Listening to:
Years ago, while doing some late night channel surfing, I wound up on PBS and caught the tail end of a documentary about the Stax Volt European tour. My friend Keith, who seems to know everything about music history, said the tour came at a moment when rock was rising and soul was waning (in the US, at least) and the performers weren’t sure what to expect in Europe. They were welcomed as heroes.
The video above shows a crowd of Norwegian teenagers and young adults grooving and becoming totally absorbed by the music. So much that towards the end of the concert, when Otis Redding builds towards the climax of Try a Little Tenderness, it looks like the Norwegian National Guard is called in for crowd control. I don’t know as much about music history as Keith, but this is one of my all-time favorite music moments. It’s also a video I like to turn to when I’m thinking about the power art has to move people.
In case you were thinking about the same, I hope this video inspires you too.