Video: 'Trailer | Wattstax: Special Edition | Warner Archive'

(Sunday, August 20, 1972, 2:38-7:25 p.m. PDT) — Wattstax, a benefit concert organized by Stax Records to commemorate the seventh anniversary of the 1965 riots in the African-American community of Watts, Los Angeles, took place today at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before a crowd of 112,000 people.

Video: 'Wattstax: The Living Word (Stax, 2007, Soul)' (47 clips)

The concert’s performers included all of Stax’s prominent artists at the time, including Rufus Thomas, Carla Thomas, the Staples Singers, the Bar-Kays, and Isaac Hayes. The genres of the songs performed included soul, gospel, R&B, blues, funk, and jazz.

Video: 'Wattstax FULL MOVIE 1973' (25 clips)

Months after the festival, which would become known as the “black Woodstock,” Stax released a double LP of the concert’s highlights, Wattstax: The Living Word.

The concert was filmed by David L. Wolper’s film crew and was made into the 1973 film titled Wattstax. Mel Stuart directed the film, which was nominated for a Golden Globe award for Best Documentary Film in 1974.