Soul Man (song)

Infobox Single
Name =Soul Man


Cover size =
Border =
Caption =
Artist =Sam and Dave
Album = Soul Men
A-side =
B-side = "May I Baby"
Released =1967
Format =7", 45rpm
Recorded =1967
Genre =Soul
Length = 2:40
Label =Stax/Atlantic
S-231
Writer =Isaac Hayes
David Porter
Producer = Isaac Hayes
David Porter
Audio sample? =
Certification =
Last single ="Soothe Me"
(1967)
This single ="Soul Man"
(1967)
Next single ="I Thank You"
(1968)
Misc = "Soul Man" is a 1967 song written by Isaac Hayes and David Porter, first successful as a hit single by Atlantic Records soul duo Sam and Dave.

Original version

Co-author Isaac Hayes found the inspiration for "Soul Man" in the turmoil of the African-American Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. In July 1967, the 12th Street Riot in Detroit, Michigan occurred. Watching a television newscast of the aftermath of the riots, Hayes noted that black Detroit residents had marked the buildings that had not been destroyed during the riots - most African-American owned and operated institutions - with the word "soul". Relating this occurrence to the biblical story of the Passover, cite video | people = Morgan Neville, Robert Gordon, and Mark Crosby [directors, writers, producers] | title = Great Performances - Respect Yourself: The Stax Records Story | medium = TV documentary | publisher = Tremolo Productions, Concord Music Group, Thirteen/WNET New York | location = New York City | year2 = 2007 ] Hayes and songwriting partner David Porter came up with the idea, in Hayes' words, of "a story about one's struggle to rise above his present conditions. It's almost a tune [where it's] kind of like boasting 'I'm a soul man'. It's a pride thing."

Issued on the Atlantic-distributed Stax label for which Hayes and Porter worked, Sam and Dave's "Soul Man" was the most successful Stax single to date upon its release. Bowman, Rob (1997). "Soulsville U.S.A.: The Story of Stax Records." New York: Schirmer Trade. ISBN 0825672848. Pg. 128] The single peaked at number one on the "Billboard" Hot Black Singles chart, and at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States during the autumn of 1967. "Soul Man" was awarded the 1968 Grammy Award for Best Rhythm & Blues Group Performance, Vocal or Instrumental.

The exclamation "Play it, Steve" heard in the song refers to guitarist Steve Cropper of Booker T. & the M.G.'s, the house band who provided the instrumentation for this and many other Sam and Dave singles.

Cover versions

The Blues Brothers performed the song on an episode of the NBC comedy/variety show "Saturday Night Live" in late November 1978, and later released the song as a single that reached the top twenty in March 1979. The song was performed by Lou Reed and Sam Moore on the soundtrack to the comedy film, "Soul Man" (1986), supported by a music video.

In 2004, the song was performed by the comedy duo Drake Bell and Josh Peck on their sitcom, "Drake & Josh", in the episode "". The song appeared on , released in 2005. In 2007, Australian singer Guy Sebastian covered the song for his fourth album, "The Memphis Album", which featured Steve Cropper and Donald "Duck" Dunn, two of the musicians featured on the first ever recording of "Soul Man" 40 years ago, and were also members of the Blues Brothers' band.

Ted Nugent often performs "Soul Man" in his live shows, as did Prince during his "Musicology" tour.

Credits

*Vocals by Sam Moore and Dave Prater
*Instrumentation by Booker T. & the MG's and the Mar-Keys Horns

References