INCENTIVE UPDATE 05/22: $15 OR MORE NOW GETS YOU A BY AND BY  EXCLUSIVE DISC OF RARE 60's & 70's NOLA QUARTET FROM THE COLLECTION OF MUSIC HISTORIAN LYNN ABBOTT 

LISTEN TO BY AND BY ON THE MARC STEINER SHOW 05/22

By and By is a grant-winning documentary in production about a powerful New Orleans gospel quartet, the Electrifying Crown Seekers – a group USA Today calls "the essence of Jazz Fest ... more explosive than any rock headliner."

And it's true! The group is led by an exceptional singer-guitarist, James Williams Sr, and their gig at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival is consistently cited as one of the true hidden treasures of the Fest -- just ask Good Morning America and Offbeat Magazine.

But it’s in the Crown Seekers’ traditional quartet and church community the other 364 days of the year where By and By finds its story.

Kitchen rehearsal with the Crown Seekers -- "He Made Me"

The Crown Seekers are a family-based group that, after 47 years together, are facing an uncertain future in a post-Katrina environment.

After Katrina, the New Orleans music community has staged a dramatic come-back –the jazz, blues, and R&B of the city are widely celebrated. But for local gospel quartets like the Crown Seekers, the post-Katrina rebound has stalled.  Their base audience – often the poorest of the 200,000 people displaced by the storm – didn’t return; the venues the groups played were largely destroyed. 

And most important, the changing tastes of a younger generation -- more in tune with the sweeter sounds of choirs and praise and worship singing -- have left rough-edged groups like the Crown Seekers struggling to perform their musical ministry.

The generational differences within the community are starkly represented by Mr. Williams’ 25 year old son, Keith -- for years the group’s only drummer. While raised within the quartet style of performance, Keith is equally enamored of choir, praise and worship, and modern celebrations of faith.

In a classic story of change vs. tradition, young vs. old, Keith’s decision – to continue with the Crown Seekers or seek his own path – will mean the difference between the continuation of the group and its dissolution; the continuing of his father’s musical legacy, or its ending.

ALMOST 3 YEARS IN PRODUCTION  

2005 marked the first phase of the project, with several short interviews and performances captured by Joe Compton and a small shooting crew in the months prior to Katrina. Unexpected creative difficulties put the project on hold for over four years, but by late 2009, the project was re-envisioned with an entirely new creative team led by Matt Bowden and director of photography David Morley of Zinnia Films. This Baltimore-based production team, along with a handful of dedicated New Orleans-based filmmakers, has committed over 2 ½ years to this story. Almost 350 hours of footage has been collected of the Crowns Seekers and the members of their spiritual community, from New Orleans/Baton Rouge and rural Mississippi, to Monroe, Louisiana and Austin, Texas.  

WE'RE ALMOST DONE -- HELP US FINISH!  

The filmmakers have a critical need for assistance on a variety of post-production “must-haves” to make the film festival-ready. Sound and color correction; songwriting and publishing clearances; archival photo rights; title credit production; film festival application fees; and publicity expenditures attendant to the film festival circuit are all part of what Kickstarter funds will be used for. 

The filmmakers intend to release By and By: New Orleans Gospel at the Crossroads in January 2013.

"WHAT IS QUARTET?"

The #1 question that's come up throughout our project is, "what is quartet?" With By and By, we've worked hard to make sure we get out of the way and let the experts answer the questions. We think you'll agree -- their story needs to be told.  Help us tell it!

All the best,

Matt, Joe & David

FIND OUT MORE!

1. WEBSITE: byandbythemovie.com
2. BLOG: byandbythemovie.wordpress.com
3. FACEBOOK: facebook.com
4. YOUTUBE CHANNEL: youtube.com