SUMMER OF SOUL (...OR, WHEN THE REVOLUTION WOULD NOT BE TELEVISED)

Featuring footage of monumental musical performances and the likes of Rev. Jesse Jackson intercut with interviews from those who were there as spectators or participants, 'Summer of Soul (...Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised)' breaks down the historical and social significance of that time, brought about by the festival, as well as the impact on the black community of the era through to the current day.

What seemed like an inconsequential yet popular and utterly fantastic musical festival at the time was actually a melting pot of style, fashion, culture, spirituality and freedom. Where men wore everything from suits to Dashikis - with some experiencing or witnessing this African garment for the first time, as the community finally felt free to express their heritage for the first time. And men and women were starting to wear their hair naturally, giving rise to the awesome afro. The power and illumination that came from these small yet momentous rebellions in the wake of the Civil Rights movement were huge. This was "the year the Negro died and Black was born." It was a female writer at the New York Times that wrote an 11-page memo to staff telling them to no longer use the term "Negro", with every other publication to follow. Finally, the identity of being black was to become so much more than what was perceived through the acute prism of white ignorance and prejudice. The culture wasn't just being experienced in so many new dimensions; it was growing and expanding. The American and African sides of these people were merging to create something powerful and extraordinary, and all through music and simply being together as a unified community.

'Summer of Soul' is merely a window into an extraordinary moment in time, the effects of which are still being felt. What was once lost to the public lived on in the people who were there who got to experience the magic - and now we, half a century later, are lucky enough to see it for the first time, with new eyes and an appreciation and renewed understanding for what was unfolding. Just sit back, listen with your heart and mind as well as your ears and let the sunshine in.