Get on Up Page #12

YOUNG JAMES:

(Incredulous)

I know exactly what I want.

85 INT. KING RECORDS. CINCINNATI. DAY. 1962 JAMES 29 YRS 85

SYD NATHAN:

Forget it. King doesn’t make livealbums. They’re too expensive.

JAMES:

I think a live album-

SYD NATHAN:

James, your audience is Negro.

Negroes don’t buy albums. Theydon’t have the resources.

Especially not for a bunch a songsthey already got.

James turns to Ben Bart.

BEN BART:

James, Recording live is five, sixtimes as expensive as the studio.

And that’s for some violin concerto

at the Met. No one jumps up andshouts “Blow it f***er!” in the

middle of The Magic Flute.

JAMES:

But, Pop, you know my show.

James turns to Syd.

68

JAMES (CONT’D)

Mr. Nathan, you ain’t ever even

seen the show. My show.

SYD:

Don’t need to.

Syd rises and begins to dance. He attempts the “MashedPotato”.

JAMES:

Mr. Nathan-

JAMES (CONT’D)

What are you doing?

SYD:

The “Mashed Potato”.

JAMES:

That ain’t the “Mashed Potato”.

SYD:

Exactly.

SYD (CONT’D)

I can’t do the “Mashed Potato”.

That’s your job. That’s the show.

But what I can do is the business.

Syd goes back to his desk and sits.

SYD NATHAN:

So I stick to what I know. You

stick to what you know. And that’s

the showbusiness.

86 INT. ELITE RESTAURANT. 1962. DAY. 86

Ben Bart and James, in a booth. James silent, tense.

JAMES:

Book the Apollo. I’m gonna spend myown money on this. Syd Nathan’s

wrong.

BEN BART:

I’m not going to let you do that,

Jimmy.

JAMES:

Book it out next week for the whole

week, go in, we drill it, we drillit, we drill it, then we drop it.

BEN BART:

Forget it, Jimmy. It’s too big of arisk. Let’s order something to eat.

Ben signals for a waitress to come over. James growsintense.

JAMES:

I don’t understand risk?

James stiffens.

JAMES (CONT’D)

I don’t understand cos I’m just the“show”? Is that all I am to you,

Pop? The show? The money?

BEN BART:

Of course not, Jimmy.

JAMES:

Sure it is. That’s all me and myblack brothers are to the “White

Devil”. We the show and you themoney. And that’s how the WhiteDevil keeps it all.

BEN BART:

I’m not the “White Devil”. I’m

trying to protect you. I’m doingmy job.

James becomes intense. A waitress walks over.

JAMES:

Pop, look me in the eye.

Ben stays on his menu.

JAMES (CONT’D)

Pop.

Ben looks up. The waitress scurries away.

JAMES (CONT’D)

Yeah, I’m the show. But, if I’m

spendin’ my own money on the show,

then I’m gone be the business too.

(MORE)

JAMES (CONT’D)

And after we kill The Apollo, I’ll

kick over a few bucks to the white

devil. Whatever I think he

deserves. And If I’m payin’ you,

Pop, you gone show me how to do it.

Ben takes this in.

BEN BART:

I’ll call Nola Sound. They got

these new three track stereo

recorders from Ampex.

JAMES:

And I want the best engineer in

town. I don’t care what it takes. I

don’t care what it cost. I want

everyone in uniform, the ushers,

front of house, the peanut

peddlers.

BEN BART:

We’ll need the band in New York

immediately.

JAMES:

And I want ‘em in Sapphire bluesuits. Pop. Sapphire.

BEN BART:

Sapphire Blue. Underwear too. How

does that sound?

Pop smiles as does James.

87 INT./EXT. CAR/ APOLLO THEATER. 1962. NIGHT. 87

Ben Bart drives a sedan. James rides in the front seat.

JAMES:

It’s cold. It’s cold. It’s too cold

man. It’s too cold. Cold. Cold.

They round the corner.

JAMES (CONT’D)

C’mon. C’mon. C’mon. C’mon. C’mon.

SUDDENLY and for the first time, we hear the classic Jamesgrunt, guttural.

A THUMPING RHYTHM BEGINS. James, stock still, no longerlooking out of the window. Head completely still.

Out of the window: a line of people. On and on. We round thecorner. More people. Another corner. More.

The doors of the theatre open as we pass. People rush forwardas THE CAR PULLS UP. James gets out outside by the stageentrance. Ben follows.

GERTRUDE:

Evening, Mr. Brown. Cold out

tonight.

JAMES:

Gertrude. See if you can get somecoffee for the folks in line.

James walks into the stage door entrance of the Apollo. Benfollows with a big smile. It’s happening.

INT. APOLLO THEATER. STAGE. NIGHT. 1962 88

ONE BY ONE TWELVE PAIRS OF PATENT LEATHER SHOES HIT THE

STAGE.

THE NEW JAMES BROWN REVUE file in with instrument cases like

some ultra hip sect.

In the dimly lit back stage we see the motions of openingtheir cases and begin setting up their stations, A beautiful

black girl pulls up her mini to reveal even more leg.

James enters looking amazing in a cobalt sharkskin. Heapproaches the all new band.

A member of the band, whose back is to us, peers out of thescarlet curtains towards the packed house.

JAMES:

You ready Mr. Byrd?

Bobby Byrd turns from the curtains. THE ONLY SURVIVING MEMBER OF

THE STARLIGHTERS. His profile lighted by a powerful spot.

BOBBY BYRD:

(Ice cool)

Ready Mr. Brown.

Gertrude rushes to James with his jacket. He smooths his hair.

FATS V/O

Are you ready for star time? Thank

you and thank you very kindly

72

89 INT. APOLLO. STAGE. NIGHT. 89

Syd Nathan and Ben Bart stand in the wings. Syd shouts in Ben’s

ear.

SYD:

We got the level on his main mic

way up to drown out the crowd. You

gotta get him to hold back a little

in the first number!

CLOSE UP:
Big two inch tape magnacorders turn on brushedaluminium spindles. Recording live.

Ben Bart looks over at James at the curtain edge. A manpossessed.

BEN BART:

I think its too late for that. You

ain’t got a breeze, Syd. You got ahurricane.

James looks at Bobby. Bobby nods. James nods back. The band

vamp.

JAMES:

Watch me.

The curtain opens. BANG! James Brown & the New Revue are inperfect timing looking impeccable in their new sapphire bluesuits. The crowd goes wild with excitement.

Mr. Dynamite steps on stage-- and floats and dances across bareplanks like they were polished ice. He reaches the mike.

JAMES (CONT’D)

You know I feel alright.

(Yeah!)

You know I feel alright children.

(Yeah!)

I feel aaaaaaaallllriiiiiiight.

Les Buie whacks the guitar strings and the world ceases tospin. A rising 6/8 blues riff pulses up like adrenaline.

As he sings the song, a shock wave blasts out from the stageof the theatre on 125th street and into the Universe.

Bobby might as well be sitting on the moon. He never misses

a beat.

CUT TO:

73

James Brown and the New Revue are tearing up their secondnumber, “Think.”

SYD NATHAN now sits in the audience surrounded by a SEA OFBLACK FACES. We gather that Syd has never really experienced“The Show”. He smiles and nods to the beat.

Just then a female seated behind him shouts as the horns kick

in.

FEMALE IN AUDIENCE

Blow it f***ers!!!

James stares into the darkness. He’s already begun to sweat.

The drums stop a six punch combination from the horns dead.

He reaches for the mic without looking. Leans in and lockseyes with Syd.

JAMES:

Think...Think...Think...About yourbad self...

Rate this script:4.0 / 2 votes