This is a study of those backup singers possessed of as much talent as the stars they work for, but who have somehow not managed to ascend to show business' top tier. Partly this is due to lack of will; partly due to luck; and partly due to the fact that perhaps talent is not enough to ensure one's name emblazoned on marquees outside theaters.
Among those interviewed include producer Lou Adler, singers Patti Austin, Merry Clayton, Amy Christian and Carole Childs (among others), Mick Jagger, Stevie Wonder and Sheryl Crow. What emerges most tangibly from Morgan Neville's film is that there exists a definite pecking-order between stars and their backing singers; although Wonder and Jagger (especially) praise the efforts of those who have worked so hard to make their albums memorable, they regard the singers as secondary beings. In Jagger's case, there is a definite sense that he treats them as commodities, to be engaged by producers and to be available whenever the star requires.
The careers of these singers stretch way back to the mid-1960s; and some of them continue working to this day. For the most part they are philosophical about their careers; even to be a backing singer on some of the greatest hits of the last five decades is something memorable. But we cannot but help empathize with their underlying disappointment as they reflect on what might have been, had the breaks gone their way.
There are some memorable performances in 20 FEET FROM STARDOM, which make the film eminently watchable, but the overall mood is elegaic, a longing for what might have happened, even though most of the singers have enjoyed financially successful existences.
Among those interviewed include producer Lou Adler, singers Patti Austin, Merry Clayton, Amy Christian and Carole Childs (among others), Mick Jagger, Stevie Wonder and Sheryl Crow. What emerges most tangibly from Morgan Neville's film is that there exists a definite pecking-order between stars and their backing singers; although Wonder and Jagger (especially) praise the efforts of those who have worked so hard to make their albums memorable, they regard the singers as secondary beings. In Jagger's case, there is a definite sense that he treats them as commodities, to be engaged by producers and to be available whenever the star requires.
The careers of these singers stretch way back to the mid-1960s; and some of them continue working to this day. For the most part they are philosophical about their careers; even to be a backing singer on some of the greatest hits of the last five decades is something memorable. But we cannot but help empathize with their underlying disappointment as they reflect on what might have been, had the breaks gone their way.
There are some memorable performances in 20 FEET FROM STARDOM, which make the film eminently watchable, but the overall mood is elegaic, a longing for what might have happened, even though most of the singers have enjoyed financially successful existences.