I watched the Go-Go's documentary on Showtime a month or so ago and I have been thinking about it ever since. I know anecdotally that the film left out a lot. I have even written about the group's dysfunction before https://tinyurl.com/y4e3p7f4.
Nonetheless this is an intensely watchable film and the early punk footage of the band is fascinating.
Ultimately the Go-Go's documentary serves as an unpleasant reminder of the music business as it existed in the 1980s. I have very little nostalgia for those days.
The film is pretty honest in recounting the group’s history. They ruthlessly fired two early members. In one case they made their manager fire the bass player (reminiscent of the Beatles making Brian Epstein fire Pete Best). They the forced their manager, Ginger Canzoneri (who had shepherded them from the L.A. punk clubs to a No. 1 album) to seek more "experienced" managers to the point where she just resigned. Finally, original member Jane Wiedlin quit the band rather than being forced to share her publishing with the non-writing members of the group. Plus, there are drug problems, health problems and three really great albums.
I bring all of this up to make a point. The issue with songwriting is serious and it can break up even the sturdiest group. Wiedlin says in the documentary the new managers came to the group after they had completed their third album and tried to force them to sign an agreement to split publishing. This was a huge mistake. The time to discuss these type of issues is before a band records their first album. Of course, this is easier said than done. No group wants to sit in a room and discuss partnership agreements and music publishing splits, but I think it is really critical. You can trace so many band breakups back to music publishing disputes. Lennon and McCartney were wise to cut their bandmates in on the publishing (albeit with minority shares) but songwriting and publishing were among the myriad of issues which helped break up that band.
I am glad that the Go-Go’s got past all of that and continue to perform today and I hope that this documentary can serve not only as a testament to a groundbreaking rock band but also serve as a lesson in band dynamics, loyalty and diplomacy.
