Soul music dreaming:The Sapphires, the 1960s and transnational memory

Abstract

In memory studies, concepts of cosmopolitan, transnational and transcultural memory have been identified as a means of studying mnemonic symbols, cultural forms and cultural practices that cross national, ethnic and territorial borders. However, what do these concepts deliver for memory work that originates in an ‘off-centre’ location such as Australia, where outsiders often lack an understanding of the history and cultural codes? A recent Indigenous Australian film, The Sapphires, set in 1968, provides an opportunity to consider some of the claims that are made for the transnational travels of memory. The film tells the story of an Aboriginal girl group that travels to Vietnam to perform for the American troops. I discuss the mnemonic tropes and transcultural carriers of memory, particularly soul music, that enable this popular memory to circulate nationally and internationally. While global tropes and icons of the 1960s can be imported into Australia, and used to construct Australian cultural memory and identity, how effectively does cultural memory travel transnationally from Australia?