First ever anthology of legendary Memphis R & B/Soul tenor saxophonist and founding member of the Mar-Keys Charles “Packy” Axton.  Packy was the son of Stax co-owner Estelle Axton and played with the likes of Steve Cropper, Booker T., Teenie Hodges, and Duck Dunn, all included here.  17 sides of rare and raw ’60s Soul.  Featuring liner notes by former Shangri-La... read more

The one-and-only LP by Cincinnati’s 24 Carat Black.  Produced by by legendary Stax and Motown producer/arranger Dale Warren.  Released in 1973 by Enterprise/Stax Records, catalog # ENS-1030.  This record has been sampled by just about everyone in hip-hop from Jay-Z to Ice Cube to Digable Planets. Tracklist: SIDE ONE 1. Synopsis One:  In The Ghetto 2. God Save The World 3.... read more

A dynamite new gospel album from the legendary Memphis soul side-man Charles Hodges, who played organ and/or produced several classic cuts by Al Green, Ann Peebles and Little Milton, just to name a few.  On God He’s Able, Rev. Hodges is joined by his brothers LeRoy and Teenie as well as Stax arranger/keyboardist Lester Snell. Tracklist: 1. God He’s Able 2. Down By The... read more

Extremely rare copy of the 1967 compilation released by Stax/Volt.  Limited press, very hard to find.  Stax Records # A-11. Tracklist: 1. Announcement (Otis Redding) 2. Hucklebuck (Otis Redding) 3. & 4. Announcement (Carla Thomas) 5. I Want To Be Your Baby (Carla Thomas) 6. Announcement (Eddie Floyd) 7. Holding On With Both Hands (Eddie Floyd) 8. & 9. Announcement (William... read more

The last great album from one of the ‘60s most gifted soul singers.  Mono Copy.  Issued in 1968 – Atlantic Records # 8158. Tracklist: 1. It’s Been a Change 2. Take Me (Just As I Am) 3. Time Is a Thief 4. Keep a Light in the Window 5. Baby, Come On Home 6. Detroit City 7. Someone is Watching 8. Party People 9. When She Touches Me (Nothing Else Matters) 10. Woman, How Do You Make... read more

12 Cuts of Memphis soul, funk and blues.  Features guest appearances by William Bell, Otis Clay, Charlie Musselwhite and Percy Wiggins. Tracklist: 1. High Roller 2. Got to Get Back (To My Baby) 3. Just Chillin’ 4. Catch This Teardrop 5. Jack and Ginger 6. Sundown on Beale 7. Weak Spot 8. 90 Days Same as Cash 9. I’m Going Home 10. Cauley Flower 11. Work That Sucker 12. Got to Get... read more

Rare Memphis soul released by the Stax subsidiary label We Produce. Features musical contributions from the Bar-Kays, the M.G.’s and Lester Snell (among others). Tracklist: 1. Electrified Love 2. Come On Y’all 3. Your Love (Is All I Need) 4. What Would I Do 5. Sugar Plum (Gimme Some) 6. A Better World (For Everyone) 7. A Change Is Gonna Come 8. Explain It To Her Mama 9. Our Generation

A nearly forgotten classic, Lou Bond’s eponymous 1974 album was originally released on We Produce, a subsidiary of the legendary Stax label. It is an album that evokes a feeling of change, one very much a product of its era. A collection of songs filled with images from a chaotic time, touching on a range of topics from civil rights to social injustice to the Vietnam War. Bond’s... read more

Long revered by record collectors, this album remains one of the holy grails of gospel soul. Self-released in 1971, Like A Ship was the result of Barrett channeling his passion for music, a determination to keep children off the streets, and his charismatic preaching (which attracted the likes of Earth, Wind & Fire and Donny Hathaway to his sermons at Mount Zion Baptist Church) into the... read more

The Memphis Flyer sez: This second record from the instrumental soul-jazz trio absolutely floored me. But the thing is, The Set-Up is one of those records that just keeps getting better with repeated listening, so now I can’t put it down. I find it quite helpful to put this record on when writing or working — though I understand one could also dance to it. Tracklist: 1. The Set Up 2.... read more

Lucid Culture sez: Dance music doesn’t get any better than this. Sounding like they just got off the train from Memphis, 1968, the City Champs lay down an irresistible hip-twisting groove in the same vein as classic soul instrumentalists like Booker T & the MGs, the Meters, the late Willie Mitchell and the Bar-Kays. The production values are strictly oldschool – this may be a cd but... read more