"Soul Man" is a 1967 song written by Isaac Hayes and David Porter, first successful as a number 2 hit single by Atlantic Records soul duo Sam & Dave.
Co-author Isaac Hayes found the inspiration for "Soul Man" in the turmoil of the civil rights movement of the 1960s. In July 1967, watching a television newscast of the aftermath of the 12th Street riot in Detroit, Michigan, Hayes noted that black residents had marked buildings that had not been destroyed during the riots – mostly African-American owned and operated institutions – with the word "soul". Relating this occurrence to the biblical story of the Passover, 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."
It was at Stax that Sam and Dave found their métier. The group was paired with a relatively unknown and untried house songwriting team, Isaac Hayes and David Porter. With the former largely responsible for the harmony and instrumental arrangements and the latter in charge of lyrics and vocal performance, Hayes And Porter would become perhaps the final songwriting team in the history of soul. Among their classic compositions are Sam and Dave's "Soul Man." Hold on, I'm Comin'." "When Something Is Wrong with My Baby." "Wrap It Up." and "I'll Thank You." These songs, in essence defined soul music in the latter half of the 1960s.
On April 9, 1988, Dave Prater died in a car accident. R.I.P
ReplyDeleteIn May 1968, Stax and Atlantic severed their distribution agreement. As Sam and Dave were alwayssigned directly to Atlantic and "loaned" to Stax, they were forced to remain with Atlantic. Separated from The Hayes and Porter songwriting team and the Stax session musicians, Sam and Dave's chart success immediately came to an end.
ReplyDeleteDavid "Dave" Prater is a member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (1992), the Grammy Hall of Fame (1999, for the song "Soul Man"), the Vocal Group Hall of Fame, and the Georgia Music Hall of Fame (1997), and he was a Grammy Award–winning (1967) and multiple Gold Record award-winning recording artist.
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