Documentary with newly found footage of the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969. This was a weekend outdoor music festival (8 consecutive weekends that summer) in Mt. Morris park in Harlem. I had never heard of it, nor I am sure have many people. A veritable hit parade of artists, including musicians (Stevie Wonder, Gladys Night, etc.), preachers (Jesse Jackson, etc.), and comics (Moms Mabley, etc.) to explicitly celebrate black culture. Director Questlove does a great job of allowing full songs to play-out with original footage of the festival and voiceover interviews of both attendees and performers reflecting on the impact of the festival on them some 50 years later. Really good.
4 stars (out of 5)
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