Movie · 2013 · Documentary, Music · 1h 29m · NR · English
Curator score: 7.7/10 (29.1K ratings)
Meet the unsung heroes behind the greatest music of our time.
Overview
Backup singers live in a world that lies just beyond the spotlight. Their voices bring harmony to the biggest bands in popular music, but we've had no idea who these singers are or what lives they lead, until now.
Ratings
Curator score: 7.7/10
IMDb: 7.4/10
Letterboxd: 3.75/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 99%
Metacritic: 83
TMDB: 7.2/10
Director
Morgan Neville
Production
Tremolo Productions, Gil Friesen Productions
Cast
Darlene Love, Lisa Fischer, Merry Clayton, Judith Hill, Claudia Lennear, Táta Vega, Patti Austin, Mick Jagger, Stevvi Alexander, Bette Midler, Sting, Sheryl Crow, Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, Lou Adler, Chris Botti, Lynn Mabry, Ula Hedwig
Where to watch
Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads
Curator Review
Verdict
A warm, entertaining, and overdue tribute to the singers who made countless hits soar from the shadows. It’s not especially revelatory, but the performances, archival material, and lived-in testimony make it easy to recommend.
Best for
music fans
viewers interested in unsung artists and industry labor
fans of performance-driven documentaries
audiences who enjoy uplifting, crowd-pleasing docs
Skip if
you want a deeply investigative or scandal-heavy documentary
you prefer fast-paced docs with a strong formal style
you are not interested in classic pop, soul, and rock history
Overview
This documentary succeeds because the subject is irresistible: the voices behind some of popular music’s most famous records finally get to tell their own stories. The film is especially effective when it isolates vocals and lets the audience hear just how essential these singers were to the sound of an era.
Worth noting
It’s more celebratory than probing, and some viewers may wish it dug harder into the business, race, and gender dynamics that kept these artists in the background. Even so, the personalities are vivid, the editing keeps things moving, and the emotional payoff is real.
Bottom line
What lingers most is the sense of belated recognition. The film gives these performers a deserved spotlight without pretending that applause can fully undo the years they spent just out of frame.
Top Letterboxd reviews
Pottlekid (3.5★) · 81 likes
Documentary celebrating background singers, mostly ones from the 50s-70s talented enough to be stars themselves. The isolated tracks showed off their talent well, wish there was more on the daily life, they couldn’t have all been dating Jagger. No juicy stories from the road or what it’s like dealing with big star egos, but glad the ladies got their recognition.
Luke Bonanno (3★) · 73 likes
Twenty Feet from Stardom doesn't make any startling revelations or surprise us in any way. The film largely consists of old women reflecting on the good and bad parts of their anonymous singing careers, material complemented by looks at the striking, hopeful Judith Hill, who rehearsed singing with Michael Jackson for his unrealized final concert tour and then gained notice for a performance at his memorial service. It's entertaining, sharply edited, and visually varied. Full review HERE.
#39 of 62 on Best Documentary Feature Oscar Winners, Ranked 🎙️ 2013, Ranked
Libby Caldwell (4.5★) · 57 likes
Films Watched in 2020 - Film 283
It’s absolutely full of passion and life right from the start. Incredible women with incredible energy and stories to tell. It’s hilarious and engaging. A really fun and quick watch, I’d highly recommend.
Esteban Gonzalez (3.5★) · 45 likes
"Their songs are legendary, but they are 20 feet from stardom"
If someone were to ask you if you know who Merry Clayton, Darlene Love, Claudia Lennear, Lisa Fischer, Tata Vega, or Judith Hill are you would probably have no clue, but I can guarantee you that you have heard their voices and hummed their music many times (and if you are too young to recall these songs, I guarantee you that the artists you listen to now have been… more
Mike D'Angelo (3.5★) · 42 likes
61/100
Las Vegas Weekly review. This is television, but the subject is irresistible. And as someone who's always been kind of obsessed with "Gimm(i)e Shelter," I was pretty much floored by that isolated vocal track.