The story
Filmed over the course of ten years, How Sweet the Sound is the first film to tell the story of this legendary gospel quartet. The Blind Boys of Alabama met as children in the 1930's at a state-run segregated vocational school and would become one of the last great gospel quartets, traversing the famed "gospel highway" and beyond. As the surviving band members recount their unlikely success story, we see a rare, frank view of life on and off the road with these renowned performers, now in their 70's and 80's.
The Blind Boys of Alabama
Clarence Fountain
George Scott
Jimmy Carter
Bishop Billy Bowers
Ben Moore
Eric ‘Ricky’ McKinnie
Caleb ‘Bobby’ Butler
Tracy Pierce
Joey Williams
Johnny Fields
Roscoe Robinson
Producer/Director
How Sweet the Sound is the first documentary feature by Leslie McCleave. Leslie's previous projects include the supernatural, environmental-awareness tale Road, a narrative feature film which won the Outstanding Performance Award at the Los Angeles Film Festival and was acquired by Showtime; the 9/11 documentary installation cedarliberty project (with Elena del Rivero), presented at International Center of Photography and the New York State Museum; and the award-winning short films Avenue X; Blixa Bargeld Stole My Cowboy Boots (starring Michael Imperioli); and Meeting Marty. Her work has received support from New York State Council on the Arts, New York Foundation for the Arts, Creative Capital Foundation, IFP Radziwill Documentary Fund, National Endowment for the Arts and the Sundance Institute.
Credits
Producer/Director
Leslie McCleave
Directors of Photography
Teo Maniaci
Ismael Ramirez
Sound
Judy Karp
Editors
Ed Norris
Yvette Torell
Consulting Producer
Heidi Reinberg
Associate Producer
Laura Bayless
Picture Post
House of Trim
Audio Post
mediaNoise – Quentin Chiappetta
Audio Description
Woman of Her Word -- Michele Spitz
We are pleased to announce that How Sweet the Sound -- The Blind Boys of Alabama is available
with audio description for blind and vision impaired audiences.