Fishbone Documentary: SoCal Mindfunk

Just before my family was over-swept by the vomiting illness from hell last weekend, I had a chance to watch Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone (2010), which is now available via Netflix streaming.

This is a band I've loved and admired for a long time, so perhaps my endorsement has a "fanboy" quality to it, but here are some of my impressions anyway:

1. We're often told about band X or band Y that "no recording can possibly capture their live act." It's become a cliche (mostly used to sell concert tickets), but it couldn't be more true of Fishbone. There is a kinetic energy and a synergy among bandmates that has to be seen to be understood. The documentary captures some of that, and I'm grateful to the filmmakers for including that footage.

2. You can't help but come away from this movie wondering how a fucked up (and dying?) industry like the recording biz ever managed to thrive in the first place. Some of the most revealing and discouraging scenes from the movies entail sit-down interviews with Sony/Columbia producer David Kahne, who signed the band to their first contract back in the day. Kahne describes being blown away by the band after seeing them live and taking a demo around to the big-wigs in his label, who treated it like toxic waste and finally, grudgingly, agreed to channel it through their "black music" outlets. Listening to Kahne describe the inner workings of the corporate music machine conjures the bad old days of Jim Crow segregation and "race radio" but also provides an important look into the narrow-minded thinking of a parasitic industry. Monetization always begins with crude categorization, and a band like Fishbone wasn't an easy fit, to say the least. Although Kahne's interviews comprise only a few minutes within the film, these scenes explain so much about how this amazing outfit fell through the cracks and disappeared prematurely from many people's radar.

3. Finally, something needs to be said about historical context and the connection between politics and culture. Fishbone took shape in Los Angeles in 1979. Most of the band's members (Angelo Moore being the exception) came from neighborhoods in and around South Central, but these guys were also bussed to the Valley for school under a court-ordered desegregation ruling. (Remember, this all takes place in the shadow of the Watts Riots.) In any case, the mix of inner-city kids and suburban kids, not only forged the original Fishbone lineup, it allowed for an incredible cross-pollination of styles and interests. Basically, it helped create the blend of funk/soul and punk that Fishbone pioneered and perfected and that others (e.g., RHCP) pursued in their own way. Minds melded as buses clunked up and down the L.A. freeways and (sub-) cultures which had been neatly divided--by concrete, money, and politics--began to run together in interesting and powerfully creative ways. The take away here is profound, but also easy to miss in a documentary which is about the music, first and foremost: what happens in the courts, what happens in the realm of politics, what happens in public life, ACTUALLY DOES inform the quality of our culture. Judges (can) do bold and interesting things from the bench, and energetic kids will kick down whatever other doors remain closed along the way.

Make some time for this movie (107 mins.) and get a dose of TRUTH and SOUL that will keep you going long into 2013. I guarantee we will feature more from Fishbone in upcoming editions of the Civil Disobedience Hour. Stay tuned.

Watch the trailer:


"Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone" (documentary trailer) from Tilapia Film on Vimeo.