Isaac Hayes

Isaac's first was Presenting Isaac Hayes, 1967 and it was excellent. Hot Buttered Soul (1969) would have to be considered his peak, but he actually maintained a very high level of excellence through at least 8 LP's . . . a massive achievement that even many of the biggest stars of the last half-century cannot claim.

Terry Gross did a very good interview with Mr. Hayes back in the '90's that was repeated yesterday and should be available for a week or so at the NPR/Fresh Air site. It really captures his spirit and soul very well.

As with many Stax luminaries, he grew up in grinding poverty and overcame a ton of obstacles to achieve career success . . . he will be greatly missed.

dc

Yeah, I listened to the NPR/Fresh Air interview yesterday. Very well done, especially with his explanation of how his wardrobe evolved, including his reasons for shaving his hair.

Acoustic Sounds put out a 45 RPM 3 song record with 3 cuts from Shaft including the theme song. Sounds real good - recommended if its still in stock!

Hayes was amazing in so many ways, including - most apprapot to this crowd - his focus on the sonic impact of his music. The theme to Shaft is one of the all time great studio effects records. Anyone who owns the LP should break it out for a listen - the harmonies and pan-potted strings are an audio roller coaster. I sometimes use it as a demo for people who express an interest in hearing my system. It's always a first impulse to use vocals, jazz, or orchestral music to show off a good system, but this record always knocks 'em dead.

I'm not sure he ever got all the credit he deserved, but he will be missed around here.

Kinda of cool to explore "Joy" and "To be continued" again.
Everyone speaks to "Shaft" as his best work but I think these are the records I will keep coming back to.