Secretos ritos: performance/installations/workshops

Nomad project: social engagement/multiple media

Ecolopolítico:social engagement/multiple media

Waslala ranch : social ecological engagement

King George grew up in Virginia in the American South. In the sixties, he moved up to New York and started singing in Harlem Clubs. In 1965, he worked with Don Covay, writer of hits like "Have mercy" and "Chain of fools" and he performed at the legendary Apollo Theater. After leaving Don Covay and the Goodtimers George started his solo career by recording "Drive on James" for RCA Victor with parts of the Ray Charles Band such as the drummer Bernard Purdie and J. J Johnson on trombone. The single went up on the English charts very soon after the release.

King George was going around clubs like Small´s Paradise in Harlem, jamming with among others, The King Curtis Band and Curtis Knigth. His band featured Jimi Hendrix at the time. That´s when Jimi and George really became friends even if they worked together before, for example during the recording on "Have Mercy". A Scandinavian agent heard King George, and offered him a contract to sing in Europe with a black R&B band by the name of Harlem Kiddies. Meanwhile Jimi Hendrix was brought to Europe by Chas Chandler, and George and Jimi´s continued there. The Harlem Kiddies warmed up for Jimi Hendrix Experience and they met several times both in England and Scandinavia.

A day with King George Clemons

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The project started in October 2006 when Mexican visual artist and writer Jaime Falcón introduced Clemons and his club to Alvaro Arrosamena.

After a couple of meetings with the musician, they decided to include some technicians to the project and build a production team to materialize the documentary film.

They started to produce a ”Rockumental” which should include interviews, music, old documents and new creations in a fresh and amazing format.

The compilation of documents and preparation of the film took one year of intense work, planning, discussions, interviews and “be part of everyday life” at I.B.S. (International Blues Society) in Gothenburg and King George public Performances around Sweden.

The staff in Sweden included voice maker Pedro Alvarez Arvidius, Cameraman Johan Swedbrink, camera operator Love Lidén, producer María Jansson and producer assistant and musician Carolina Nauclér among many other collaborators.

In 2009 when the first part of the project was almost ready (interviews, documents, logistics and edition), started the second part with an intensive journey in South America.
Arrosamena, Nauclér and King George Clemons went to South Americas Atlantic Coast side in Uruguay and started a nonstop agenda during four months of exhaustive work.
King George convinced Latin people without effort and showed us ones again, that music is a powerful weapon to keep people together in one soul.

They came back home to Sweden with the material collected from all the performances in Uruguay and Argentina. Workshops, radio and TV interviews, festivals and gigs with prominent musicians from the South.
The film should be incomplete without the new material and the team decided to include these new parts making a new edition.

The documentary shows a short statement of young George Clemons, his family and friends. It includes information about his carrier in New York City, Europe and South America.
Many interesting shots of hisperformances and workshops around the world between different periods are included.

The interviews let a young seventy years old King George Clemons talk open about soul, music, redemption, environment and even politics. Prominent names such as Janis Joplin, Mick Jagger, Jimmi Hendrix or Dan Covay, among many others appear in anecdotic parts of King George life during the conversation.