Transcript Stax Soul and James Brown

Atlantic/Stax:
Soulsville, U. S. A.
Southern Soul
• Heavily influenced by blues and gospel
• Retains elements of R&B
– Horn section
– Tendency toward shuffle rhythms
– Emotional, “attitude” songs
• Rougher, blues/gospel singing style of most
performers
Stax Records
• Studio at center of soul - Stax Records in
Memphis
• Named for founders Jim STewart and
Estelle AXton
• Recorded for Atlantic Records from 1960
– Memphis
– Muscle Shoals, Alabama
Booker T. and the MGs
• Integrated band
– Booker T. Jones (piano), Al Jackson (drums)
African-American
– Donald “Duck” Dunn (bass), Steve Cropper
(guitar) white
– Memphis Horns - all white
• Stressed electric guitar, active bass lines, horn
lines
• Often worked out arrangements on spot,
based on head arrangements or lead sheets
• Essential part of Stax sound
Comparison Between Motown
and Stax
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MOTOWN
“Hitsville”
Black owned
All black performers
Aimed at white
audience
Top-down decisions
Songs by professional
songwriters
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STAX
“Soulsville”
White owned (at first)
Integrated
Aimed at R&B
audience
Collaborative
Songs by performers,
arranged in sessions
Motown and Stax
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MOTOWN
Producer/composer
most important
Smooth, refined pop
sound
Complex textures
Wall of Sound
8 beat style beat,
moving to 16-beat
Clean, crisp rhythms
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STAX
Performer most
important
Rawer, blues-gospel
sound
Simpler textures
Horn/rhythm sections
8 beat style beat,
moving to 16-beat
Pulsating “funky”
rhythms
Aretha Franklin (1942- )
• Began as gospel singer
• Signed by Columbia in 1960 to be black pop
singer - fails
• Jerry Wexler at Atlantic records buys
contract in 1966
– Sends to Stax studio at Muscle Shoals, AL to
record own material
Respect
• Cover version of Otis Redding hit
• Minimal instrumental accompaniment
– Focus on lead, backing vocals
• 4 bar intro: bass (beat), horns (harmonic
rhythms), guitar riff (style beat)
Respect
• Form: A A A sax solo A B (R-E-S-P-E-CT), vamp on A section as outro
– Improvised elaboration of previously heard
material
• Backing vocals play active role
– Call and response, style beat
• Many details worked out in session
4 bar intro
Electric piano (organ sound)
and active bass line
Snare accents third beat
Verse
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YouÕrea no good heartbreaker
YouÕrea liar and a cheat
And I donÕt know why
I let you do these things to me.
My fr iends keep tellinÕme
That you ainÕt no good
Ooh, but they donÕt know
That IÕd leave you if I could
Bridge
I guess IÕm uptight
IÕm stuck like glue
Chorus:
ÔCuz I ainÕt never
I ainÕt never
Loved a man the way, the way that I love you
Change in harmony (V)
Return to tonic
Change in harmony
Piano triplets lead intoÉ.
Horns enter - sustained notes
Horn riffs ,
+backing vocals
New horn riff leads back toÉ.
Verse
Some time ago I thought
That you would run out of fools
But I was so wrong,
You got one that youÕll never lose.
More active keyboard line based on
on triplets, sounds more like
a piano
The way you treat me is a shame
How could you hurt me so bad
Baby you know
IÕm the best thing that you ever had
Bridge
Kiss me one more time
DonÕt you ever say that weÕrethrough
Piano only
Chorus
ÔCuz I ainÕt never
I ainÕt never
Loved a man the way, the way that I love you
No horns
Horns return
Contrasting
Section [C]
Tag
I canÕt sleep at night
And I canÕt eat a ibt
I guess IÕll never be free
Since you got your hooks in me
Exposed guitar line
IÕve never loved a man --
Vocal vamps over horn riff,
bass line, guitar until fade out
Hard triplets drum shots lead to
Otis Redding (1941-1967)
• Started career as backup singer for Little
Richard
• Commanded wide variety of styles
– Soulful ballads like Percy Sledge
– Blues/gospel fusion
• Gritty tone
• Impassioned style
• Breakout performance at Monterey Pop
• Killed in plane crash later that year
I Can’t Turn You Loose
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Opens with memorable, syncopated riff
Another riff layered on top
Vocals also based on riff
Strong beat AND strong backbeat
Gospel influence evident
Other Major Stax Artists
• Isaac Hayes
– Songwriter/producer for Stax
– Theme from Shaft won Grammy, Oscar for best
song
• Wilson Pickett - In The Midnight Hour
• Percy Sledge - When A Man Loves a
Woman
• Sam and Dave (Sam Moore and Dave
Prater)
Sam and Dave - Soul Man
Certain similarities to Motown sound
– Riff-based, verse and refrain, end-weighted
• Differences
– More gospel-influenced vocal
– Not a “story song” - about attitude
– Groove
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eight beat rock rhythm in bass line
back beat in tambourine (refrain) or drums (verse)
horn riffs
double time guitar riff
James Brown
Neither Motown nor Stax:
Just Soul
James Brown (1933- )
• Age 5: starts dancing on streets for tips
• Age 20: Joins gospel quartet
– Brown emerges as leader
– Change name to the Famous Flames
• First hit Please, please, please (1956)
gospel-inspired doo-wop
• Style changes in mid 1960s
James Brown Style
• Fuses tight, riff-based jump blues and R&B
horn sections
• Fervid, gospel performing style
• Up-tempo dance numbers
• Emphasize rhythm over melody
– Polyrhythmic
– Each part maintains own repetitive pattern
I Got You
• Harsh, declamatory vocals and falsetto
shrieks
• Solid rock beat in drums
• Well-defined sections, set off by tone colors
and vocals
– Arrangement of these blocks of sound gives
form to song
a Whoa-oa-oa! I feel good, I knew that I would, now
a I feel good, I knew that I would, now
b So good, so good, I got you
a Whoa! I feel nice, like sugar and spice
a I feel nice, like sugar and spice
b So nice, so nice, I got you
When I hold you in my arms
I know that I can't do no wrong
and when I hold you in my arms
My love won't do you no harm
Whoa! I feel nice, like sugar and spice
I feel nice, like sugar and spice
So nice, so nice, I got you
sax solo
When I hold you in my arms
I know that I can't do no wrong
and when I hold you in my arms
My love won't do you no harm
Whoa! I feel nice, like sugar and spice
I feel nice, like sugar and spice
So nice, so nice, I got you
sax solo
Whoa-oa-oa! I feel good, I knew that I would, now
I feel good, I knew that I would, now
So good, so good, I got you
Papa’s Got A Brand New Bag
• Same organizing principle as I Got You
• Riff-based horn parts
• Double-time guitar riff at end of chorus:
sixteen-beat style beat for one measure
• Choked rhythm guitar