Presenting Isaac Hayes
Encyclopedia
Presenting Isaac Hayes was Soul
musician Isaac Hayes
' debut album, issued in 1968. The LP was the first release on Stax Records
' Enterprise label; Hayes had for several years served as one of Stax's key songwriters, producers, and studio musicians.
Recorded to appease Stax vice president Alvertis Isbell (Al Bell), Presenting features Hayes recording with Booker T. & the MGs members Al Jackson, Jr. and Donald "Duck" Dunn as a jazz trio
. No material was prepared for the sessions, so the three musicians improvised an album's worth of material.
"Precious, Precious", recorded as an eighteen-minute jazz piece, was edited to under three minutes for release as a single. Both the 45 and the album underperformed, and Hayes would only continue his recording career after Stax lost its entire backlog to Atlantic Records
during the process of breaking away from Atlantic. The lack of material necessitated all Stax artists - Hayes included - to record albums for release, resulting in Hayes' successful and groundbreaking Hot Buttered Soul
.
Following Hayes' success with Hot Buttered Soul, Black Moses, and the Shaft
soundtrack, Atlantic reissued Presenting Isaac Hayes under the title In the Beginning.
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
musician Isaac Hayes
Isaac Hayes
Isaac Lee Hayes, Jr. was an American songwriter, musician, singer and actor. Hayes was one of the creative influences behind the southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served both as an in-house songwriter and as a record producer, teaming with his partner David Porter during the...
' debut album, issued in 1968. The LP was the first release on Stax Records
Stax Records
Stax Records is an American record label, originally based in Memphis, Tennessee.Founded in 1957 as Satellite Records, the name Stax Records was adopted in 1961. The label was a major factor in the creation of the Southern soul and Memphis soul music styles, also releasing gospel, funk, jazz, and...
' Enterprise label; Hayes had for several years served as one of Stax's key songwriters, producers, and studio musicians.
Recorded to appease Stax vice president Alvertis Isbell (Al Bell), Presenting features Hayes recording with Booker T. & the MGs members Al Jackson, Jr. and Donald "Duck" Dunn as a jazz trio
Jazz trio
The term "piano trio" in jazz usually refers to a group comprising a pianist, a double bass player and a drummer. The pianist is usually considered the leader of these trios, and trios are usually named after their pianist...
. No material was prepared for the sessions, so the three musicians improvised an album's worth of material.
"Precious, Precious", recorded as an eighteen-minute jazz piece, was edited to under three minutes for release as a single. Both the 45 and the album underperformed, and Hayes would only continue his recording career after Stax lost its entire backlog to Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
during the process of breaking away from Atlantic. The lack of material necessitated all Stax artists - Hayes included - to record albums for release, resulting in Hayes' successful and groundbreaking Hot Buttered Soul
Hot Buttered Soul
Hot Buttered Soul was Isaac Hayes' second studio album. Released in 1969, it is recognized as a landmark in soul music.-Album history:The album almost never came to be...
.
Following Hayes' success with Hot Buttered Soul, Black Moses, and the Shaft
Shaft (album)
Shaft is a double album by Isaac Hayes, recorded for Stax Records' Enterprise label as the soundtrack LP for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's 1971 Soul Cinema Classic film Shaft. The album mostly consists of instrumentals composed by Hayes as score for the film. Three vocal selections are included:...
soundtrack, Atlantic reissued Presenting Isaac Hayes under the title In the Beginning.
Side one
- "Precious, Precious" (Isaac HayesIsaac HayesIsaac Lee Hayes, Jr. was an American songwriter, musician, singer and actor. Hayes was one of the creative influences behind the southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served both as an in-house songwriter and as a record producer, teaming with his partner David Porter during the...
) - 2:45 - "When I Fall in LoveWhen I Fall in Love"When I Fall in Love" is a 1952 popular song recorded by many artists.When I Fall in Love may also refer to:* When I Fall in Love , an album by Chris Botti, with a version of the 1952 song...
" (Edward HeymanEdward HeymanEdward Heyman was an American musician and lyricist, best known for his compositions "Body and Soul", "When I Fall in Love", and "For Sentimental Reasons". He also contributed many songs for films.-Biography:...
, Victor YoungVictor YoungVictor Young was an American composer, arranger, violinist and conductor. He was born in Chicago.-Biography:...
) - 3:28 - Medley: "I Just Want to Make Love to YouI Just Want to Make Love to YouIn 1961, Etta James recorded the song for her debut album At Last!. Her rendition also served as the b-side to her hit "At Last." In 1996, Etta James' version became popular in the UK after featuring in a Diet Coke ad campaign. As a result, the single was re-released there...
" / "Rock Me BabyRock Me Baby (song)"Rock Me Baby" is a blues standard that has become one of the most recorded blues songs of all time. When B.B. King released "Rock Me Baby" in 1964, it became a Top 40 hit reaching #34 in the Billboard Hot 100. The song is based on earlier blues songs and has been interpreted and recorded by a...
" (Willie DixonWillie DixonWilliam James "Willie" Dixon was an American blues musician, vocalist, songwriter, arranger and record producer. A Grammy Award winner who was proficient on both the Upright bass and the guitar, as well as his own singing voice, Dixon is arguably best known as one of the most prolific songwriters...
, Joe Josea, Carole KingCarole KingCarole King is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. King and her former husband Gerry Goffin wrote more than two dozen chart hits for numerous artists during the 1960s, many of which have become standards. As a singer, King had an album, Tapestry, top the U.S...
) - 9:04
Side two
- Medley: "I'm Going to Chicago Blues" / "MistyMisty (song)"Misty" is a jazz standard written in 1954 by the pianist Erroll Garner.Originally composed as an instrumental following the traditional 32-bar format, the tune later had lyrics by Johnny Burke and became the signature song of Johnny Mathis, reaching #12 on the U.S. Pop Singles chart in 1959...
" (Count BasieCount BasieWilliam "Count" Basie was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. Basie led his jazz orchestra almost continuously for nearly 50 years...
, Jimmy RushingJimmy RushingJames Andrew Rushing , known as Jimmy Rushing, was an American blues shouter and swing jazz singer from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, best known as the featured vocalist of Count Basie's Orchestra from 1935 to 1948.Rushing was known as "Mr...
, Erroll GarnerErroll GarnerErroll Louis Garner was an American jazz pianist and composer known for his swing playing and ballads. His best-known composition, the ballad "Misty", has become a jazz standard...
, Johnny BurkeJohnny BurkeJohnny Burke was a Newfoundland songwriter and musician. He was nicknamed the 'Bard of Prescott Street'. He wrote many popular songs that artists in the 1930s and 1940s released.Popular songs by Burke include:* The Night Paddy Murphy Died...
) - 6:45 - "You Don't Know Like I Know" (Hayes, David PorterDavid Porter (musician)David Porter is an American soul musician. Porter is best known as the songwriting and production partner of Isaac Hayes at Stax Records during the 1960s...
) - 8:30
Personnel
- Isaac HayesIsaac HayesIsaac Lee Hayes, Jr. was an American songwriter, musician, singer and actor. Hayes was one of the creative influences behind the southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served both as an in-house songwriter and as a record producer, teaming with his partner David Porter during the...
- vocals, pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal... - Donald "Duck" Dunn - bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Al Jackson Jr. - drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
- Arif MardinArif MardinArif Mardin was a Turkish-American music producer, who worked with hundreds of artists across many different styles of music, including jazz, rock, soul, disco, and country...
, Steve CropperSteve CropperSteve Cropper , also known as Steve "The Colonel" Cropper, is an American guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as the guitarist of the Stax Records house band, Booker T...
- mixing - Alvertis Isbell - supervision
- Bill Kington, API Photographers - photography
- Loring Eutemey - cover design