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Go-Go on Film You've got to rememberthat when Good to £ocame out there was no BoyzNthe Hood, there was no Spike Lee. Sowe wre going to support it, you know! When Chris [Blackwell, Island Pictures mogul] came to Washington we were excited, then it was like...huh!?!?! Wedidn't know nothing about Hollywoodpolitics, where somebodygotta die, we gotta have some action because we don't want to sell just the D.C.market. Nobodyknows about this music but we're gain' to mix it in with this story and this action....We were...offended!1 Bruce Brown, D.C. filmmaker Of all of the musical genres heard in the District of Columbia—including jazz and funk—go-go is the most widely documented. There have been three important documentary films, and go-go has endured several brushes with Hollywood. The first of these resulted in Good to Go (1986), which was shot on location in D.C. in the summer of 1985. Both 24/7 (1998) and D.C.—Divided City (2001), Bruce Brown's latest feature film, are also liberally sprinkled with go-go. Good to Go was initially looked upon as a venture that encouraged the local go-go community into thinking that the music was finally going to gain national recognition. But the potential displayed going into the project ended up faded and somewhat tattered. The film, which came at a time when go-go was wildly popular in D.C., ended up causing one of the greatest controversies in the music's history. STRAIGHT-UP DOCUMENTARIES Ironically, the longest, most comprehensive, and most polished documentary film about go-go has never been shown in the District of 7 G o - G o on Film 207 Columbia. Produced by Great Britain's Channel Four for a series called Arena, Welcome to the Go-Go: Washington D.C. has never been broadcast anywhere in the United States, nor is it available on videotape. Shot in 1988, this 45-minute film is the usual mixture of interviews and performance footage. It features local favorites including C.J.'s Uptown Crew, Experience Unlimited, Max Kidd, and Chuck Brown. Its first-rate production values, length, and incisive commentary set it apart from other go-go documentaries. The film is also helped by some fine footage of street poet Iceberg Slim and several of his friends shot on D.C.'s downtown streets, as well as by performances by three local rappers who clearly verbalize the difference between D.C. and Washington with stark and chilling clarity (and with the Capitol smartly placed behind them!). Chuck Brown and E.U. appear in live performance scenes filmed in local clubs. The British team also filmed Experience Unlimited in the studio in a scene that emphasized Ju Ju's energetic drumming and the vibrant horn section. The footage reinforces what a strong funk-influenced band E.U. was in the late 1980s. As the cab-driving narrator—wearing one of the brightest and most outrageous red caps on the planet—C.J. provides the glue that holds the film together. Along with WOL-AM go-go jock "Moonman," he dispenses salient and insightful commentary about go-go and Washington D.C., as well as performing in several scenes. Promoters David Rubin and Max Kidd get ample airtime to discuss their take on clubs, recording, and the importance of live performances. Welcome to the Go-Go: Washington D.C.'s final strength is its contextualization of go-go within the music's natural social, economic, and musical framework. With all of these positive attributes, it's a shame that virtually no one in Washington, D.C., has ever seen this film. Another go-go documentary, Straight-Up Go-Go, first aired on Wednesday, March 25, 1992, on WHUR-TV, Howard University'spublic television station. You would think that the fact that the film was locally conceived and produced would place it at an advantage; however, this is not entirelytrue. The one-hour film includes interesting interviewmaterial with Ignatius Mason, Cathy Hughes, and Max Kidd, among others. It also makes some strong, appropriate connections between James Brown, funk, and go-go, addresses the influence of African music, and pays proper respect to the place and importance of the drum in go-go. If Straight-Up Go-Go suffers it is because the filmmakersobviously cut corners in order to complete the film. First of all, the concert footage [18.118.193.232] Project MUSE (2024...

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