“Rock ‘n’ roll is a very wide river,” filmmaker Carol Stein says. She and Susan Wittenberg “wanted people who represented various eras,” Stein says.“We were trying to figure it out by categories,” Wittenberg says. “It’s a big tent.” Though there’s a chasm between Mahalia Jackson and Madonna, and both are featured in the film, the common denominator is music with attitude.

The documentary opens with James Brown singing, “This is a man’s world.” It soon cuts to Christina Aguilera belting the same song, and the irony is lost on no one. Women are the top grossers in music in the 21st century, the documentary notes. But women’s rock roots go back to the beginnings of the genre.

The catalyst for the film was an exhibit at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, which helped the filmmakers decide who should be in the documentary. 

Ultimately the filmmakers want to convey “that rock ‘n’ roll is thought of as a male art form,” Stein says. “From the start, women have made a profound contribution to the art form. This was a film honoring that these women were incredible artists. This is basically a tribute.” “To me it is a joyous celebration,” Wittenberg says.

Source: Newsok