Impact! Songs That Changed The World: Aretha Franklin - Respect / John Phillips, Smokey Robinson, Annie Lennox

Each program in the Impact! series puts the spotlight on the songs that have left an indelible mark on the world. Certain songs have come to define the times in which they appeared as they proved to be the catalyst for the transformation of the cultural and political landscape. Most set trends in music, fashion and dance while flouting convention and testing the boundaries of society's accepted moral values.

Besides setting the scene for the release of the song, the programs feature the song's creator(s) and explore its cultural impact and the ways that it changed the course of history. Guests include recording artists, music industry executives, cultural and political pundits and the music fans themselves for whom these songs became their life's soundtrack.

Rare indeed is the artist whose music can bridge race, color, creed, and gender and have an equal impact on each. This was a song that was used by the women who were beginning to imagine the feminist movement. It was a song that simply said, the time for change has come. Respect reflected a shift in the tone of the Civil Rights Movement. It introduced a new and bolder phase in the struggle. The struggle was now going to the streets with a different approach. At that time, there wasn t a black woman who was prominent. So, when Aretha Franklin came along and sang, give me some respect and here is why I deserve it it caused women to start swinging banners. It was the soundtrack of the times. The emotion, the sound and the memories makes Respect as significant a record now as it was in 1967. In fact, every time a rock music magazine makes a list of the most influential recordings of all time, Respect is always in the top 20. It provided the spirit, the rhythm and changed the tone of black self-understanding; it changed the tone of life in America. .

With song clips, archive interviews with John Phillips, D.A. Pennebaker (Director of Monterey Pop ), Michelle Phillips, Smokey Robinson, Gloria Gaynor, Annie Lennox. Product Description