We have an exclusive clip from the 45th anniversary re-release of classic film that rarely gets the attention it deserves these days —Stony Island. Before he directedThe Fugitive, Holes, Under Siege, A Perfect Murder, Collateral Damage, and other blockbuster films, Andrew Davis helmed the funky classicStony Island, an era-defining film about twopeople who start a bandagainst all the odds. The film stars Richard Davis, Gene Barge, Rae Dawn Chong, Susanna Hoffs, Dennis Franz, Oscar Brown Jr., and Meschach Taylor, and you’re able to watch the clip above.
The synopsis forStony Islandreads as follows:
“Filmed on the gritty streets of Chicago’s south side,Stony Islandtells the story of Richie Bloom (Richie Davis), the only white kid on the block, as he forms an R&B band with his best friend, Kevin (Edward “Stoney” Robinson). With the help of their mentor, aging sax legend Percy (Gene “Daddy G” Barge), they pull together a funky supergroup, stealing practice time at night in the local funeral home. Despite few resources and heavy losses, this resilient group of dedicated musicians — armed only with wit, sleight of hand and outrageous Chicago bravado — must come together to finally make their smash debut.”
A smart, refreshing look at a group of aspiring musicians trying to make it in the world of popular music, this hallmark of independent filmmaking received energetic applause from critics around the world and was a festival favorite at the Utah/US Film Festival (the forerunner of Sundance). Stony Island was raved about at the time from a variety of critics and audiences.Roger Ebert called it, “Bouncy, lively, engaging […] An easy‐going, cheerful movie that captures a city’s spirit with a certain refreshing cynicism.”
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Susanna Hoffs and Richie Davis Make Chicago Sing
Stony Islandis also a loving ode to Chicago, a major music center ever since the “great Migration” of Black workers from the South and Eastern European immigrants, who brought a range of musical styles with them and helped create electric blues, jazz, R&B, soul, and gospel music as we know it. It’s the city of Benny Goodman, Buddy Guy, Chaka Kahn, Chess Records, Gene Krupa Herbie Hancock, Junior Wells, Koko Taylor, Lou Rawls, Muddy Waters, Nat King Cole, Quincy Jones, Ramsey Lewis, Maurice White (Earth, Wind & Fire), and more.
The neighborhood of Stony Island is unique with the University of Chicago on one side and to the south this “bastion” of rhythm and blues. The intersection of 63rd and Stony Island was a very famous place, where Louis Armstrong got off the Illinois Central’s City of New Orleans when he first came to Chicago. There were great clubs, where all kinds of people coming up from the South, especially from the Mississippi Delta, landed and began to make new life. This is where Muddy Waters, Bo Diddley, and Chuck Berry came and established themselves, and where the Chess Brothers, who were immigrants from Poland, had a club on the South Side that became the beginning of one of the most influential labels in the country, Chess Records.
Stony Island will be released on demand and on digital platforms November 17, the same day it was originally released in 1978. you’re able to learn more about the film and directorAndrew Davis here.
