Summer of Soul

I did not think time travel was possible, but then I walked into Summer of Soul. I could not have picked a better first post-pandemic theater experience, and I knew it the moment people started applauding at Mavis Staples' appearance. I visited 1969, I visited Harlem, and I had my very own Summer of Soul. Don't miss this one.

Beautifully restored lost footage of one of the coolest music festivals ever, which serendipitously took place in 1969, a pivotal year in American history. Questlove brings his music mastery (particularly in his DJ-ing and drumming) to the documentary editing table. It's an impressive amount of cinematic style for a man who's admittedly a novice. Simone's performance of Young, Gifted, and Black perfectly captures the power and pureness of this social musical.

I hope this movie inspires someone to put out a DVD set (or streaming) of performances from this festival. The performance clips we get are generally fantastic (do wonder if that was the only BB King tape surviving because his clip is a bit of a mess). Overall I think the interviews and historical context descriptions give great insight into the period and circumstances of the festival which deepen the film.

I haven't been so moved by a film in a long time.

My wife and I just watched this documentary this evening (July 4th, 2021). It is astounding to me that I had been unaware of this summer-long series of Live musical concerts in New York City that drew tens of thousands of people out each time. Sure, I had an excuse. That was the summer I hopped on board an airplane at JFK with my college girlfriend for a two month vacay touring around Europe on a British motorcycle. But.... I knew about the Woodstock Festival. I also learned about the festival on the Isle of Wight that happened that year. And, of course, we all knew about the Monterey Pop Festival a couple of years earlier. How was it possible that a whole series of weekend concerts featuring such artists as Stevie Wonder, B. B. King, Gladys Knight and the Pips, Sly and the Family Stone, The Fifth Dimension, Mahalia Jackson....just to name a few, went by completely under the radar? The reason is that despite it being filmed and recorded, nobody at that time was interested. When I say "nobody," of course, I mean the Powers that Be who decide what was worth their time and $$$ in producing, packaging, promoting, etc. A project that was basically about "Negro" musical artists playing to a mostly "Negro" audience. So, my friends, the record of those concerts sat in a basement for 50 years. As one person in the documentary says, "Black folks are used to not having their history told. This was nothing new." But this is now 2021, and....as Bob Dylan said a long time ago, "The times they are a-changing! (btw.... Dylan did NOT play at Woodstock that year, but he did play at The Isle of Wight!). , If you weren't around in '69, here's the Cliff Notes on that period: Beginning with the assassination of JFK in 1963, it seemed the U. S. had been through a rash of them. Malcolm X in Harlem in 1965. Martin Luther King, Jr. In Memphis & Robert F. Kennedy in Los Angeles - both in 1968. There had been a whole series of deadly riots after the MLK assassination all across the country. The war in Viet Nam was ramping up with no let-up in sight, and the My Lai Massacre was something Americans were having trouble processing. Richard Nixon was president and the Press was under attack like never before. "Easy Rider" was the surprise hit movie of the Summer, which showed just how divided the country had become over the War & "those damned longhair Peaceniks!" The heroes of the film wind up being splattered by a shotgun-wielding redneck on a lonely stretch of southern blacktop decades before "drive by" shootings became commonplace. (Hmmmm....any of this getting your attention?) It was also the summer of Apollo 11 and the first time humans walked on the Moon. Now some 52 years later there are actually a large percentage of people that swear THAT never happened, despite all evidence to the contrary. (I was in camping in the outskirts of Paris that day, so did not see those grainy B&W TV shots of Armstrong and Aldrin on the Moon, but I do remember the day!). It was also the year the Beatles had their last public performance (on the roof of Apple Records in London). The first Concorde airliner had a test flight in France. Pontiac introduced its Firebird Trans Am. The Manson Family would murder Sharon Tate and several others that August in L. A. And....in December of that year, The Rolling Stones would hold a free concert at Altamont Speedway in Northern California. It drew 300,000 fans. Thanks largely to the not-so-bright idea of having "Security" supplied by the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club, the concert degenerated into just possibly the most chilling finale a decade ever saw. (The documentary of that debacle came out the following year: "Gimme Shelter") The Era of Peace and Love definitely had the final nail driven into its coffin on that day and the 70's were about to get a whole lot worse. But, please. Do yourself a favor and watch this film. And then maybe you might ask yourself, is there anything else in our History that has been kept under wraps, or hidden away or not taught? Because today it seems that very question is almost........ (I will leave it for you to fill in the blank.)

Greetings again from the darkness. Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson's directorial debut is a history lesson wrapped in a concert film, and it's just the blended spoonful we need. You might know Questlove best as the bandleader/drummer on "The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon", and with this documentary, he has proven his skill in balancing the visuals with the message. The Harlem Cultural Festival was held over six weekends in the summer of 1969. Yep, the same summer as (and only 100 miles from) the infamous and celebrated Woodstock festival. A total of 300,000 people attended the free events held in Mt Morris Park in Harlem, and Questlove's film brings back what has been forgotten.

TV director Hal Tulchin filmed each week's concert in hopes that it would have market value. When he was unable to market the footage, all 47 reels remained stashed in his basement for 50 years. Questlove weaves a magic carpet that injects interviews, statements, and news clips over the powerful music being performed on stage. We get interviews with festival attendees, musicians, NY Times reporter Charlayne Hunter-Gault, and historical perspective from news clips of Richard Nixon, the Vietnam War, and the assassinations of John Kennedy, Malcolm X, Bobby Kennedy, and Martin Luther King. The festival was organized to commemorate MLK's death the previous year, and at a time when the black community featured much anger and unrest. The Black Panthers were brought in for security as drugs spiraled out of control in Harlem.

It was never just about the music, but what music it was! Gospel, blues, soul, and R&B filled the air, as the crowd cheered, danced, and sang along. We learn Maxwell House coffee served as a sponsor, and there is a segment on NYC Mayor Lindsay, who supported the festival and was well-respected in the Black community. Tony Lawrence, a lounge singer and radio DJ, served as the festival's host and producer. He introduced each of the acts, and did so with quite a sense of fashion.

The performers aren't necessarily shown in the same order as the festival, but that matters little. Stevie Wonder is at a decisive point in his career, and his drum solo (yes, drums) is energizing. We also get to see and hear such acts as BB King, the 5th Dimension, the Staples Singers, Mahalia Jackson, Gladys Knight and the Pips, and Nina Simone. We also hear an audio recording of Mavis Staples recalling how "unreal" it was for her to sing with Mahalia. Other highlights include David Ruffin hitting and holding a high note on "My Girl", the Edwin Hawkins Singers performing "Oh, Happy Day", Hugh Maskela jolting the crowd with "Grazing in the Grass", and Sly and the Family Stone (and their "white drummer") leading the audience through "Higher". The late Nina Simone comes across as especially regal and powerful in her time on stage. There are clips of comedian Moms Mabley on stage, as well as Jesse Jackson orating. Lin-Manuel Miranda discusses the music of Puerto Rico and Spanish Harlem, and one of the most touching segments finds Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr recalling the backstory of how The 5th Dimension came to record "Aquarius/Let the Sunshine in".

Early marketing attempts re-branded the festival as "Black Woodstock", but that didn't change the fact that the market was limited at the time. Festival-attendee Musa Jackson is interviewed as he watches the film, and it's clear that it's an affirmation of the era. It's also fascinating to hear Charlayne Hunter-Gault recount how she fought the NY Times over her preferred description of people as "Black" rather than the previously utilized "Negro". Questlove's film immediately becomes a historical time capsule and one that should be viewed by many.

Available on Hulu.