"Sing Your Song," Susanne Rostock's documentary about the entertainer/activist Harry Belafonte, has been acclaimed for enlightening new movie-going generations about the scope of Belafonte's contributions to culture and society.
I recently asked Taylor Branch, the author of the Pulitzer-prize-winning trilogy "America in the King Years," whether Belafonte had ever made a point of recording the songs associated with the American Civil Rights Movement.
"I don't believe so," Branch said. "He would sing them when he would show up at Movement events. He didn't record them like Joan Baez or Odetta or some other people – but they were known for for that more than anything. He was always expanding into different parts of his career. With his music, he wouldn't go straight full-bore into politics.
"But long before Paul Simon went to Africa, Harry went there, and recorded the music. He was always introducing the sounds of different cultures -- he brought Miriam Makeba to American audiences. He's the one who introduced her to Stokely Carmichael!" (You can hear a duet between Belafonte and Makeba by clicking play above -- the stills, obviously, have nothing to do with "Sing Your Song.")
Taylor Branch will interview Harry Belafonte after the closing night screening of "Sing Your Song". The screening starts 7:30 p.m. Sunday at Charles 1.