Carole King: Natural Woman

Carole King: Natural Woman

By George Scott

  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release Date: 2016-02-23
  • Advisory Rating: NR
  • Runtime: 0h 52min
  • Director: George Scott
  • iTunes Price: USD 9.99
  • iTunes Rent Price: USD 3.99
7/10
7
From 4 Ratings

Description

“CAROLE KING: NATURAL WOMAN” tells, in Carole’s own words, of her family and her upbringing in Brooklyn, and the subsequent success as part of husband and wife songwriting team Goffin & King for Aldon Music in New York City. It was during this era in the early sixties that they created a string of pop hits such as 'Take Good Care of My Baby' for Bobby Vee, ‘The Locomotion’ for Little Eva, and 'Will You Love Me Tomorrow' for the Shirelles, which became the first number 1 hit by a black American girl group. Not to mention the era-defining 'Up On The Roof' for the Drifters, and the magnificent ‘Natural Woman’ for Aretha Franklin. By 1970 Carole was divorced from husband and songwriting partner Gerry Goffin, and relocated to Los Angeles. It was here that she created her classic solo album Tapestry, sung from the heart and packed with iconic tunes some of which include her own honest lyrics. The album includes tracks ‘It’s Too Late’ with lyrics by Toni Stern, ‘I Feel the Earth Move’ and ‘You’ve Got A Friend.’ It held the record for the most weeks at number 1 for nearly 20 years. It has become a staple in everyone’s record collection, and has sold over 25 million copies to date. “CAROLE KING: NATURAL WOMAN” features previously unseen and rare performance material and home movies, with Carole in a new interview and archive interviews telling her life story as an acclaimed singer-songwriter. To date, more than 400 of her compositions have been recorded by over 1,000 artists, resulting in 100 hit singles. More recently, Carole was a recipient of the 2015 Kennedy Center Honors which celebrates the honorees’ lifetime artistic achievements. Whilst in 2014 a Broadway production ‘Beautiful’ (which tells her life story during the Goffin & King era) has received rave reviews winning a Tony Award and two Olivier Awards for the London production. In 2013, Carole was the first woman to be awarded the prestigious Gershwin Prize for Popular Song by the Library of Congress for her songwriting. Nowadays Carole King sees herself as much as an eco-activist as a songwriter. She is to be found constantly lobbying Congress in defense of the wildlife and eco-systems of her beloved Idaho. Featuring new interviews with fellow writers Barry Mann & Cynthia Weil, Carole’s daughter Sherry Goffin Kondor, legendary manager/producer Lou Adler, former manager Peter Asher, lyricists Carol Bayer Sager & Toni Stern, musicians Russ Kunkel and Danny “Kootch” Kortchmar and childhood friend and director, Joel Zwick.

Trailer

Reviews

  • What a Gal

    5
    By thewholetruth?
    This gal is a delight, a survivor of life’s tosses and turns, a one of a kind talent. What I enjoyed the most was her pure delight in her music, not in any egoistic way, in a simply joyous way, and in how the wonderful singers interpret her music. In the film yo learn a lot about her life, the film does not hold back, and see the jobs she had where you have to make music very fast, and she seems to thrive in that environment and create great music. very worth watching.
  • Really great and informative

    4
    By Warblade Hero
    I love Carole. This was a great documentary. It is free to stream on the PBS American Masters site until March 4.

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