soul music

Soul Music

“Soul” Applied to Culture 1903 “The Souls of Black Folk” W.E.B. DuBois

“Soul” Applied to Music in 1960s

Ray Charles “Soul Brothers” (1958) & “Soul Meeting” (1962)

John Coltrane “Soultrane” (1960)

Soul Music

Identified by Location: Motown, Memphis, Chicago, Philly, Las Vegas

Motown & Memphis dominated the 1960s

Motown vs. Memphis

Refined Gospel

Polished Arrangements (Funk Brothers)

Polite Scream

Artist Development

Black Studio Band

Sanctified Gospel

Hard Bop Horn Sound

Gut Wrenching Scream

No Artist Development

Mixed Raced Studio Band

Motown

Motown Records

Berry Gordy Jr. (& Wife) 1959 Started Label (Tamla Records) After Several Years in the BizSpent Time Crafting their Sound

1. Infectious Intros & Hooks2. Gospel Sound (Tambourine)3. Sweet Soul (falsetto or Castrato)

Motown

(cont.)

4. Highly Syncopated Bass Lines

5. Conga Drums

6. Unusual Sounds

Tire Chains, Plywood Marching, Hollow

Percussive

MotownSpector-Like Studio Productions1. Harp, big band, strings2. Bells, celeste, cymbal bell3. Flutes, w/vocal group4. “Ahs” tamb, conga, bass line, huge vocals5. Spoken, fuzz guitar, strings6. Orch interlude7. group

Motown

Corporate Production (“assembly-line’)

Developed A Sound to Overcome Airwave Segregation

Spent Time Developing Artists: Dance Lessons, Charm School

Motown

Production Teams: Holland-Dozier-Holland Many Hits with the Supremes 1964-67

Producers Had A Lock On An Act Until FailureMotown Moved to LA 1971Success eroded, the move? Too much time with Diana Ross?

Motown Groups

Smokey Robinson & the Miracles

Associated with Gordy Before Motown

“Shop Around” 1960, Motown’s first Million Seller

“Second That Emotion” Smokey’s Sweet Soul voice & graceful Dance Steps

Motown Groups

Motown Groups

Temptations (1960 signed 1961)Variety of Sounds Sweet & Rougher“My Girl” (1965) 1st #1“Psychedelic Shack”

Motown Groups

Four Tops (1963)Had a Las Vegas Career before MotownHad a Harder Vocal SoundReach Out (1966)“Bernadette” (1966)

Motown Groups

Marvelettes (Female Group)

“Please Mr. Postman” (1961) Motown’s 1st #1

The Beatles Recorded it also

Motown Groups

Martha Reeves and the Vandellas

Hits with H-D-H

“Heat Wave” (1963)

“Dancing in the Streets” (1964)

Motown Groups

Diana Ross and the Supremes

Signed in 1961, no hits until H-D-H in 1963, also exposure from a Dick Clark Tour

“Baby Love” (1964)

“Stop in the Name of Love”

The Supremes

Motown Groups

Jackson Five

Sign in 1969, Father had been in Show Business

Young Michael was the star “Never Can Say Goodbye”

Motown Groups

Michael Jackson

The Group left Motown in 1976 Signed with Columbia (Epic)

“Thriller” (1982)

Dancing a Major Influence on Pop Culture

Videos Influenced the Genre

Motown Solo Singers

Mary Wells, Several hits 1962-65.

She Left Motown, Gordy Focused His Attention on Diana Ross

“My Guy”

Mary Wells & Beatles

Motown Solo Singers: Stevie Wonder

Signed at 11 Yrs. Old

Influenced by Ray Charles

1st Hit “Fingertips Pt II” Harmonica

“Up Tight” 1965

“You Are The Sunshine of My Life”

“Superstition” Beginning of Synthesizer Funk

Stevie Wonder & The Funk Brothers

Motown Solo Singers: Marvin Gaye

Started with the Moonglows Doo Wop

Several Hits But Motown Had Problems with His Direction, Wanted to Do Jazz

“What’s Goin’ On” A Jazz Protest Album

“Mercy Mercy Me” (The Ecology)

Memphis Soul

Stax & Atlantic

Stax Founded by Jim STewart (Banker & Country Fidler) and Estelle AXton 1958\

Moved to Old Theater In Memphis

He “didn’t know what R&B was”

Memphis

1960 Rufus Thomas (WDIA DJ) & Daughter, Carla Thomas Walked In.

Atlantic records Noticed the Success

Stax & Atlantic Joined in Distribution Deal (So They Said)

Atlantic Recorded in the Stax Studios

Memphis

Parted 1967, Realized that Atlantic Owned EverythingSplit: Atlantic recorded 15-20 weekends per YearAtlantic Moved across the River to Muscle Shoals, AL (Duane Alman connection)House Band Booker T. & the MGs with added horns became the Mar-Kays (Blues Brothers Band Members)

Memphis

Otis Redding, Many Hits Before His Cross Over Hit“Got - Ta-Got-Tas”Wrote “Respect”Performed at Monterey Pop Festival 1967“Dock of the Bay” Major Hit, But Killed in Plane Crash 4 Days After Recording Session

Otis Redding

Memphis

Wilson Pickett, Had some Success as Lead Singer of the Falcons

Signed With Atlantic/Recorded at Stax

“Midnight Hour”

“Land of A Thousand Dances”

Wilson Pickett

Memphis

Aretha Franklin, Daughter of Rev. C L Franklin, Child Gospel Star

Signed by Hammond to Columbia, Marketed Her as A Jazz Singer

Signed with Atlantic 1966, But They Offered Her to Stax

“Respect”

“Natural Woman”

Aretha Franklin

Memphis

Sam & Dave, Signed to Atlantic But Released on Stax

“Soul Man” Also hit for the 1st Blues Brothers

Memphis

Isaac Hayes, Stax Writer/Arranger

20 Min Love Rap “By The Time I Get to Phoenix”

Roots of Barry White Love Unlimited Orch

Big Hit “Shaft”

Isaac Hayes

1960s Soul Ends

After Break Up Stax Flounders: Sold and Repurchased, A Few Hits But Dead By 1976

1970s Brings Funk, Philly Soul and Disco