Melody Makers – ‘The Bible Of Rock And Roll’ (MVD Visuals)

Ah, the good old days when you got all your music news from the magazine stand or your local record shop.  There weren’t many to pick from Me I was a Sounds man myself but I did also check Melody Maker and NME before the glossy mags took over like Kerrang.  Digital kids won’t have a clue what I’m on about unless they watch films like this – The award-winning film takes you behind the scenes to explore the myths, honour the legends and reveal the incredible stories and never-before-seen photographs of rock giants like Jagger, Bowie, Elton John, Bob Dylan, Zepplin, Hendrix, The Kinks etc etc.

This tell-all documentary reveals anecdotes and unpublished photos from the world’s most influential music publication, Melody Maker magazine, with its intimate access to legendary rock bands of the day and all the goings-on and shenanigans you daydreamed about.  In biographies and autobiographies, stories and folklore were perpetuated or dismissed in the pages of Melody Maker and the writers who lived to tell the tales of what people look back fondly on the Golden Age of music.

At the heart of this film is Melody Maker’s head photographer, Barrie Wentzell, who takes us along on an intimate journey with his colleagues into the world of rock icons. These journalists, with cameras in hand, had free rein and were creatively involved with the artists, something unheard of today and it’s hard to imagine some of the scenes they describe.

The film captures the story behind the magazine’s rise and fall, showing first-hand how the artists, the record companies and journalists came to move a generation. The magazine was the go-to for many for decades during its time, now this movie is a “must-see” for musicians, music fans and it would seem history buffs alike.  Pop culture of a bygone era that can never be recaptured from the people who created the news and became part of the fabric of the music.  Cool film.

Buy ‘Melody Makers’ Here

‘Come On Feel The Noize’ – ‘The Story Of How Rock Became Metal’ (MVD Visuals) A tale as old as time (or so it would seem) Rock morphing into Metal and bands and players who became iconic immortals of the music biz.  This exclusive, long-lost live material from rock’s most iconic bands &artists, as well as all-new original interviews with the living legends themselves:

This film is your access-all-areas backstage pass to Heavy Metal and Hard Rock history. Delve into the rich history of Heavy Metal: from its scandalous origins in the 1960s to its heyday in the 1980s, from its glam phase in the 1970s to its indestructible present in 2017. A backstage pass into the history of how Rock became Heavy Metal. There might be some excellent journeys available on youtube plotting the history of the scene but this is a decent blanket thrown over the scene for an hour and a half.  Interesting and amusing some have aged like fine wine and others not so much (being polite)

If you lived through the 70s and 80s then it’s hard to imagine how quickly music has changed over the years and how there is still a place for Metal and Heavy Rock as portrayed in this film. The usual acts such as Hendrix, Deep Purple and  Zeppelin are discussed obviously. it does cover The blues, punk, and other scenes.

Come On Feel The Noize: Isn’t just about that journey of the usual suspects such as Twisted Sister, Motley Crue and Poison but the whole scene of music that sprouted up everywhere.  It’s well told, well documented, and the interviews are interesting for the hour and a half. Some of those interviewed are megastars like Ozzy, Dee Snider, Nikki Sixx, Biff Byford and others! It’s not all old school as Ghost get coverage as well.  One for old rockers to enjoy as well as one to give the grandkids to show them what it was like and why you pick up the metal compilation in the supermarket.  Its never too late to feel the Noize and this might well relight the flame for anyone who turned up the Rock.

Buy ‘Come On Feel The Noize’ Here