The DC-8 bound for West Africa carried a company of American soul, gospel, rock and jazz greats, including Wilson Pickett, Ike and Tina Turner, Santana, Roberta Flack, the Staple Singers, Eddie Harris and Les McCann. A Hammond B3 organ and a Leslie amplifier were packed into first-class because the luggage hold was at capacity. The passenger section was so thick with laughter and pot smoke that one passenger later quipped, “That plane could’ve flown itself.”