At one point in this film about the protean musician Billy Preston, the drummer and producer Bill Maxwell says, “Billy didn’t just have perfect pitch, he had perfect anticipation.” Meaning Preston could play a tune through with the other musicians after hearing only a few chords. And “Billy Preston: That’s the Way God Planned It,” a sometimes mind-blowing documentary directed by Paris Barclay, doesn’t ask you to take Maxwell’s word for it. The movie has abundant archival footage of the musician, who died in 2006, walking into a studio, settling in at a keyboard and running through a song he’s never heard before and doesn’t have the sheet music for — flawlessly and soulfully.
One such assemblage of musicians was, of course, the Beatles. Seen here, the Fab Four are notably glum as they try to piece together “Get Back.” Then Preston walks in. He’s more than welcome in the studio — they all met when they were practically kids, on the punishing club circuit in Hamburg, Germany. John Lennon peps up visibly; Preston’s now the stick that stirs the drink. There’s a reason the group decided to credit the song to “The Beatles & Billy Preston.”
The movie tracks Preston from his days as a church child prodigy and then secret weapon for the likes of the Rolling Stones, Barbra Streisand and others. His hit-making solo career (“Nothing From Nothing” is just one Preston classic; he also co-wrote “You Are So Beautiful”) brought him fame and money, and money brought him access to cocaine, and that brought trouble.
Preston was also gay, and he struggled with that all his life — in a heartbreaking scene, his last manager, Joyce Moore, tells of how Preston came out during a rehab group therapy session, four days before he went into a coma and then died. “He was never going to have to look over his shoulder again,” she says. The other testimonials, including one from his frequent collaborator Eric Clapton wondering aloud whether he could have been more helpful to Preston’s sobriety, are moving and vivid. But as tough a life as Preston had, the music that buoys this chronicle is a constant source of joy.
Billy Preston: That’s the Way God Planned It Not rated. Running time: 1 hour 45 minutes. In theaters.
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