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Billed as an "untold story of the civil rights movement," Club Valiants Inc. chronicles a local association of Black firefighters that got sick and tired of being discriminated against and did something about it. For over 50 years now, the Valiants have been sticking it to the Man. Back in the 1960s, they brought a class action suit against the City for discriminatory practices within fire companies and won the case, resulting in a flurry of promotions and new minority hires. Directed by Patrick Florescio and written by Elaine Jones, the new documentary follows the fraternal organization from its start in 1962, when the civil rights movement was in full swing, to the present. If the trailer is any indication, it's gonna be a tearjerker.
And did we mention the screening is free?
Following the film, Fire Commissioner Lloyd Ayers and others will hold a panel discussion.
WHEN: June 9 at 3 p.m.
WHERE: St. Peter's Lutheran Church, 2169 74th Avenue.
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Beth Cosentino's got a pretty fierce voice. She can boom on the loud ones and belt on the torchers. So sometimes it's a surprise, if not a little bit of a disappointment, that she writes such simple, straightfoward lyrics about love and longing.
Exhibit A: "Boyfriend," from 2010's Crazy for You: "I wish he was my boyfriend / I wish he was my boyfriend / I'd love him to the very end / But instead he's just a friend."
Exhibit B: A couple cherry-picked choruses: 1) "When I'm with you I have fun" and 2) "You don't know why I cry."
The sentiments are true and sweet, and transparent, but too many of them in a row and you start to wonder if this band is all lollipop and no stick. Maybe this is her approach to classic songwriting, with words unshackled from timeliness or hidden meaning. And maybe we've already got enough cleverness in the world already. Regardless, I have no interest in picking a fight with all those college kids in the smoky haze at the TLA on Wednesday. In concert, the simple stuff worked, especially when it was set to low-then-loud guitars and catchy melodies. You may not give me a lot to think about, Best Coast, but when I'm with you I have fun.
Solange danced on stage with moves you’d catch at any predominately black middle school in the ’90s. She jigged; she finger-rolled; she coordinated her steps Prince-style with her guitarist and bassist. She did so in dookie twists and mixed African prints, a look that served as a reminder that this approach to style was something her sister, Beyonce, borrowed from her, and not the other way around.
Solange was just one artist in a stacked line-up. The Roots always appear to be curating a mix of indie darlings, newer rap stars and hip-hop legends, and this year they made good, tapping Grimes, A-Trak, DJ Premier and Macklemore among others. Solange’s time breezed by — she showed off her flute register in front two backup singers who sounded exactly like her, in a really referential set that showed if anything, that the blipster queen was among us.
We always get a ton of stuff that doesn't make it into the official agenda for one reason or another. Or sometimes it does! Anyway, this is some of the stuff that CP staffers are attempting to get to this weekend their own selves. You have no excuse for boredom.
FRIDAY MAY 31
- No lame karaoke catalogs here. Belt out tunes by Bikini Kill, Black Flag and other punk-rockers while raising money for Girls Rock Philly and Ladyfest.
- Into super-cerebral experimental music? There will be plenty of distorted bassoon and circuit bending at AUX tonight.
- That Arrested Development TBA Con is tonight. We wrote about it.
- A Merkin Dream Theater is some kinda crazy cabaret-type thing @ Magic Gardens.
- Banned Books is playing somewhere but we can't say where.
- Yes. Nightlands featuring the Sighbourg Singers @ JBs.
- Of course they do shows at the Bean. Tonight's lineup is Edible Onion-approved: Lux Perpetua, Still Sweet, Snow Caps.
- Watch Mayor Nutter smash open a keg and let the Beer Week revelry begin. Then maybe go to Barcade?
SATURDAY JUNE 1
- As part of Beer Week, Dock Street is serving up beer floats, begging the question: what does a sugar coma blackout feel like?
- Pallet Gardening Workshop! It's pretty much what it sounds like!
- Rally because Bradley Manning is still in jail. Drone strikes possible.
- Watch people who don't think it's too hot for a bike race at Race Street Pier. Then hit the afterparty out west. Brought to you by The Works.
- This Radiant Boy returns! We wrote about it. Weird, catchy power pop. Plus JJL and Dragon City. Nearly-old heads take note.
- West Philly Beach Party @ Chiron's Sanctuary. Let's get clean together.
- Oh yeah, and The Roots Picnic. Philly's finest plus Solange, Macklemore and Ryan Lewis, How To Dress Well, Grimes, Gary Clark Jr., Lushlife, etc.
SUNDAY JUNE 2
- An hour before the Parx Casino Cycling Classic kicks off, amateurs have the chance to test out the course and climb the Wall. Do you have what it takes, single-speed cyclists?
- Clean your air conditioner filter.
- Eat a baguette in public.
I AM: Lawrence Christian Clarke, someone who loves & appreciates The City of Brotherly Love.
MY LOVE NOTE:
Where do I start? Perhaps with my mom, who was born and raised in Millville, N.J., and went to Temple years ago, later moving to New York to study opera. Fast forward to August 26, 2010. I heard about the Smooth Jazz Summer Nights at Penn's Landing. Boney James was playing. I planned a surprise trip for my wife and I, little did I know this would be the trip to end all trips.
When my Nana lived in Millville, the closest store up the block was Wawa, so when we stayed at the Hyatt at Penn's Landing, we looked up the nearest Wawa, which led us to the Headhouse District. Over the weekend, we had a chance to walk the city, from the Delaware to the Schuylkill Rivers, and fell in love with Philly. The sites, the sounds, the people. We now find all sorts of reasons to come back — the Party on The Parkway in 2011, and last year for the opening of Sister Cities Park. It's the funniest thing, but when we're in Philly it feels like home. No longer content with visiting, we want to BE here. Living, contributing, giving back to a city that has so much to give. To think, all it took was a concert.
Have a favorite spot you'd like to write a love note to? Send it to the author at phillylovenotes@gmail.com or tweet her @phillylovenotes.
Kettle Pot Tracks — a site which specializes in high quality videos for their On The Hill seris — just shot a couple with Philly band Divers. Besides this song, they did "Take Me Back." Both are pretty as all hell. They also did a Q&A here.
Divers - Eggshells from Jason Stewart on Vimeo.
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