It’s shaping up to be one of THE BIG proper soul releases of 2023… we’re talking about a mammoth 7CD, 146 track collection of real Stax rarities! The giant album is ‘WRITTEN IN THEIR SOUL: THE STAX SONGWRITER DEMOS’ and it’s been compiled by multiple GRAMMY®-winning producer Cheryl Pawelski and restored/mastered by multiple GRAMMY®-winning engineer Michael Graves.
The songs featured on the collection fall into three categories: demos that were released by artists at Stax or its subsidiary imprints, including Volt, We Produce, and Enterprise (CDs 1–3); demos by Stax songwriters that were released by artists on other labels, such as Atlantic and Decca (CD 4); and a trove of hit-worthy recordings that were never released (CDs 5–7). Adding real context to these songs are notes by Pawelski, plus a new essay by Emmy® and GRAMMY-winning writer/producer Robert Gordon and Stax’s original Director of Publicity and 2x Emmy® winner, Deanie Parker, who later served as the founding President and CEO of the Soulsville Foundation, which encompasses the Stax Museum of American Soul Music, among other educational organizations. Ms. Parker, who joined the Stax fold in 1962, was also a songwriter at the label.
Sadly, we’ll have to wait till the end of June to enjoy this soulful treasure trove but as a tiny taster, the first single from the collection is now good to stream/download. It’s a remarkable, truthful demo of ‘634-5789 (Soulsville, USA)’. Written by Eddie Floyd and Steve Cropper, the song was famously recorded by Wilson Pickett, who made it a No.1 R&B hit and Top 20 pop single in 1966. Released on Atlantic Records, the song’s title was inspired by the Marvelettes’ 1962 hit, ‘Beechwood 4-5789,’ while the tune would later be recorded by Tina Turner, Ry Cooder, and Bon Jovi. This never previously released version features Eddie Floyd on vocals.
UNRELEASED VERSION OF “634-5789 (SOULSVILLE, USA)” PERFORMED BY EDDIE FLOYD OUT NOW;
‘WRITTEN IN THEIR SOUL: THE STAX SONGWRITER DEMOS’ RELEASED JUNE 23RD VIA CRAFT RECORDINGS.
