You don’t have to be an expert on classic soul and R&b to recognize the American music monuments that emerged from Stax Records in the Sixties and Seventies. Sam & Dave’s “Soul Man,” Otis Redding’s “Respect” and “(Sittin’ on) The Dock of the Bay,” Isaac Hayes’ “Theme From Shaft,” and the Staple Singers’ “I’ll Take You There” — just a few of Stax’s greatest hits — made the case that the Memphis-based record company was the Southern version of Motown.
Whether anyone fully realizes that is another matter.
Whether anyone fully realizes that is another matter.
- 5/20/2024
- by David Browne
- Rollingstone.com
The story of Stax records has long been smoothed over and sculpted into a neat bundle of Southern aphorism and marketing copy: The Memphis home of “Soul Man” and Shaft and the Staple Singers was the more authentic (insert adjective like “gritty” or “greasy” or “Southern-fried” here), counterpart to the pop-oriented Motown; a rare space of multiracial utopia in a segregated Sixties South; a locus, for Blacks in Memphis at the time, for the expressions and dreams of a better American future that lost its way in 1968 when those dreams...
- 6/22/2023
- by Jonathan Bernstein
- Rollingstone.com
Mable John, who recorded for Motown and Stax and later worked with Ray Charles, died Aug. 25 at her home in Los Angeles. Her nephew, Kevin John, confirmed the death, but did not give a cause. She was 91.
“We loved her and she was a kind person,” Kevin John said of his aunt, the older sister of R&b star Little Willie John.
John had a rich career in music. She was the first solo female artist signed to Motown (then Tamla Records) by Berry Gordy Jr. and recorded the songs “Who Wouldn’t Love A Man Like That,” “Actions Speak Louder Than Words,” “No Love,” “Looking for a Man,” and “Take Me,” the latter with background harmonies by The Temptations.
John left Motown in the mid-1960s to join Memphis label Stax Records. There she teamed with the songwriting team of Isaac Hayes and David Porter for her 1966 hit “Your...
“We loved her and she was a kind person,” Kevin John said of his aunt, the older sister of R&b star Little Willie John.
John had a rich career in music. She was the first solo female artist signed to Motown (then Tamla Records) by Berry Gordy Jr. and recorded the songs “Who Wouldn’t Love A Man Like That,” “Actions Speak Louder Than Words,” “No Love,” “Looking for a Man,” and “Take Me,” the latter with background harmonies by The Temptations.
John left Motown in the mid-1960s to join Memphis label Stax Records. There she teamed with the songwriting team of Isaac Hayes and David Porter for her 1966 hit “Your...
- 8/28/2022
- by Bruce Haring
- Deadline Film + TV
2017 is William Bell’s 60th year in the music industry. He’s 77 years old. Cream, the Byrds and Linda Ronstadt have recorded his songs. And this year, he’s up for his first Grammys.
Strangely, they’re in what could be considered opposing categories — American and traditional R&B — but it makes sense for Bell, who never quite fit into easy categories. Performer, songwriter, producer — Bell has done it all.
Born William Henry Yarborough in Memphis on July 16, 1939, Bell, like a lot of soul singers from his era, first started singing in church when he was just 8 years old. He...
Strangely, they’re in what could be considered opposing categories — American and traditional R&B — but it makes sense for Bell, who never quite fit into easy categories. Performer, songwriter, producer — Bell has done it all.
Born William Henry Yarborough in Memphis on July 16, 1939, Bell, like a lot of soul singers from his era, first started singing in church when he was just 8 years old. He...
- 2/10/2017
- by Alex Heigl
- PEOPLE.com
Elizabeth, N.J. — A bag of uncooked ziti in the driveway, a "reserved" sign at the ice cream parlor booth where the series abruptly ended, and a framed photo at a strip club were among the tributes paid to James Gandolfini in the northern New Jersey communities where his TV character Tony Soprano lived, loved and whacked people.
The star of the HBO series about a mob boss with anxiety issues and a midlife crisis died Wednesday night in Italy of an apparent heart attack.
In neighborhoods where "The Sopranos" was shot, Gandolfini was recalled Thursday with mixed emotions: a global star who made their communities famous, but sometimes at the expense of their reputations.
Vito Mazza, who was busily preparing for an Italian-American festival in Elizabeth this weekend, said the actor had local credibility.
"He was as Jersey as it gets, through and through," he said.
The "Sopranos" star...
The star of the HBO series about a mob boss with anxiety issues and a midlife crisis died Wednesday night in Italy of an apparent heart attack.
In neighborhoods where "The Sopranos" was shot, Gandolfini was recalled Thursday with mixed emotions: a global star who made their communities famous, but sometimes at the expense of their reputations.
Vito Mazza, who was busily preparing for an Italian-American festival in Elizabeth this weekend, said the actor had local credibility.
"He was as Jersey as it gets, through and through," he said.
The "Sopranos" star...
- 6/20/2013
- by AP
- Huffington Post
Getty Images Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band perform during SiriusXM’s concert celebrating 10 years of satellite radio at The Apollo Theater on March 9, 2012 in New York City.
Last night at the Apollo Theater, Bruce Springsteen, along with his expanded E Street Band, prepped for a U.S. and European tour with a performance that reminded the audience that his four-decade career is built in part on a passion for African-American music – raucous Memphis R&B in his formative...
Last night at the Apollo Theater, Bruce Springsteen, along with his expanded E Street Band, prepped for a U.S. and European tour with a performance that reminded the audience that his four-decade career is built in part on a passion for African-American music – raucous Memphis R&B in his formative...
- 3/10/2012
- by Jim Fusilli
- Speakeasy/Wall Street Journal
HollywoodNews.com: I’d like to say I am shocked at the news of Nick Ashford‘s death, but he didn’t appear at the Songwriters Hall of Fame dinner this past June. His wife and songwriting partner, Valerie Simpson, was there. They were never ever apart. They were really inseparable. Someone who knew them said to me, “Something is wrong.” It seems that Nick had throat cancer, which no one knew. This is a terrible blow for Valerie and their two daughters, for their trusted aide de camp Tee Austen, and everyone who loves Ashford and Simpson.
Nick was a tall drink of water with a beautiful, sunny disposition. He was one of the most elegant and thoughtful people I’ve ever met in the music business. He and Valerie — like Leiber and Stoller, King and Goffin, Mann and Weil, Neils Diamond and Sedaka, Ellie Greenwich, Smokey Robinson, Isaac Hayes and David Porter,...
Nick was a tall drink of water with a beautiful, sunny disposition. He was one of the most elegant and thoughtful people I’ve ever met in the music business. He and Valerie — like Leiber and Stoller, King and Goffin, Mann and Weil, Neils Diamond and Sedaka, Ellie Greenwich, Smokey Robinson, Isaac Hayes and David Porter,...
- 8/23/2011
- by Roger Friedman
- Hollywoodnews.com
In his brief screenwriting career, which already includes an Oscar, William Monahan has been good at introducing us to modern-day kinds of thrills, from the Middle Eastern espionage in Body of Lies and The Kingdom to the Boston double-crosses of The Departed. But for his next project-- actually, make that one of his dozen or so upcoming projects-- Monahan will be heading way back to the high seas. Monahan and Departed producer Graham King will team up for The Essex/I>, a drama about real-life sea captain David Porter who kicked British ass during the War of 1812. USA! USA! Variety says King and Monahan will produce the film, and Monahan has written the script and may or may not direct it. We don't get a whole lot of movies set during this time period, but Master and Commander was fun in a stuffy historical way, and Monahan has proven ...
- 3/27/2009
- cinemablend.com
William Monahan has writen a script for "The Essex" and may direct. The historical drama set in 1812 is about Captain David S. Porter and delves into his sea battles against the British. With the British Royal Navy having a far greater number of ships than that of the Americans, Porter managed to pass British cruisers and make his way to the Pacific with the Essex. There, it devasted the British whaling fleet before its final battle with a special British squadron. For detailed information on Captain David Porter and the Essex in the South Pacific, we recommend HistoryNet.com - http://www.historynet.com/war-of-1812-commodore-david-porter-and-the-essex-in-the-south-pacific.htm. Monahan's last effort "Body of Lies," flopped at the box office despite a cast including Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe. The Oscar®-winning writer of "The Departed" also wrote "Tripoli" which is currently at 20th Century Fox. ...
- 3/27/2009
- Upcoming-Movies.com
William Monahan has writen a script for "The Essex" and may direct. The historical drama set in 1812 is about Captain David S. Porter and delves into his sea battles against the British. With the British Royal Navy having a far greater number of ships than that of the Americans, Porter managed to pass British cruisers and make his way to the Pacific with the Essex. There, it devasted the British whaling fleet before its final battle with a special British squadron. For detailed information on Captain David Porter and the Essex in the South Pacific...
- 3/27/2009
- Upcoming-Movies.com
William Monahan has writen a script for "The Essex" and may direct. The historical drama set in 1812 is about Captain David S. Porter and delves into his sea battles against the British. With the British Royal Navy having a far greater number of ships than that of the Americans, Porter managed to pass British cruisers and make his way to the Pacific with the Essex. There, it devasted the British whaling fleet before its final battle with a special British squadron. For detailed information on Captain David Porter and the Essex in the South Pacific...
- 3/27/2009
- Upcoming-Movies.com
New York -- Microsoft Corp. is looking to launch its own chain of retail stores in a move mindful of Apple's strategy.
The software giant said Friday morning that it has hired DreamWorks Animation and Wal-Mart veteran David Porter as corporate vp of retail stores to oversee the new business.
Porter was most recently head of worldwide product distribution at DreamWorks Animation and worked as a Wal-Mart executive for 25 years.
"There are tremendous opportunities ahead for Microsoft to create a world-class shopping experience for our customers," Porter said. "I am excited about helping consumers make more informed decisions about their PC and software purchases, and we'll share learnings from our stores with our existing retail and (other) partners that are critical to our success."
Porter's first focus will be defining when and where exactly to open the first retail locations, Microsoft said.
The software giant said Friday morning that it has hired DreamWorks Animation and Wal-Mart veteran David Porter as corporate vp of retail stores to oversee the new business.
Porter was most recently head of worldwide product distribution at DreamWorks Animation and worked as a Wal-Mart executive for 25 years.
"There are tremendous opportunities ahead for Microsoft to create a world-class shopping experience for our customers," Porter said. "I am excited about helping consumers make more informed decisions about their PC and software purchases, and we'll share learnings from our stores with our existing retail and (other) partners that are critical to our success."
Porter's first focus will be defining when and where exactly to open the first retail locations, Microsoft said.
- 2/13/2009
- by By Georg Szalai
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Soul music pioneer Isaac Hayes – whose 1971 "Theme from Shaft" won the Oscar and Grammys – died Sunday in Memphis, where he lived. He was 65. A releative discovered an unresponsive Hayes near an exercise machine in their home at midday, and Hayes was pronounced dead at 2:10 p.m. when he arrived at Baptist East Hospital in Memphis, the Shelby County Sheriff's Office tells People. "The family had last seen him about noon," says Steve Shular, public information officer for that office. "Family members had gone to the grocery store and left him home. When the family came home around 1, his wife's...
- 8/10/2008
- by Stephen M. Silverman and Ivory Jeff Clinton
- PEOPLE.com
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