Summer of Soul

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This is part music film, part historical record created around an epic event that celebrated Black history, culture, and fashion. Over the course of six weeks in the summer of 1969, just 100 miles south of Woodstock, The Harlem Cultural Festival was filmed in Mount Morris Park (now Marcus Garvey Park). The footage was never seen and largely forgotten--until now.

Summer of Soul shines a light on the importance of history to our spiritual well-being and stands as a testament to the healing power of music during times of unrest, both past and present. The feature includes never-before-seen concert performances by Stevie Wonder, Nina Simone, Sly and the Family Stone, Gladys Knight and the Pips, Mahalia Jackson, B.B. King, The 5th Dimension, and more.

"A magnificent documentary" - Mark Kermode, The Observer

"In one astonishing performance after another, Stevie Wonder does a ferocious drum solo, Mahalia Jackson and Mavis Staples sing gospel together, Gladys Knight and the Pips do Motown, and BB King plays the Blues." - 5 Stars - BBC.com

"Ahimr “Questlove” Thompson’s look back at the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival rescues a milestone series of live shows — and is damn near a music-doc masterpiece" - 4.5 stars, Rolling Stone

Winner of the Best Documentary at the Academy Awards 2022.

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