Muscle Shoals

Overview

Nestled on the banks of the Tennessee River, Muscle Shoals has played as big a role in the history of American music as Nashville, Chicago or Detroit. At a time when the South remained defiant to the civil rights movement, and the rhythm and blues scene was still very much in its infancy, this small Alabama town was the place where artists like Aretha Franklin and Jimmy Hughes first put soul to vinyl. Later, the Shoals’ became a sight of pilgrimage for major acts such as Eric Clapton, Steve Winwood and The Rolling Stones, who used as it as a place to get away from the limelight and record some of their most iconic songs.

Slickly made, Greg Camalier’s historical documentary of the town, simply entitled Muscle Shoals, focuses primarily on Rick Hall, the founder of the appropriately named FAME Studios. After a bumpy beginning, the recording venue soon became a magnet for high profile acts, many of whom were eager to work with Hall’s soulful backup band The Swampers — a band that no one could believe was made up of white guys. A part of the local music scene to this day, Hall makes for a logical central character, although his tendency to lapse into melancholic personal anecdotes doesn’t do the movie any favours.

More interesting than Hall are the people that he worked with. Jagger, Richards, Winwood, Bono and Franklin are just a few of the famous faces to chime in with what the Shoal’s mean to them as Camalier mixes their interviews with archival footage of their much younger selves. Many of the artists (okay, so it’s mostly Bono) attribute the town a mystical quality, while the film also makes reference to a Native American myth about a woman in the river whose singing protected her tribe. Such romantic proclamations are nice if a bit hokey. Ultimately, they’re far less important than the music’s real social impact during the period, particularly in changing attitudes about race and segregation.

Though Muscle Shoals can seem a little conventional, you could never say the same thing of its soundtrack. Camalier has the music to really pull it off— even if you don’t believe Bono, and don't think there’s something special in the water, you can’t deny the magic of tracks such as 'Free Bird', 'Steal Away' and 'Respect'.