Sam wrote this song in 1964 in solidarity with the Civil Rights Movement. His outrage was personal: in 1963, while touring in Louisiana with his wife and brother, they were turned away from an all-White motel. He later admitted he was inspired by Bob Dylan’s “Blowing in the Wind” and felt ashamed that as a Black man he had not yet written anything that spoke directly to racism in America. He worried that his largely White fan base might not receive the song well, but he said he wanted to create something that would “make his father proud.” To his surprise, it was the easiest song he had ever written—he said it felt like he “grabbed it out of the air and it came to him whole.” From that moment on, he added it to every set he performed.

Hearing it again now, against the backdrop of the terrible violence we have witnessed in America over the past months, the song carries an even deeper urgency. The pain of those times still echoes in ours, reminding us how far we have yet to go. And yet, the visuals that accompany this performance reminded me that change—while heartbreakingly slow—does come. Watching this video, I felt a flicker of hope. Even in the midst of division and violence, voices like Sam’s call us back to courage, unity, and the belief that a better world is possible.