Sam Pollard is the Peabody award winning director “Mr. Soul!” “Sammy Davis, Jr.: I Gotta Be Me,”Another documentary feature has been created by the filmmakers at “The Sound of Philadelphia”About music icons Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, and the musical genre that they helped to proliferate, Philly Soul.
“The Sound of Philadelphia”The documentary is produced by Warner Music Entertainment, Warner Chappell Music, and Imagine Documentaries in collaboration with Jigsaw Productions. Alex Gibney is the executive producer.
The film will explore how Gamble, Huff and Bell — together known as “The Mighty Three” — founded the record label Philadelphia International Records and helped craft a signature sound heard in a catalog of over 3,500 songs. It contains tracks such as “Love Train” by The O’Jays, “If You Don’t Know Me Now” by Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, “Me and Mrs. Jones”By Billy Paul “Rubberband Man”The Spinners “You Are Everything”The Stylistics. “TSOP” by MFSB and the Three Degrees – famously used as the “Soul Train”Theme song.
The documentary will further explore Gamble, Huff and Bell’s roll in producing and writing major hits with world renowned artists such as The Jacksons, Dusty Springfield, Lou Rawls, The Three Degrees, Patti LaBelle, Nancy Wilson, The Temptations, The Supremes, Elton John and many more. It will also examine how their success was channeled back into the community through their Black-owned label.
“The Sound of Philadelphia”Executive produced by Sara Bernstein, Ron Howard, Sara Bernstein and Justin Wilkes for Imagine, Stacey Offman for Warner Music, Ashley Winton to Warner Chappell, Stacey Offman and Richard Perello for Jigsaw, Amanda Ghost, and Gregor Cameron to Unigram.
“After six decades, we are incredibly proud to finally share our life stories with the world and showcase all the hard work that has gone into creating this great music. We are even more excited to be working with the incredible teams at Imagine and Warner Music, as well as Alex Gibney and Sam Pollard,”Gamble, Huff und Bell issued a statement. “Our longtime fans and new fans will get a unique look into the creation of the Sound of Philadelphia with the themes of empowerment and love, to ‘people all over the world’ as we’ve always had a ‘Message in our Music!!!’”
“Kenny, Leon, and Thom’s lasting impact on music and our culture at large cannot be understated. Their music is timeless, with the messages in their songs still resonating today. When Ashley Winton and the team at Warner Chappell brought us this idea, we immediately knew we had something special. And now with Alex Gibney and Sam Pollard signed on to lend their creative visions to the project, we’re excited to see this story come to life,”Charlie Cohen, president of Warner Music Entertainment, said.
“I am thrilled to co-produce this film about these exceptional songwriters, whose words and music continue to have an impact. And pleased to be working again with my friend Sam Pollard – who produced and edited ‘Sinatra: All or Nothing At All,’ a fine director with a profound understanding of music,”Gibney explained.
“I was absolutely delighted when I was approached about directing a feature length doc about the extraordinary music creators Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff and Thom Bell,”Pollard was also mentioned. “They made superstars out of artists that previously toiled in obscurity, through songs of peace, love, social conscience, and turmoil. I’m looking forward to working with my dear friend Alex Gibney again as we shine a light on the powerful, sophisticated, and timeless ‘Sound of Philadelphia.’”
The documentary’s development is driven by Warner Chappell’s Creative Services department – which identifies untapped commercial and creative opportunities for Warner Chappell’s songwriters and catalog.
It marks the latest project to come from Warner Music Entertainment and Warner Chappell’s partnership with Imagine Entertainment.