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Airdate: Soundtracks: Songs that Defined History

This series covers a tragedy, triumph or the start of a movement and the music that came to define it.

SBS screens Soundtracks: Songs that Defined History an eight-part series that explores the music tied to iconic moments in history.

Each episode covers a tragedy, triumph or the start of a movement – and the music that came to define it.

From the March on Washington to the riots at Stonewall, the moon landing to Hurricane Katrina, music has played an integral part in celebrating, criticising, and amplifying seismic events in collective history.

Season One, Episode Two: 8:40pm Sunday September 10
“September 11”
September 11, 2001 will forever live in infamy for all Americans. It was a day of deep anguish followed by weeks of unprecedented camaraderie, partly brought about by benefit concerts in which songs like Billy Joel’s ‘New York State of Mind’ and Sister Sledge’s ‘We Are Family’ took on heightened meaning. But the tragedy that united the country quickly divided it, as the terrorist attacks became a justification for war in Iraq. Country music took centre stage as the politically charged music of the moment, by celebrating patriotism in the case of Brooks and Dunn, or in an all-out pro- war message in the case of Toby Keith. When the Dixie Chicks found themselves caught in the crossfire after upsetting their fan base, it became clear that the wounds of 9/11 were not quick to heal.

Episode Four: 9:40pm Sunday September 10
“Hurricane Katrina”
Hurricane Katrina triggered the worst urban disaster in modern US history, threatening to wash away the birthplace of some of America’s most influential music, from the jazz of Louis Armstrong to the hip hop of Lil Wayne. The inadequate relief laid bare the deep racial and social divisions that had troubled New Orleans long before the storm. International artists such as U2, Kanye West, Green Day and Mary J Blige joined local musicians like the Dirty Dozen Brass Band in benefit concerts and musical collaborations to help the city get back on its feet and ensure that its rich traditions would survive.

2 Responses

  1. For a song to “define history” it has to be like a journalist’s account of a tragedy set to music and resonate throughout the years. Something like Gordon Lightfoot’s The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. I hardly consider Lil Wayne and The Dixie Chicks to be in the same league. And on the subject of 9/11, the song which is synonymous with that event is Alan Jackson’s Where Were You When the World Stopped Turning. That song isn’t mentioned in this promo. Surely they wouldn’t simply ignore it because it doesn’t appeal to the trendy, music video generation?

  2. Hm, quite different from what I was expecting judging by the title. I wouldn’t say that music played at a benefit gig was necessarily history defining. Looks to be very US-centric too.

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