Because 1971 was the year that music changed everything

It all started a few years ago from a book. But not even the famous British music critic David Hepworth would expect the excellent reading “Never a Dull Moment: 1971, the Year That Rock Exploded” (Not a dull moment: 1971, the year rock music took off) would be the basis for a great new series from its platform Apple TV+ which the whole world has been talking about for a few days now -musicophile and not – and not just because it functions as an audiovisual reminder exactly half a century since then.

In the eight-hour episodes of the music documentary (which started airing on May 21) the great British director Asif Kapandia, “Gunpowder smoked” and experienced from the excellent of the documentary “Amy”, “Diego Maradona”, “Oasis: Supersonic” and “Senna”, delivers film economics lessons, managing (because it’s about achievement) to fit within 8 hours everything that happened, musically or not, in 365 calendar days, from the albums and songs that were released during this archetypal period of counterculture until the events of the political and social unrest of that time, such as his war Vietnam, the Watergate scandal and the human rights struggle.

However, whether you like it or not, 1971 is indeed a pivotal year for music. Let’s start with the albums released: Sticky Fingers by Rolling Stones, Hunky Dory by David Bowie, Led Zeppelin IV, Imagine by John Λένον, Tapestry by Carol King, the iconic Who’s Next by Who and many more to date best of all time.

The most important of all, according to Kapandias, is that 1971 was essentially the abrupt awakening of the Flower Generation from their ’60s flower power “mastura” to the violent reality of the apolitical’ 70s.

The first to realize this was Marvin Gay, which delivered What’s Going On, an essentially concept album on the subject of all kinds of problems of “black” America.

Each episode deals with 2 or at most 3 artists and bands that excelled that year.

Perhaps the most central figure of 1971 is David Bowie, a few months before simple David became the Bowie we admired.

In the same year Rolling Stones, after “Sticky Fingers”, recorded their last really great album in France, “Exile on Main Street”, while some singers-songwriters who would make their mark in the years to come, such as Kat Stevens, Carol King, Elton John and Johnny Mitchell.

Black music was close by, as well funk as well as soul, led by Sly Stone and Curtis Mayfield and followed by Stevie Wonder and Jill Scott-Hiron.

And The Beatles’ George Harrison was the first to mobilize for the tragedy in Bangladesh, organizing the first music-focused charity event, the Concert For Bangladesh.

Kapadia proves to be an ally of the excellent archival material he has in his hands.

File footage shows demonstrations and clashes with police, while the documentary also shows black activist Angela Davis and James Baldwin.

“If we can get here, we can go even further,” says the great author in the trailer.

The viewer also sees stunning scenes from the war at Vietnam, the demonstrations against the war, the Black Panthers, his boxing match Mohamed Ali with Joe Frazier, Richard Nixon with Henry Kissinger in the White House or his trial Charles Manson.

And all this, accompanied by some of the most important “hymns” and songs of all pop and rock music.

Of course, this does not mean that the documentary does not have its own problems: for example, many important artists, due to lack of time, referred to simply… as a historical footnote, causing a real headache to both Kapandias and the editor. Or that (as some have complained), the weight falls mainly on the surrounding socio-political events and not so much in the music itself.

The point, however, remains one: the excellent documentary comes to an important conclusion that almost no one can disagree with: that in addition to changing the face of pop culture for the better and more exciting, it also… musical Rubicon for many artists and bands of that time.

The series claims that the most famous musicians of the time belonged to one of these two categories: either “burned” by overexposure and drugs, “They either saw the future and never looked back.” his extensive tribute to Vulture.

And what else is left, of course? But, the music itself and some great milestones, like that of their guitarist Who, Pete Townsend, who bluntly states in 1971 (and in the process is justified) that “the future of music is not guitars, but electronic music”.

“The music of the series is fantastic and every music fan will feel happy watching it. We, for our part, wish good luck to the future filmmakers who will want to tell the story of our time with the background music of the songs of Dua Lipa and Harry Styles “, concludes with meaning (and with a dose of subtle irony) Peter Aspden in FT.