In 1969, during the same summer as Woodstock, a different music festival took place 100 miles away. More than 300,000 people attended the summer concert series known as the Harlem Cultural Festival. It was filmed, but after that summer, the footage sat in a basement for 50 years. It has never been seen. Until now.
The history books that take us back to 1969 will show that there were many momentous occasions of historical significance involving African-Americans that literally went undocumented, but for something of this magnitude to have not been shared until now, is incomprehensible. Since music has always been the bridge that brought us over and through many things, it is amazing to witness how this event that took place at Mt. Morris Park in Harlem in New York has been hidden for so many years.
Some of the greatest voices, bands, and influential people of our time are shown in rare form at the gathering of forty to fifty thousand people who just wanted to have a good time together. A young Stevie Wonder showcased his skills and Nina Simone was there, adding poetic flair to the beat of drums. At the time, the goal of the festival was to keep black folk from burning the city down in the midst of racial tension and unrest across the nation following the heroin epidemic. The irony that it was barely one hundred miles away from “Woodstock,” which to this day is revered, just appears to be an anomaly, never been noted as an item of significance.
Tony Lawrence, the producer and Host, was exactly the type of person who could pull this deal off with his amazing personality and his own success as a Lounge Singer. Many who were present for the festival stated that the Black Panthers provided security because initially, the police would not do it. Tony garnered sponsorship from Maxwell House and almost every genre of music was displayed in the lineup which included Gladys Knight and the Pips, Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis, Sly and the Family Stone, and Moms Mabley. A great deal of gratitude goes out to Questlove, who was able to reach back in time, recognize the full value and pull out the magical history of the Harlem Festival of 1969 whereby music and history lovers alike can now enjoy the significant contributions that were made early by members of our society who just wanted to get together, relax and let the music take them away.
Available on DVD and Digital February 8th
