GLOBAL RHYTHMS

Billy Preston: That's The Way God Planned It

PARIS BARCLAY
USA, 2024
104 minutes, Color and Black & White

Mega-talented keyboardist and songwriter Billy Preston was often referred to as "the best musician in the room." In this mesmerizing, music-rich documentary, Paris Barclay examines the late musician's extraordinary career and life. Raised in the Black church, Preston was a child prodigy who played organ on tour with Mahalia Jackson at 10. As a solo artist, he scored number one hits and did collaborations with Aretha Franklin, the Rolling Stones, Elton John, The Beatles, and more. He did all of this as a soul divided—by his deep roots in the church, in constant conflict with his identity as a gay Black man, and searching for a family of his own that would accept him for who he was. With archival interviews, testimony from famous friends, and scads of incandescent performance footage demonstrating Preston's charisma and monumental talent, the film pays soulful homage to a musical genius.—Various sources