The 10-minute doc that'll make you furious this studio isn't a museum.
James Brown was the jewel in the crown, but the throne of Cincinnati’s King Records always belonged to its irascible founder, Syd Nathan. This is the 70th anniversary of the legendary record label and studio. It closed shop nearly 40 years ago, in a now long-neglected warehouse on the neighborhood border of Evanston and Walnut Hills, but its impact still reverberates across today’s music.
Editing
Packs 70 years into 10 minutes without feeling rushed — miracle of compression.
Production
Archival footage of James Brown and Syd Nathan's contentious dynamic.
Director
Matt Peiken
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
King Records was racially integrated years before the Civil Rights Act — musicians, staff, even bathrooms. The doc barely has time to explore how radical this was in 1950s Ohio.
Syd Nathan's 'colorblind' marketing was pioneering progressive branding while maintaining exploitative contracts — a tension the film rushes past in its sprint through history.
No ratings yet
Sign in to join the discussion — comments are spoiler-gated to your watch progress.
Discussion starters
US
