The Stax Sound: A Musicological Analysis Author(s): Rob Bowman Source: Popular Music, Vol. 14, No. 3 (Oct., 1995), pp. 285-320 Published by: Cambridge University Press Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/853127 Accessed: 15/05/2009 07:15 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use, available at http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp. JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use provides, in part, that unless you have obtained prior permission, you may not download an entire issue of a journal or multiple copies of articles, and you may use content in the JSTOR archive only for your personal, non-commercial use. Please contact the publisher regarding any further use of this work. Publisher contact information may be obtained at http://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=cup. 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Both Richard Middleton and Alan Moore have published important books that are emphatic about the need for such study (Middleton 1990; Moore 1993). Also there have been a number of articles in a variety of journals over the past several years that have either addressed the need for, suggested various approaches to, or actually taken a musi­ cological approach to one or another aspect of popular music (Foret 1991; Brackett 1992; Hawkins 1992; Moore 1992; Taylor 1992; Walser 1992; Middleton 1993). Des­ pite this flurry of activity, as far as this author is aware, there has been no academic musicological work, other than Robert Walser's recent study of heavy metal (Walser 1993), that has attempted to ferret out the component parts of a given genre through an analysis of a sizable body of repertoire. There is an acute need for such work if popular music scholars are going to begin to understand in con­ crete terms what is meant by terms such as rock, soul, funk, Merseybeat and so on. This essay is an attempt to begin such a study for the genre of southern soul music as it was manifested by Stax Records in Memphis, Tennessee. Stax Records was a recording company in operation from 1959 to 1976. Although eventually issuing recordings in a number of divergent genres, including country, rock, pop, gospel, jazz, comedy and spoken word, Stax and its subsidiary labels, such as Volt and Enterprise, were primarily engaged in the recording of a style of rhythm and blues that came to be known as soul. Some of the more popular artists that recorded for Stax include Otis Redding, Booker T. and the MGs, Sam and Dave, Isaac Hayes, Johnnie Taylor, Rufus Thomas, Carla Thomas, William Bell, Eddie Floyd, the Staple Singers and the Soul Children. In the broadest terms one can speak of two periods with regard to the musical construction of Stax rhythm and blues recordings. The first period extends from 1961 to 196911970. During these years the vast majority of the company's releases were recorded in Memphis, primarily at the McLemore Avenue studio with Booker T. and the MGs and the Mar-Key horns as the 'house' band. Songs were primarily written by four songwriting teams: Isaac Hayes and David Porter, William Bell and Booker T. Jones, Eddie Floyd and Steve Cropper, and Otis Redding, either by himself or in tandem with Cropper. In addition, a few singers, such as Rufus and Carla Thomas, were also quite capable songwriters. Using one studio, one equipment set-up, the same set of musicians and a small group of songwriters led to a readily identifiable sound. It was a sound 285 286 Rob Bowman based in black gospel, blues, country and earlier forms of rhythm and blues. It became known as southern soul music. The second period, extending from 1971/1972 through the label's bankruptcy in January 1976, was a result of a number of changes for the company that had large-scale ramifications. These included the death of Otis Redding, the cessation of the Atlantic and Stax distribution agreement, the dissolution of the company's house band, and co-owner Al Bell's expansion-driven outreach to artists, produ­ cers, and studios in Muscle Shoals, Detroit, Chicago and Los Angeles. In fact, if one had to pinpoint the moment of transition, it would be May 1969, when Al Bell decided that Stax needed to manufacture an 'instant' back catalogue (as Stax a year previously had lost to Atlantic the rights to distribute their earlier recordings) and elected to record and issue twenty-eight albums in one mammoth release. Such a task necessitated hiring outside musicians and using outside stu­ dios. Bell never looked back, and Stax was never the same. During the second period one cannot speak of a 'Stax sound' per se. The label no longer had a single identity, as records were produced in various cities by non-Memphis-based producers, writers, musicians and singers. Also, Stax as a corporation made considerable efforts to release records in a number of genres in addition to soul music. With such diffuse efforts it was no longer possible to identify a release by sound alone as emanating from StaxNolt. This article is primarily concerned with the 'Stax sound' as manifested in Memphis-based recordings. By definition, then, the focus will be on performances issued during the 1960s, although it needs to be stated that there are some records issued by Stax in the 1970s that were recorded in Memphis and Muscle Shoals, albeit without the original house band, that replicate in many respects the 'Stax sound'. Such second period recordings will also be considered. The number of single and LP recordings that arguably could be included as part of the 'Stax sound' is over 1,000. For analysis purposes ninety-five songs that were released as singles have been selected as representative (see Table 1). The analysis sample includes: (1) every Top 20 rhythm and blues or pop chart hit released by Stax Records or any of its subsidiaries that was recorded and written by a Memphis-based artist (Otis Redding, as one of the earliest and most important StaxNolt artists, for the purposes of this analysis is included as a Memphis-based artist. Even though he lived in Macon, Georgia, all of his Stax releases were recorded in Memphis with the Stax house band and many were co-written with a Memphis-based writer); (2) every Top 20 rhythm and blues or pop chart hit released by Stax Records and any of its subsidiaries that was recorded by a non-Memphis-based artist but was written by a Memphis-based Stax staff writer; (3) non-Top 20 hits written and/or recorded by Memphis-based artists that are historically important, such as Rufus and Carla Thomas' 'Cause I Love You' and William Bell's 'You Don't Miss Your Water'; (4) several non-hits written and/or recorded by Memphis-based artists. Examples by every important Memphis-based Stax artist are included. All but the five Staple Singers recordings were recorded in Memphis at the McLemore Avenue studio. The Staple Singers were recorded in Muscle Shoals with Memphis­ based Al Bell and Terry Manning producing and engineering. The Staples' record­ ings very closely approximate the Memphis-generated 'Stax sound'. In fact, some of the second period Memphis studio musicians resented the Muscle Shoals musi­ cians appropriating their sound. A musicological analysis 287 Table 1. Analysis sample 1. Rufus and Carla Thomas Cause I Love You 9-1960 2. Carla Thomas Gee Whiz 11-1960 3. The Mar-Keys Last Night 6-1961 4. William Bell You Don't Miss Your Water 11-1961 5. Booker T. and the MGs Green Onions 8-1962 6. Otis Redding These Arms of Mine 10-1962 7. Rufus Thomas The Dog 1-1963 8. Rufus Thomas Walking The Dog 9-1963 9. Otis Redding Pain In My Heart 9-1963 10. Booker T. and the MGs Soul Dressing 7-1964 11. Otis Redding Chained And Bound 9-1964 12. Otis Redding That's How Strong My Love Is 12-1964 13. Otis Redding Mr. Pitiful 12-1964 14. Booker T. and the MGs Bootleg 4-1965 15. Otis Redding I've Been Loving You Too Long 4-1965 16. The Astors Candy 5-1965 17. The Mad Lads Don't Have To Shop Around 7-1965 18. Otis Redding Respect 8-1965 19. Sam and Dave You Don't Know Like I Know 11-1965 20. The Mar-Keys Grab This Thing 11-1965 21. Otis Redding I Can't Turn You Loose 12-1965 22. The Mad Lads I Want Someone 1-1966 23. The Mar-Keys Philly Dog 1-1966 24. Johnnie Taylor I Had A Dream 2-1966 25. Ruby Johnson I'll Run Your Hurt Away 3-1966 26.