Muscle Shoals

How did a backwater Alabama town end up shaping the sound of soul? Muscle Shoals (2013) digs into that question, and you can watch it online on iFILM. Director Greg "Freddy" Camalier follows the Tennessee River to FAME Studios, the room Rick Hall built out of nothing.

Aretha Franklin, the Rolling Stones and Wilson Pickett all made the trip to this small Southern town to record. The house band — a group of unassuming white players nicknamed the Swampers — laid down grooves that left visiting stars stunned. "Mustang Sally," "I Never Loved a Man" and "Wild Horses" were all cut here, with Black and white musicians sharing one studio while segregation still ruled outside.

Hall, raised dirt-poor and scarred by loss, poured everything into that studio, and the film leans on his stubborn drive to carry it. A treat for anyone who loves music and wants to hear where that famous Muscle Shoals sound came from. Stream Muscle Shoals online on iFILM.