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STAX NEWS
page 23

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THE MEMPHIS HORNS ON TOUR IN EUROPE
(February 23, 2004)

(c) P. Montier
 

Wayne Jackson and Andrew Love are currently on a two week tour with Scottish artist, Blondell, and Jerry Lee Lewis.  Here is the schedule:

February 21 - Gleneagles Hotel, Scotland
February 24 - Clyde Auditorium, Glasgow
February 26 - City Hall, Newcastle
February 28 - The Opera House, Blackpool
February 29 - The Carling Apollo Theatre, Manchester
March 1 - The Paradiso Club, Amsterdam
 

SWEET SOUL MUSIC FESTIVAL 2004
(January 18, 2004)

The Sweet Soul Music festival that happens every year in Porretta Terme, Italy (near Bologna) is taking shape. The line up is:

Friday 9 at 9 PM
Clarence Carter & His Own Band
Ross Harano Swing & Blues
Guests

Saturday 10 at 8 PM
Howard Tate & His Band
“The Ladies Of Southern Soul”
Millie Jackson
Dorothy Moore
Keisha Jackson
With Millie Jackson Rhythm & Blues Band directed by George Moreland
Guests

Sunday 11 at 8 PM
 Southern Soul Night –Rhythm & Blues Revue
With Howard Tate, Millie Jackson, Dorothy Moore, Keisha Jackson
Guests

Saturday 10 and Sunday 11 at 3 PM
Sweet Soul Music Cars
Vintage american cars

Italian Rhythm & Blues Explosion
Piazza della Libertà
Saturday 10 and Sunday 11

More soon, thanks to Graziano Uliani.

www.sweetsoulmusicproductions.com and www.porrettasoul.com

  

ARTHUR CONLEY DIES
(November 17, 2003)

This morning, Arthur Conley died of an intestinal cancer in his home village of Ruurlo in the Netherlands at the age of 57. A protege of Otis Redding, he had grown progressively weak in recent weeks.
Conley was born in Atlanta, Georgia, and started his recording career in 1959 as leader of the group Arthur and the Corvets. He co-wrote Sweet Soul Music with Otis Redding, based on a number by Sam Cooke and had several minor hits in the following two years. He toured Europe in March 67 with the famous Hit The Road Stax show. His first singles on Otis' Jotis label were recorded at Stax and Fame Records.
He moved to Europe in the early 1970s after several tours of the continent, deciding that he was "fed up with the pressure" in the United States.

Complete discography on The Soul Of The Net at http://www.melingo.com/thesoulnet/conley.htm

SAM PHILLIPS DIES
(July 31, 2003)

Sam Phillips, founder of Sun Records died in Memphis at 80, on July 30. He had greatly inspired Jim Stewart. There were a lot of connection between Stax and Sun in the beginning and later, with Stax recordings cut or mastered at Sun and even two early Stax LPs including both Stax and Sun tracks.

THE SOUL COMES HOME CONCERT ON US TELEVISION
(July 22, 2003)

(c) P. Montier

The Soul Comes Home concert which happened last April 30 at the Orpheum in Memphis will be aired on PBS in august, before being available in DVD and VHS at Fall. Look for the content on the SoulsVille, USA site at http://www.soulsvilleusa.com/3_0-news.cfm. Don't miss it!  (Photo © Patrick Montier)

THE BLUES BROTHERS BAND IN FRANCE
(July 6, 2003)

(c) P. Montier

The Blues Brothers Band performed on stage last july 4 in Avoine, France, near Macon at a summer blues festival. I met Steve Cropper and Eddie Floyd there and was able to have a short talk with Steve a few minutes before the show. Here are some infos he gave me.

About his next projects: a recording with the singer of the Rascals (don't remember his name) and a NEW BOOKER T. & THE MG'S ALBUM.

About the Booker T. & The MG's unissued Stax tracks: he laughed a lot when I told him that his fans were angry as he had rejected several ones from the last Ace/Fantasy CD and that they would have been good enough for us even if he didn't find them perfect! Always a kind man, he agreed that there were still some good ones in the can that could be issued.

About his With A Little Help From My Friends LP, he named Buddy Miles, Leon Russell and Delaney Bramlett among the "friends", saying that they did not find the time to print the names on the back cover when the LP was issued. He remembers also some members of the Bar-Kays (Ron Gorden?)

About his other solo LPs, he said he was not happy at the time with them, especially on the sung tracks as he thinks he is a bad singer (I told him I don't agree!) and he doesn' t consider doing any other recording under his own name...  (Photo © Patrick Montier)

More photos on STAX TODAY page 14
 

STEFAN IS WELL AND ALIVE
(June 30, 2003) 

Good news about ex Stax singer Stefan. I had announced a sad news about him some weeks ago, but he is finally well and alive and living in Jackson, Mississippi. His
brother Joe, who recorded with him under the name "The Anderson Bros." lives there as well.
Among his Stax singles were Lee Dorsey's "Holy Cow" and the Isaac Hayes/David Porter tune, originally cut by Johnnie Taylor, "I've Got To Love Somebody's Baby".

SUMMER CONCERTS
(June 29, 2003)

Some Summer concerts to come (from Memphis saxophonist Jim Spake's agenda at www.jimspake.com):

July 4, 5, 6 - Carla Thomas, Ellis Hooks, Jackie Johnson - Sweet Soul Music Festival - Porretta Terme, Italy

July 7 - Carla Thomas - Montreux Jazz Festival

August 3 - Carla Thomas, Little Milton, Eddie Floyd - Notodden Blues Festival - Notodden, Norway

September 28 - Eddie Floyd, Carla Thomas, William Bell - San Francisco Blues Festival

LARRY SHAW DIES
(May 13, 2003)

Larry Shaw at the recent WattStax
premiere at the Orpheum, Memphis.
(Photo © Patrick Montier)

Larry Shaw, former vice president of advertising for Stax Records and former advertising and marketing executive, died after suffering a heart attack Sunday, May 11, just a week after witnessing the grand opening celebration of the Stax Museum of American Soul Music. He was 65.

Born in Memphis, he returned to his roots in the '70s and accepted a job with Stax after a lucrative advertising and marketing career in Chicago.

He headed the record company's advertising division and developed award-winning album covers including Hayes's Black Moses. He also produced the acclaimed concert film Wattstax, which premiered 30 years ago and featured Stax artists in a benefit concert for the Watts community in Los Angeles after the 1965 riots sparked by police violence.

Here are Ron Gorden's own comments:

Many of you saw Larry Shaw introduce the Wattstax movie at the Orpheum Theater in Memphis last Thursday night. I am grateful that I had breakfast him with on Friday.

After I resigned from the Bar-Kays in early 1970, I began working in the newly formed advertising department at Stax. From the beginning it was my job to manage the increasing flow of projects funneling through our two-man department, but it was my privilege and good fortune to be associating with Larry Shaw. Later he became immersed in the Wattstax concert project and became a vice-president and the head of the newly formed Stax Films, and I was promoted to Advertising Manager.

Larry Shaw was a master of creativity and a fountain of wisdom. From him I learned about business, about advertising, about graphic design, about creative thinking, and about striving for perfection. He has always been one of my favorite people, and although we rarely see each other I consider him one of my closest and dearest lifetime friends.

My beloved Mr. Shaw died this morning (Sunday) at the home of a friend in Memphis of an apparent heart attack.
 

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