More Than A Tribute

In 1972, a young independent filmmaker named Alby Falzon released a film that followed a group of Australian surfers around the world as they searched for the perfect wave. Titled Morning Of The Earth, it came with an original soundtrack that featured acts as diverse as psych-rockers Tamam Shud, folk singer-songwriter John J Francis and ebullient pop-rocker Brian Cadd, which became the first Australian soundtrack to achieve gold record status. Both film and record became iconic Australian artefacts and in 2008, both got the restoration and remastering treatment.

“Tony Harlow [Managing Director, Warner Music] walked in the door,” Chris Moss, a former Warner Music MD who, on retiring, set up a surf shop in Sydney’s Northern Beaches, recalls. “And basically said, ‘Why has nobody done anything with this ever?’ And I explained that all the big houses, the commercials like Quiksilver and Billabong, have always looked to do something with it, but Alby wanted no part of that aspect of the business. I also said it’s too iconic and if you try and do it you’re on the highway to nothing to fuck it up!”

Nevertheless Harlow returned to Moss a few months later determined to see how something could be done. Moss suggested Falzon would only be involved if there was complete artistic freedom and if there was a young surfer, musician and filmmaker who most reflected Falzon’s own philosophy involved. With Warner totally committed, once they’d persuaded Andrew Kidman to be involved as the new film’s director, things fell into place and Spirit Of Akasha was born. “It was just a wonderful combination,” Moss feels, “particularly given that the music aspect was so important in Morning Of The Earth [which had no dialogue]. That was the one thing that was really critical to us. We wanted to bring to the table the same aspect of songs specifically written and recorded for the film.”

Where Morning Of The Earth featured a purely Australian soundtrack, Spirit Of Akasha, which follows the experiences of surfers Mick Fanning, Kelly Slater, Stephanie Gilmore, Beau Young and Tom Curran, features a mix of local independent artists, among them Matt Corby, Jack River, Xavier Rudd, Dirty Three and Pond, and internationals, including Chris Robinson Brotherhood, Thom Yorke in Atoms For Peace mode, MGMT’s Andrew VanWyngarden, Grouplove and the head Beach Boy himself, Brian Wilson. “While Morning Of The Earth, in its 40 years, is very much an Australian-centric icon, it’s been successful throughout the world, since obviously the whole concept has a very international feel to it, so having some international names gives the film more international opportunities than the original had.” Accompanying the Melbourne screening of Spirit Of Akasha are live performances from Andrew Kidman & The Windy Hills, Mick Turner, Oliver Mann, Jack River, Machine Translations and The Sandpebbles.