PREMIERES SUNDAY, JUNE 4 at 7:30PM
Alabama Public Television presents a week of special programming beginning this weekend with several great concerts, including a glimpse of the great Carole King that fans have been waiting to see 50 years! This new feature-length concert documentary presents music icon Carole King’s triumphant May 26, 1973, homecoming concert on the Great Lawn in New York City’s Central Park before an estimated audience of 100,000. Directed by George Scott and produced by Lou Adler and John McDermott, the film presents the complete multi-camera 16mm footage filmed and recorded by Adler in 1973 but never before released.
Alongside the complete performance footage is the behind-the-scenes story of King’s remarkable transformation from an in-demand, staff songwriter beloved for such timeless Goffin and King classics as “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman” and “Will You Love Me Tomorrow” to an iconic artist in her own right. The May 1973 performance captured King at her critical and commercial peak, basking in the enormous popularity of her definitive album Tapestry. New interviews with King, Adler, Ron Delsener, and legendary Woodstock and Monterey Pop lighting and stage manager Chip Monck set the scene for her extraordinary performance.
Wanting to do something special with Carole in New York, Adler and legendary New York concert promoter Ron Delsener agreed to stage a free concert — the first ever — on Central Park’s famed Great Lawn. The event changed the landscape of live performances in New York, shepherding in an era of legendary performances in Central Park that continues to this day.
King rarely performed in concert during this era despite the enormous commercial success she had enjoyed. However, on this special occasion, she presented her performance in two parts — first alone, on piano, and then fronting a powerhouse 11-piece band. Adler decided to film and record it. After the Central Park performance, he took the footage and recordings back to Los Angeles, where it remained unreleased for 50 years. Recently, McDermott convinced Adler who then convinced Carole that the performance should be seen. The resulting film provides an inside view of a generational talent at her prime, performing one of the biggest and most momentous concerts of her career in the city where she was born.
Other new music specials on APT this week include:
Mavis Staples at Symphony Center, Chicago
3 June at 11:00PM
Santana Live at the US Festival
4 June at 12:30AM
Burt Bacharach: A Life in Song
4 June at 6:00PM
Creedence Clearwater Revival at the Royal Albert Hall
6 Tuesday at 8:30PM
Benise: Fiesta
8 Thursday at 9:00PM
Marvin Gaye: Greatest Hits Live
9 Friday at 8:30PM
Foreigner: Double Vision - Then and Now
10 Saturday at 9:30PM
Molly Tuttle and Golden Highway - Live in Nashville.
10 Saturday at 11:00PM
Carole King: Home Again - Live in Central Park and many other pledge specials will also be available to APT Passport Members to stream.
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