974 --> 00:53:17,585
and it worked. [laughs]
1132
00:53:19,457 --> 00:53:22,590
♪♪♪
78132
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