Isaac Lee Hayes Jr. was an American singer, songwriter, composer, and actor. He was one of the creative forces behind the Southern soul music label Stax Records, serving as both an in-house songwriter and as a session musician and record producer, teaming with his partner David Porter during the mid-1960s. Hayes and Porter were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2005 in recognition of writing scores of songs for themselves, the duo Sam & Dave, Carla Thomas, and others. In 2002, Hayes was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
The Mar-Keys, formed in 1958, were an American studio session band for Stax Records, in Memphis, Tennessee, in the 1960s. As the first house band for the label, their backing music formed the foundation for the early 1960s Stax sound.
The Bar-Kays are an American funk band formed in 1964. The band had dozens of charting singles from the 1960s to the 1980s, including "Soul Finger" in 1967, "Son of Shaft" in 1972, and "Boogie Body Land" in 1980.
Unforgettable … with Love, also known as simply Unforgettable, is the twelfth studio album by American singer Natalie Cole. Released on June 11, 1991, the album includes covers of standards previously performed by her father, Nat King Cole. It was also her debut for Elektra Records, after being given her release from EMI Records.
Kool and the Gang is the debut studio album by funk band Kool & the Gang. The album was released in December 1969, and reached No. 43 on the Billboard R&B albums chart.
Love & Understanding is the seventh studio album by the funk band Kool & the Gang, released in 1976. The album had mild success. Three tracks, "Hollywood Swinging", "Summer Madness" and "Universal Sound" were recorded live at the Rainbow Theatre in London, England.
The Great Otis Redding Sings Soul Ballads, simply referred to as Soul Ballads or Sings Soul Ballads, is the second studio album by American soul singer-songwriter Otis Redding, released in 1965. The album was one of the first issued by Volt Records, a sub-label of Stax Records, and Redding's first on the new label. Like Redding's debut Pain in My Heart (1964), Soul Ballads features both soul classics and originals written by Redding and other Stax Records recording artists. The recording sessions took place at the Stax studios in Memphis. The album features a stereo mix made by engineer Tom Dowd, replacing the early mono mix.
Shaft is a double album by Isaac Hayes, recorded for Stax Records' Enterprise label as the soundtrack LP for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's 1971 blaxploitation film Shaft. The album mostly consists of instrumentals composed by Hayes as score for the film. Three vocal selections are included: "Soulsville", "Do Your Thing", and "Theme from Shaft". A commercial and critical success, Shaft is Hayes' best-known work and the best-selling LP ever released on a Stax label.
King & Queen is a studio album by American recording artists Otis Redding and Carla Thomas. It is Thomas' fourth album and Redding's sixth and the final studio album before his death on December 10, 1967. Influenced by Marvin Gaye's duets, the album features ten covers of soul classics and the eleventh finishing song co-written by Redding.
"Theme from Shaft", written and recorded by Isaac Hayes in 1971, is the soul and funk-styled theme song to the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film Shaft. The theme was released as a single two months after the movie's soundtrack by Stax Records' Enterprise label. "Theme from Shaft" went to number two on the Billboard Soul Singles chart and to number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States in November 1971, and number one in Canada in December. The song was also well received by adult audiences, reaching number six on Billboard's Easy Listening chart and number four in Canada. The song is considered by some to be one of the first disco songs.
"Soul Man" is a 1967 song written and composed by Isaac Hayes and David Porter, first successful as a number 2 hit single by Atlantic Records soul duo Sam & Dave, which consisted of Samuel "Sam" Moore and David "Dave" Prater. In 2019, "Soul Man" was selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry as "culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant" by the Library of Congress. It was No. 463 in "Top 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" by Rolling Stone in 2010 and No. 458 in 2004.
Soul '69 is the fourteenth studio album by American singer Aretha Franklin; released in 1969 by Atlantic Records, the album features covered material. The album charted at number 1 on Billboard's R&B albums chart and at number 15 on Billboard's Top Albums, but launched two largely unsuccessful singles, "Tracks of My Tears", which reached number 21 on "Black Singles" and number 71 on "Pop Singles", and "Gentle on My Mind", which charted at number 50 and number 76 respectively. The album was re-released on compact disc through Rhino Records in the 1990s.
"I Thank You" is a song written by David Porter and Isaac Hayes originally recorded by Sam & Dave, released in early 1968. The single was Sam & Dave's final release on Stax Records, reaching #9 on the Billboard Pop Singles chart and #4 on the R&B chart. Shortly after its release, Stax severed its distribution deal with Atlantic Records and Sam & Dave, who were actually signed to Atlantic and loaned out to Stax, began recording for Atlantic proper. The song begins with Sam's spoken introduction that goes: "I want everybody to get off your seat,/ And get your arms together,/ And your hands together,/ And give me some of that old soul clapping". First, Sam sings the refrain, plus the first verse, and the refrain, while Dave sings the second verse, the refrain, and the third verse, with both Sam and Dave sharing on the repeated "Thank Yous" portion. Following a brief instrumental, Sam sings the refrain, with Dave, joining him, on the Coda with the repeated "thank yous".
Black Moses is the fifth studio album by American soul musician Isaac Hayes. It is a double album released on Stax Records' Enterprise label in 1971. The follow-up to Hayes' successful soundtrack for Shaft, Black Moses features Hayes' version of The Jackson 5's hit single "Never Can Say Goodbye". Hayes' version became a hit in its own right, peaking at number 22 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album reached number one on the Billboard R&B album chart on January 15, 1972.
...To Be Continued is the fourth studio album by American soul musician Isaac Hayes, issued in 1970 on Stax Records' Enterprise label. The LP includes Hayes' cover of the Burt Bacharach/Hal David composition "The Look of Love", which was issued as a single in an edited form, peaking at #79 on the Billboard Hot 100. Hayes had covered Bacharach/David songs on his previous albums Hot Buttered Soul and The Isaac Hayes Movement.
Hold On, I'm Comin' is the 1966 debut album by Atlantic Records soul duo Sam & Dave, issued on the Atlantic-distributed Stax label in 1966.
Soulsville is the ninth studio album from Huey Lewis and the News and the band's first since Plan B in 2001. The album was released on October 18, 2010, in the United Kingdom and Europe and November 2, 2010, in the United States. The album, a tribute to the artists and music of Stax Records, was the brainchild of the band's manager, Bob Brown. As lead singer Huey Lewis explained, "the public isn't clamoring for new Huey Lewis & the News material". Brown and the band decided "it would be cooler to go into the [Stax] catalog a little deeper and find songs that people hadn't heard and capture them faithfully". This album features new guitarists Stef Burns and Bill Hinds and baritone saxophonist Johnnie Bamont, replacing Chris Hayes and the late Ron Stallings.
Complete & Unbelievable: The Otis Redding Dictionary of Soul, or simply Dictionary of Soul, is the fifth studio album by American soul singer-songwriter Otis Redding and his last solo studio album released before his death. The successful Otis Blue and the following performance at Whisky a Go Go led to his rising fame across the United States. The first side of the album mainly contains cover versions, and the second songs mainly written by Redding.
Sax for Stax is the thirteenth studio album by Saxophonist Gerald Albright issued in 2008 by Peak Records. The album rose to No. 4 on the Billboard Contemporary Jazz Albums chart, No. 7 on the Billboard Jazz Albums chart and No. 24 on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.
Disco Connection is the eighth studio album by American soul musician Isaac Hayes. The album, credited to his backing band, The Isaac Hayes Movement, was released in 1975. The album debuted at number 85 on the Billboard 200.
