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THE PULSE OF ENTERTAINMENT: Director Bill Duke tackles AIDS in new film, 'Cover;' Time Life Music and Dr. Bobby Jones release 'Ultimate Gospel," a seven-CD box set.
Bill Duke tackles AIDS head-on as director of the murder suspense thriller, ‘Cover.’
*Award winning actor/director Bill Duke (A Rage in Harlem, Miracle Boys) gets in the director's seat again for the murder mystery "Cover," which touches on litigious issues such as adultery, sexually transmitted disease and retribution. The 20th Century Fox film is distributed on Fox Home Entertainment. The DVD stars Vivica A. Fox (Kill Bill Vol. 1), Aunjanue Ellis (Ray), Raz Adoti (Haven), Paula Jai Parker (Hustle & Flow), Louis Gossett Jr. (An Officer and a Gentleman), Leon (The Temptations), Patti LaBelle (Idlewild) and Mya (Chicago).
“I always liked him as a person,” actor/singer Leon says about the director. He goes on and laughs, “We butted heads one day…Bill has a big head, so you now that hurt.”
The film is inspired by tragedies among his friends and family, and his outrage at the AIDS epidemic among African-American women in the United States.
“Cover” is about a woman Valerie Maas (Aunjanue Ellis) accused of murder. This God-fearing housewife finds herself in a situation she never imaged possible. As Valerie is being questioned by detective Hicks (Lou Gossett Jr.) and district attorney Simmons (Clifton Davis) who is eager to close a case. As she insists she is not a murderer, she tells the story of the last several months of her life.
“They are all great actors,” Duke says about the cast. “Leon, I have admired and felt he was the right person. Louis Gossett Jr. is a friend of mine and Aunjanue, I loved her work and had never worked with her.”
Bill Duke started out as a theatrical director in New York. He has a Bachelors of Arts and a Masters of Arts. While living in Los Angeles he attended the American Film Institution. Duke said he wanted to make sure the films could be rated PG 13 because he wants to empower the viewers in terms of AIDS.
“The film touched me emotionally and it will touch the audience,” Bill said. “I did everything I could to make the audience feel it.”
Time Life Music and Dr. Bobby Jones team up for a seven-CD box set, "Ultimate Gospel"
“I produced a show in Nashville on NBC, “The Nashville Gospel Show,” Dr. Bobby Jones said about his career as a Gospel television variety show host. “It was in the 80s, we were at a convention promoting the show and Bob Johnson (BET founder) was there. He wanted some black shows and at the time there wasn’t many.”
Today the Bobby Jones Gospel Show has been airing on BET for over 30 years. It is the longest running show in the history of television. Because of that history and following, Time Life Music teamed up with him to release the, “Ultimate Gospel” a seven-CD box set which features the who’s who in Gospel’s past and present.
The 20-song, “Peace in the Valley,” CD features Gospel hits from the 1950s, such as Mahalia Jackson’s “In The Upper Room;” the 16-song, “Oh Happy Day,” CD features Gospel crossover acts such as the Staple Singers and the Mighty Clouds of Joy; on the 15-song, “In The Spirit,” you will hear classic acts such as the Sounds of Blackness; on the 15-song, “I Need You Now,” CD you will find songs such as Aaron Neville’s “A Change is Gonna Come” and CeCe Winans’ “I Surrender All;” on the 30-song, “More Than A Melody,” CD you will find a compilation of tunes such as Al Green’s “Precious Lord and Kirk Franklin’s “Stomp;” on the 30-song, “Testify,” CD there are choir songs such as Alabama State Mass Choir’s “My Soul Got Another Dip” and Fred Hammond’s “Glory to Glory;” and on the 24-song, “Body & Soul Gospel,” CD you will hear such artists as Luther Vandross, Whitney Houston, Boyz II Men and Patti LaBelle.
Dr. Bobby Jones said he suggested some names to Time Life Music but that the choice was really their call.
“What’s happening with Gospel is that the music is strong,” Dr. Jones said when asked about the rise in hard-core Gospel rappers. “They will have their audience. God will have them doing it as long as they respect religion and God.”
Time Life Music had previously joined forces with BET J with the releases of “Voices: The Ultimate Gospel Choir Collection” and “Going Up Yonder: The Best of the Gospel Choirs.”
You can get more information on Time Life Music and Dr. Bobby Jones’ “Ultimate Gospel” seven-CD box set at www.timelife.com.
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