“Take Me to the River: New Orleans” celebrates the rich musical history, heritage, legacy, culture, and influence of New Orleans and Louisiana. A true collaboration and melting pot of influences from around the World.
If you ever want to go to a quiet place in your mind to find complete solace, listen to the melodic sounds of discretionary beats playing into your heart and soul by some of New Orleans’ finest musicians. This is the culmination of the film, “Take Me to the River: New Orleans,” composed by Martin Shore. While there have been other versions of “Take Me To The River,” this production is far more centered on the emotion of passing on the legacy of great music and drilling down on how NOLA took back their city and musical pride after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina.
Martin Shore’s passion for music is displayed in the foreground or background of every scene and his features of the diaspora of raw talent from all areas within one hundred miles of NOLA make this film successful. His main goal though was to see how a community could repair its soul after a tragic loss. With music being the foundation of its history, Martin reached out to the seasoned musicians who crafted their work and were genuinely interested in collaborating with the next generation of musicians who could proudly carry the torch. Many of the later-generation collaborators such as G-Eazy and Mystical worked with seasoned musicians such as The Neville Brothers, Big Chief Mond Boudreau, William Bell, and Al Capone. Snoop Dogg also played a vital role in reining in the musicians in individual and group sessions in order to coordinate lessons in the lineage of New Orleans’ music and sound.
One of Martin’s most significant collaborations included taking his team of musicians and working with the Berklee family to visit the Berklee Valencia Campus in Europe. The sessions they had with the students were a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for active learning which left the students the ability to pass along the secrets of timing, developing unique and telling stories through music. In the end, this musical master of love and loyalty to sound is not only beneficial to the rebuilding of NOLA, but it is also a que for all this who love music and its history to take an active part in the preservation of it. “Take Me to the River: New Orleans” definitely takes you to higher ground as the soul of music flows through your mind and spirit! Martin Shore should be incredibly proud of this production and you should not miss the chance to experience it!
In Theaters Friday, May 20th
