“EVERYDAY SUNSHINE: THE STORY OF FISHBONE”
Directed by Lev Anderson and Chris Metzler
*** ½ (three and a half stars)
I am remembering a classic sight gag from Rob Reiner’s iconic rock documentary satire “This Is Spinal Tap” (1984). It literally is just a quick, solitary moment perfectly illustrating the continuous downward slide in popularity of the heavy metal band as they slog through their latest tour. It was the sight of a marquis announcing “SPINAL TAP”…directly underneath “PUPPET SHOW.” It was one of a myriad of telling moments about the fragility of remaining in the pop-culture limelight, especially in the world of rock and roll, where aging and remaining on the top of the heap in an ever-shifting popularity climate is precarious. For established rock musicians, that moment certainly provided laughs as well as honest shudders. Granted, Spinal Tap is a fictional band, and a terrible one at that. But, what about within the real world of rock and roll and what if the band that was metaphorically billed underneath a small town puppet show happened to be a band that was not only a good band, but a great band? Not just a band that was heavily celebrated but seismically influential, idiosyncratic, innovative and endlessly inspiring? What if that band happened to be Fishbone?
It was 1985 when I first heard Fishbone. I was 16 years old and I heard them on a late Friday night as I listened to a new music program, broadcast on the untouchable Chicago radio station WXRT-FM. The song was “Party At Ground Zero” and it was one of those times where the sounds were so unlike anything else on the radio, I could do nothing but listen to the entire track with my jaw agape. The song began with a jazzy yet almost dirge like instrumental intro which soon locked into a frantic, relentless double time tempo complete with tight acapella harmonies, New Orleans styled brass, jazz inflected reggae and vice versa, guitar and trombone solos, and nuclear holocaust fears set to a wildly danceable rhythm that was even more aggressive than Prince’s own dance under the mushroom cloud anthem “1999.” It was a chaotic song that seemed to be on the verge of complete self-destruction at any moment. But it was all so intricate and complex that you knew that this band was entirely aware of every sound having its proper place. I was hooked and I was compelled to discover more about this band with the bizarre name of “Fishbone.”
The music of Fishbone is an unquestionably original amalgam of hard rock, punk rock, funk, R&B, soul music, jazz, reggae, ska, hip-hop, blues, metal, gospel (sometimes all within the same song) and whatever else the seven members of the band could cook up within their musical stew. When I did discover some time later that the members of Fishbone were all African-American, I felt as if I had found some brethren as they championed rock music just as I had but with absolutely, positively no apologies to anyone, especially the judgmental and dismissive African American community who rejected the band because of their performance of “white music.” They gave me the strength to hold onto what I loved so dearly just as ferociously and unapologetically, especially as I was raised in an African-American neighborhood but attended a predominantly Caucasian private school therefore being caught in two worlds where I was sadly ridiculed in my own neighborhood for my tastes, appearance and for “talking white.” Because of Fishbone, I began to feel less alone in the world as their artistic loves and social/political outlook mirrored some of my own growing attitudes and world view.
By the time I arrived at college, Fishbone and I had a profound meeting of the heart, mind, and spirit with their landmark 1988 album “Truth and Soul.” That album was the release where the band striped away some of their trademark party brand funhouse lunacy for a more overtly political, pro-African-American outlook with songs like “Subliminal Fascism,” “One Day,” “Slow Bus Moving (Howard Beach Party),” an extraordinary remake of Curtis Mayfield’s “Freddie’s Dead” and the soaring, acoustic finale “Change.” The album became a fixture upon my headphones as I walked all over the glorious campus as well as receiving copious amounts of airplay on my college radio program. Yet, what thrilled me was the fact that this band was rising in its notoriety. You could just feel the rumblings in the street as so many people, from friends to strangers, listened to their albums, played their songs all over college radio, wore their custom made paraphernalia featuring that classic logo adorned within this review and spoke rapturously about their increasingly legendary live performances.
By 1991, at the dawn of the release of their game changing double album “The Reality Of My Surroundings,” it seemed as if Fishbone were poised to break through any remaining barriers and take on the mainstream musical landscape on the same level that the Red Hot Chili Peppers accomplished during that same year and every year since. But, sadly it was not to be. The brass ring was just this far out of reach and so unfortunately, and frankly, so unfairly, Fishbone has been relegated to more of a musical obscurity than being fully acknowledged for their seismic contribution and far reaching influence.
This tale of success and failure is the compelling leaping off point of “Everyday Sunshine: The Story Of Fishbone,” filmmakers Lev Anderson and Chris Metzler’s heartfelt attempt to remedy this musical crime. While not the perfect film as it skates over key areas and even individuals that would make this story complete, I do greatly appreciate how Anderson and Metzler have achieved the current goal that makes music documentaries transcend their genre. They have discovered a greater story (or several stories) to tell beyond the trials and tribulations of the music industry. “Everyday Sunshine: The Story Of Fishbone” not only focuses upon maintaining perseverance, individualism and integrity in an indifferent environment and the symbiotic relationship between band members and how the music is affected when even one element is out of place, the film is most effective when it presents the solidarity and brotherhood contained in the African-American experience. For fans of the band, as well as novices, this film is more than worth your time.
As the film opens, graced with a narration provided by the unmistakable voice of Laurence Fishburne, we learn about the origin of Fishbone, whose members all met during their junior high school years in 1979 as they were bused from the predominantly African-American communities of South Central Los Angeles to the predominantly white communities of the San Fernando Valley. Bassist John Norwood Fisher cut quite the intimidating figure at the new school, quickly aligning himself with new friends who would all eventually form the band. In addition to Norwood’s brother Phillip “Fish” Fisher on drums, Fishbone consisted of Kendall Jones (guitar/vocals), Christopher Dowd (guitar, trombone, vocals), and “Dirty” Walter A. Kibby II (vocals, trumpet). After a time of playing together at the Fisher household, Norwood soon met an eccentric, perpetually Cheshire Cat smiling individual named Angelo Moore, whose persistence simultaneously intrigued and irritated Norwood to the point where he smashed a pomegranate smack in the middle of Angelo’s face. Undeterred, Angelo requested to join Norwood’s band, to which he agreed. A wise and especially brilliant decision as Angelo, along with his performance on saxophone, would more than prove his might as an indispensable frontman, lyricist and vocalist of the highest order.
Fishbone’s reputation grew rapidly throughout Los Angeles due to manic energy of their endless live performances as well as their bizarre appearance. They confused everyone who saw them as the band members appeared as if they had arrived from the future or another universe entirely. These were young African-American males with a ferocious sense of independence as they dressed with New Wave, thrift store, punk rock fashions, Mohawks, punk/Rude Boy accessories combined with an unrepentantly “in your face” (ha ha) attitude and aggression. Fishbone arrived from the same astral plane as other African-American musicians who were determined to crash and destroy racial boundaries like Rick James and certainly Prince but Fishbone’s seemed to be the true inheritors of George Clinton’s Parliament/Funkadelic mantle and legacy.
White audiences, initially confused, were quick to embrace the band while African-American audiences met the group with skepticism at best and flat out rejection at worst, thus forcing the band to depend upon predominantly white audiences. The reality of their surroundings continued with their record label signing just as they completed high school. However, the record industry experienced much confusion with how to market a band that had no peer. They were “too white” for black radio and white radio did not tend to play black artists if the name “Hendrix” was not present, a situation, which placed Fishbone at the dawn and forefront of creating the alternative music scene (in rock and hip-hop, no less), a landscape they scaled fiercely.
From here, Anderson and Metzler use “Everyday Sunshine: The Story Of Fishbone” to celebrate the history and everlasting legacy of the band in interviews with many of the past and present band members as well as with lovingly expressed tributes from Gwen Stefani, Mike Watt, Les Claypool, Ice-T, Flea and even George Clinton. Most successfully, the film concurrently details the band rise, fall and disintegration of the band’s classic lineup alongside their continued musical soldiering in an even more precarious and indifferent musical landscape as only two of the band’s founding members (Norwood Fisher and Angelo Moore) have continued to carry the “Fishbone banner” with a team of new musicians.
In regards to that “Spinal Tap moment,” Anderson and Metzler waste absolutely no time as they present it to us at the film’s outset by first showing us footage from a heroic 1992 California concert and then flash-forwarding to 2007 as the band makes a painfully non-attended series of dates throughout Europe, including Hungary. The sight of these world-class musicians standing on an outdoor stage being viewed by a smattering of people who obviously had no idea of who they were was tremendously saddening to me, so imagine what it must have felt like for Norwood and Angelo, especially as the bonds in their own relationship had begun to show some cracks. But I am getting a hair ahead of myself…
One thing that is noted several times throughout “Everyday Sunshine: The Story Of Fishbone,” from current and former band members along with former music industry associates, was how Fishbone was designed and operated to be a 100% democratic band. Yes, John Norwood Fisher formed the band and in many respects, he is the leader, the ultimate musical and artistic vision was created, honed, nurtured and advanced by every member of the band. Every member wrote material, members traded instruments, there were several lead singers in addition to Angelo Moore and as Norwood mentions how difficult being 100% democratic actually was, the music became what it became because of that decision and subsequent unity.
So, where did everything begins to nosedive internally? Anderson and Metzler do a great job of depicting a situation where the overall success of the band was due to the symbiotic relationship of its members and when one member departed, absolutely everything changed, in many cases for the worse. The first to depart was Kendall Jones, who fell into a depression after the death of his Mother. That event led him to a reunion with his absent Father, which then descended into a bizarre story of cult brainwashing, from which Norwood and close friends and a former fiancée of Kendall’s attempted to rescue him. This event was something that I had only heard scant details about and I was very happy to see how Anderson and Metzler compiled and presented this disturbing piece of the Fishbone story.
Jones’ departure ultimately led to more departures, which in turn increased the odd antics of Angelo Moore, who began to take on a new identity as “Dr. Madd Vibe” and he had also become reliant upon using the vibration fueled yet atonal Theremin on recordings and live performances to the dismay of the remaining members. And sadly, after one incredible yet low selling release, Fishbone was dropped from the very record label that signed them. Now that the original members are down to solely Angelo and Norwood, we are able to gather a front row seat into the yin and yang of their friction and artistic outlook, and the view is deeply compelling. Angelo feels that his creativity is increasingly stifled and Norwood feels as if Angelo is completely out of control, therefore threatening the balance of the revamped Fishbone in regards to which songs they should perform and write, and which venues they may even be able to perform. Here is also where the film delves deeply into the subject matter as we see how the indifference towards the band has created a dire financial situation for its members. Norwood is living “hand to mouth,” while Angelo eventually ends up moving back into his Mother’s house…rent free and with no incentive to hustle harder for more and better gigs to potentially give the band a second chance at the brass ring.
Near the end of the movie is a fantastic sequence between Angelo and Norwood, where the two men finally, FINALLY hash out their grievances and attempt to find some common ground in order to continue forging ahead with their musical visions together. It was like the scene that did not exist in Michael Rapaport’s outstanding “Beats, Rhymes and Life: The Travels Of A Tribe Called Quest,” a film which, among many topics, followed the friendship and friction of rappers Q-Tip and Phife Dawg.
All of these elements within this documentary work wonders in moving towards the film’s greatest questions of success and failure. Certainly, the arc of the film feels as if we are watching the rise and fall of a great band but just listen to Norwood Fisher’s contemplative viewpoints on what the future of Fishbone could potentially hold if he only made certain choices. And I do believe that his answers will not only surprise you and force you to re-think your views of success and failure, his answers will deeply inspire as well as his reasoning stretches out to explaining and possibly fulfilling his life’s purpose. To that end, the film rises, soars and I believe will make every viewer who chooses to watch understand and root for Fishbone more than ever before.
Even with all of this praise, “Everyday Sunshine: The Story OF Fishbone” possesses what I felt to be was a glaring hole. First of all, the film contains not even one mention of guitarist John Bigham, who joined the band for the recording of “The Reality Of My Surroundings” and later played all of the guitar tracks for their incendiary 1996 album “Chim Chim’s Badass Revenge.” To not even acknowledge his crucial contribution was a terrible mistake on the part of Anderson and Metzler but potentially even worse was not focusing whatsoever upon the new members of the band at all. Yes, I can understand that perhaps the filmmakers were attempting to adhere to a certain narrative but I think that there are crucial questions to be asked about the ones who have been enlisted to carry the Fishbone freak flag into the 21st century and beyond. How do they see their roles in Norwood and Angelo’s musical vision? How have they been accepted, or not, by longtime fans? How do they envision success and failure as they are playing at this point in the band’s 25-year history? Or, for Pete’s sakes, what are their names? This is “Music Journalism 101” in my eyes and I guess that I was stunned that Anderson and Metzler did not even approach this area, especially when they had already delved deeply in all other areas.
But, do not let that criticism deter you from giving this film a try. The music documentary has undergone something of a renaissance within the last few years as we have seen one strong film after another with subjects ranging from Rush, Foo Fighters, Pearl Jam, Elton John & Leon Russell and now, “Everyday Sunshine: The Story Of Fishbone” is another extremely worthy entry into the genre.
And as with all of those other films, and especially with this one…PLAY LOUD!!!!!
SAVAGE POSTSCRIPT:
“Everyday Sunshine: The Story Of Fishbone” is NOW AVAILABLE on DVD and in addition to the film, the disc contains several archived live performance clips, deleted scenes, deleted interview segments, plus two audio commentary tracks from the filmmakers and Angelo Moore and Norwood Fisher respectively. So...what are you waiting for????????
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