THE early days of rock and roll are a pivotal moment that defined the history of the genre forever. Its prepubescent days, the ‘60s and ‘70s, were interesting times. As radical change was rapidly sweeping over the country, rock and roll was getting more experimental and branching into different sub-genres.
One of the bands that heavily inspired some of the most well-known bands of today was the rock and roll group, Fanny.
On Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2022, “Fanny: The Right to Rock” hit select cinemas in the Philippines. It is a music documentary of the long-forgotten ladies of rock and roll.
What started as a garage rock band in California, this self-formed Filipina-American band was a force to be reckoned with in the ’60s and ‘70s.
Now in their sixties, “Fanny” is getting back together for a new record. There are difficulties along the way. One of them suffered a stroke and another one distanced herself from the group. The documentary shows these ladies’ struggles and if they pull through.
An amazing story of friendship and camaraderie, director Bobbi Jo Hard presents the band’s groundbreaking and long-lasting impact on music that has been lost in the mist of time. It features members that include Filipino-American siblings June (guitar, vocals) and Jean Millington (bass, vocals), Alice de Buhr (drums, vocals), Patti Quatro (guitar, vocals) and Brie Howard-Darling (drums, vocals). The one-and-a-half-hour documentary also features Def Leppard’s Joe Elliott, Bonnie Raitt, The Go-Go’s Kathy Valentine, Todd Rundgren, The Runaways’ Cherie Currie, Lovin’ Spoonful’s John Sebastian, The B52’s Kate Pierson, Charles Neville, David Bowie guitarist and bassist Earl Slick and Gail Ann Dorsey and other music legends.
A story of women empowerment and courage, this documentary is a celebration of not just women in the rock and roll music scene but rather women who have long been breaking the status quo but ended up in the gutters of obscurity. “Fanny” is one that the world should know about and may their story be amplified even more.