Satan & Adam — Official Trailer

source:   satanandadamfilm.com

added: Tue, Mar 26th '19

Filmed over 20 years, "Satan & Adam" chronicles the trials and tribulations of a street-busking blues duo who rose to fame during the late 1980s and early '90s.

African-American blues musician Sterling "Mister Satan" Magee was a fixture on the streets of Harlem in the 1980s. Adam Gussow was a twenty-something Ivy-educated harmonica player who, by a twist of fate, became the street musician's partner. Despite their vastly different backgrounds, they made an outstanding street-busking duo in the late 80s. Soon they became something of a blues sensation, attracting the attention of famous musicians like U2 and Bo Diddley.

But while reaching the height of their popularity, the duo faced unexpected obstacles, involving personal health issues, which ultimately derailed their collaboration.

Indie documentary filmmaker V. Scott Balcerek seemingly whips together a poignant portrait of an unlikely blues duo who came together because they both had a passion to play for everyday people. And they may not be done playing together just yet.

Produced by Oscar-nominated veteran film producer Frank Marshall (Raiders of the Lost Ark, Seabiscuit, Jurassic World), "Satan & Adam" is being released in New York on April 12th and in Los Angeles on April 19th, with other cities to follow. Watch the trailer, above.

synopsis:
A celebration of the transformative power of music, and the bonds that develop when artists collaborate and worlds collide, the film follows Satan & Adam, a blues duo and a fixture on Harlem's sidewalks in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Director V. Scott Balcerek pulls together over two decades of documentary footage to chart the duo's trajectory from busking in the streets of Harlem, where they were happened upon by U2 who were filming for their Rattle and Hum documentary, to bigger and bigger stages, depicting the challenges that both had to overcome to keep Satan & Adam and their friendship together.

Playing for years with artists including James Brown, KingCurtisand Big Maybelle, Sterling Magee experienced the music industry's exploitation of black musicians firsthand. So he walked away to play on the Harlem streets for "his people." Reborn as Satan, he spread his gospel of freedom and became a New York City legend. When a white Jewish Ivy league scholar and musician named Adam Gussow asked if he could join him one day, both their lives took a powerful turn. Adam put aside the ivory tower life to play in the streets, and Sterling's embrace of his younger apprentice forged a sound that thrust him back in the spotlight. But life on the road took its toll on the duo, and suddenly Sterling vanished without a trace. The separation would test both men's courage, and their journey to find each other again a tale of tragedy, survival and miraculous rebirth.

 

directed by   V. Scott Balcerek

release date   April 12, 2019 (in NY), April 19, 2019 (in LA; other cities to follow)