Soulsville, U.S.A.: The Story of Stax Records

Soulsville, U.S.A.: The Story of Stax Records PDF Author: Rob Bowman
Publisher: Omnibus Press
ISBN: 0857124994
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 416

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Book Description
Walk the halls of the famous studio that produced hits for Otis Redding, Isaac Hayes, Sam and Dave, and Booker T. and the MGs. Soulsville, U.S.A. provides the first history of the groundbreaking label along with compelling biographies of the promoters, producers, and performers who made and sold the music. Over 45 photos. Winner of the 1998 ASCAP-Deems Taylor Award Winner of the ARSC Award for Best Research in Record Labels

Soulsville, U.S.A.: The Story of Stax Records

Soulsville, U.S.A.: The Story of Stax Records PDF Author: Rob Bowman
Publisher: Omnibus Press
ISBN: 0857124994
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 416

Get Book

Book Description
Walk the halls of the famous studio that produced hits for Otis Redding, Isaac Hayes, Sam and Dave, and Booker T. and the MGs. Soulsville, U.S.A. provides the first history of the groundbreaking label along with compelling biographies of the promoters, producers, and performers who made and sold the music. Over 45 photos. Winner of the 1998 ASCAP-Deems Taylor Award Winner of the ARSC Award for Best Research in Record Labels

Respect Yourself

Respect Yourself PDF Author: Robert Gordon
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 1608194167
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 481

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Book Description
Traces the rise and fall of the original Stax Records, touching upon the racial politics in Memphis in the 1960s, the personal histories of the sibling founders, and the prominent musicians they featured.

Dreams to Remember: Otis Redding, Stax Records, and the Transformation of Southern Soul

Dreams to Remember: Otis Redding, Stax Records, and the Transformation of Southern Soul PDF Author: Mark Ribowsky
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
ISBN: 0871408740
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 336

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Book Description
“Evokes the fire of Redding. . . . Ribowsky tells the story with nonstop energy, while always probing for the larger social and musical pictures.” —New York Times Book Review When he died in one of rock's string of tragic plane crashes, Otis Redding was only twenty-six, yet already the avatar of a new kind of soul music. The beating heart of Memphis-based Stax Records, he had risen to fame belting out gospel-flecked blues in stage performances that seemed to ignite not only a room but an entire generation. If Berry Gordy's black-owned kingdom in Motown showed the way in soul music, Redding made his own way, going where not even his two role models who had preceded him out of Macon, Georgia—Little Richard and James Brown—had gone. Now, in this transformative work, New York Times Notable Book author Mark Ribowsky contextualizes his subject's short career within the larger cultural and social movements of the era, tracing the crooner's rise from preacher's son to a preacher of three-minute soul sermons. And what a quick rise it was. At the tender age of twenty-one, Redding needed only a single unscheduled performance to earn a record deal, his voice so "utterly unique" (Atlantic) that it catapulted him on a path to stardom and turned a Memphis theater-turned-studio into a music mecca. Soon he was playing at sold-out venues across the world, from Finsbury Park in London to his ultimate conquest, the 1967 Monterrey Pop Festival in California, where he finally won over the flower-power crowd. Still, Redding was not always the affable, big-hearted man's man the PR material painted him to be. Based on numerous new interviews and prodigious research, Dreams to Remember reintroduces an incredibly talented yet impulsive man, one who once even risked his career by shooting a man in the leg. But that temperament masked a deep vulnerability that was only exacerbated by an industry that refused him a Grammy until he was in his grave—even as he shaped the other Stax soul men around him, like Wilson Pickett, Sam and Dave, and Booker T. and The MG's. As a result, this requiem is one of great conquest but also grand tragedy: a soul king of truth, a mortal man with an immortal voice and a pain in his heart. Now he, and the forces that shaped his incomparable sound, are reclaimed, giving us a panoramic of an American original who would come to define an entire era, yet only wanted what all men deserve—a modicum of respect and a place to watch the ships roll in and away again.

Time Is Tight

Time Is Tight PDF Author: Booker T. Jones
Publisher: Little, Brown
ISBN: 0316485578
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 334

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Book Description
The long-awaited memoir of Booker T. Jones, leader of the famed Stax Records house band, architect of the Memphis soul sound, and one of the most legendary figures in music. From Booker T. Jones's earliest years in segregated Memphis, music was the driving force in his life. While he worked paper routes and played gigs in local nightclubs to pay for lessons and support his family, Jones, on the side, was also recording sessions in what became the famous Stax Studios-all while still in high school. Not long after, he would form the genre-defining group Booker T. and the MGs, whose recordings went on to sell millions of copies, win a place in Rolling Stone's list of top 500 songs of all time, and help forge collaborations with some of the era's most influential artists, including Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett, and Sam & Dave. Nearly five decades later, Jones's influence continues to help define the music industry, but only now is he ready to tell his remarkable life story. Time is Tight is the deeply moving account of how Jones balanced the brutality of the segregationist South with the loving support of his family and community, all while transforming a burgeoning studio into a musical mecca. Culminating with a definitive account into the inner workings of the Stax label, as well as a fascinating portrait of working with many of the era's most legendary performers-Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, and Tom Jones, among them-this extraordinary memoir promises to become a landmark moment in the history of Southern Soul.

I Believe in You

I Believe in You PDF Author: Gregory M. Hasty
Publisher: Archway Publishing
ISBN: 1665758775
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 255

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Book Description
Johnnie Taylor was an enigma. This soul, gospel, and blues sensation had two dynamic life forces, each battling for a stronghold. He was a victim of the back-and-forth face-off between his faith background in the church and his prestigious occupation, overindulgent lifestyle, and unorthodox upbringing. Despite his inner turmoil, he grew into a consummate entertainer who dazzled thousands on stage and sold millions of records. In I Believe in You, author Gregory Hasty, with T.J. Hooker Taylor, Johnnie’s son, offers a carefully researched account—the first written narrative of the renowned entertainer. It shares his unique essence as a father, husband, friend, and other-world performer. This biography captures thoughts and memories from his children, former girlfriends, devoted friends, and professional associates and sheds light on his many admirable qualities, despite the nature, degree, and number of challenges he faced. I Believe in You celebrates Johnnie’s achievements, his battles, and his many victories. For sixty years, he graced the stage and traveled the country entertaining devoted fans and will always remain in the annals of music history as the “Philosopher of Soul.”

A House on Fire

A House on Fire PDF Author: John A. Jackson
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0190287659
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 368

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Book Description
"If You Don't Know Me By Now," "The Love I Lost," "The Soul Train Theme," "Then Came You," "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now"--the distinctive music that became known as Philly Soul dominated the pop music charts in the 1970s. In A House on Fire, John A. Jackson takes us inside the musical empire created by Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff, and Thom Bell, the three men who put Philadelphia Soul on the map. Here is the eye-opening story of three of the most influential and successful music producers of the seventies. Jackson shows how Gamble, Huff, and Bell developed a black recording empire second only to Berry Gordy's Motown, pumping out a string of chart-toppers from Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, the Spinners, the O'Jays, the Stylistics, and many others. The author underscores the endemic racism of the music business at that time, revealing how the three men were blocked from the major record companies and outlets in Philadelphia because they were black, forcing them to create their own label, sign their own artists, and create their own sound. The sound they created--a sophisticated and glossy form of rhythm and blues, characterized by crisp, melodious harmonies backed by lush, string-laden orchestration and a hard-driving rhythm section--was a glorious success, producing at least twenty-eight gold or platinum albums and thirty-one gold or platinum singles. But after their meteoric rise and years of unstoppable success, their production company finally failed, brought down by payola, competition, a tough economy, and changing popular tastes. Funky, groovy, soulful--Philly Soul was the classic seventies sound. A House on Fire tells the inside story of this remarkable musical phenomenon.

Memphis Boys

Memphis Boys PDF Author: Roben Jones
Publisher: Univ. Press of Mississippi
ISBN: 1604734027
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 436

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Book Description
Memphis Boys chronicles the story of the rhythm section at Chips Moman's American Studios from 1964, when the group began working together, until 1972, when Moman shut down the studio and moved the entire operation to Atlanta. Utilizing extensive interviews with Moman and the group, as well as additional comments from the songwriters, sound engineers, and office staff, author Roben Jones creates a collective biography combined with a business history and a critical analysis of important recordings. She reveals how the personalities of the core group meshed, how they regarded newcomers, and how their personal and musical philosophies blended with Moman's vision to create timeless music based on themes of suffering and sorrow. Recording sessions with Elvis Presley, the Gentrys, Aretha Franklin, Wilson Pickett, the Box Tops, Joe Tex, Neil Diamond, B. J. Thomas, Dionne Warwick, and many others come alive in this book. Jones provides the stories behind memorable songs composed by group writers, such as "The Letter," "Dark End of the Street," "Do Right Woman," "Breakfast in Bed," and "You Were Always on My Mind." Featuring photographs, personal profiles, and a suggested listening section, Memphis Boys details a significant phase of American music and the impact of one studio.

Funkiest Man Alive

Funkiest Man Alive PDF Author: Matthew Ruddick
Publisher: Univ. Press of Mississippi
ISBN: 1496838416
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 227

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Book Description
Rufus Thomas may not be a household name, but he is widely regarded as the patriarch of Memphis R&B, and his music influenced three generations. His first singles in the early 1950s were recorded as blues transitioned into R&B, and he was arguably one of the founding fathers of early rock ’n’ roll. In the early 1960s, his songs “The Dog” and “Walking the Dog” made a huge impact on the emerging British “mod” scene, influencing the likes of the Georgie Fame, the Rolling Stones, and the Who. And in the early 1970s, Thomas rebranded himself as the “funkiest man alive” and recorded funk classics that were later sampled by the likes of Public Enemy, Missy Elliot, and the Wu-Tang Clan. In Funkiest Man Alive: Rufus Thomas and Memphis Soul, Matthew Ruddick reveals the amazing life and career of Thomas, who started as a dancer in the minstrel shows that toured the South before becoming one of the nation’s early African American disc jockeys, and then going on to record the first hit singles for both Chess Records and Stax Records. Ruddick also examines the social fabric of the city of Memphis, analyzing the factors behind the vast array of talent that appeared in the late 1950s, with singers like Isaac Hayes, William Bell, Maurice White (Earth, Wind & Fire), and Thomas’s older daughter, Carla Thomas, all emerging from the tightly knit African American community. He also tells the story of Memphis-based Stax Records, one of the nation’s leading R&B record labels. From the earliest blues, the segregated minstrel shows, and the birth of rock ’n’ roll through to the emergence of R&B and funk, Rufus Thomas saw it all.

Elmo's Christmas Countdown (Sesame Street)

Elmo's Christmas Countdown (Sesame Street) PDF Author:
Publisher: Sesame Workshop
ISBN: 1618311727
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 28

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Book Description
Christmas is in trouble! Will Elmo and Elf find the numbers for the counter-downer? Or will Christmas be cancelled?

I Don't Sound Like Nobody

I Don't Sound Like Nobody PDF Author: Albin Zak
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
ISBN: 0472035126
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 325

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Book Description
A definitive study of the most important decade in post-World War II popular music history