Bring the Soul!!

https://open.spotify.com/user/1230390376/playlist/1yOttuwpRhdgvrc4m2XnK7

(this is the Spotify link to a playlist featuring songs recorded at Fame Studios!)

The UK newspaper The Guardian summarized Fame Studio founder Rick Hall's career with these words: "What made (Rick)Hall ... stand out was his position at the confluence of the three key strands of black and white American popular music – gospel, country and R&B – which merged to provide the foundation of so much of significance in that and succeeding decades."

Nothing else really needs to be said about Rick Hall.  From great tragedy in his life, the death’s of his wife and father, both in 1957, Rick Hall found the strength to begin a journey that would land him in the center of a musical Bermuda triangle of great music that is still happening to this day.  With a simple recording by Arthur Alexander, Hall began a storm of great music!

FAME recording studios opened its doors 1959 and has been going strong ever since.  There have been moves and studio band changes, ( a little group called the Swampers, moved from fame studios to their own temple of groove, Muscle Shoals, with a little help from Jerry Wexler.)   Whether it was Blues, R&B, Soul, Pop, Country, Gospel, Disco, Punk, Hall and FAME Studios added a kind of magic that, I believe Helen Keller accurately understood when she said her first word, “Water,” (Keller grew up in Florence and you can visit her house. A place of real magic.)  The Muscle Shoals documentary also hints at the magic must come from the land and the water.

Hall described his production style as “colorblind.”  Although not far from Birmingham, where the race battle was happening in the 60’s, at FAME studios,  those ideas of segregation and division based on color, had no place in the songwriting and recording world of Rick Hall.  Much like many of the great studios, (Motown, Stax, etc.) the music transcended the colors of skin. In fact, the color of skin was the catalyst for the great music, as so many of the artists and session musicians brought with them their stories and experiences which helped flavor the music with a unique blend of sonic seasoning.

I had the fortunate experience of visiting FAME studios with my friend Resa, a few years ago, and stood in those studios.  Touched the keyboard, where “Do Right Man, Do Right Woman,” was originally composed.  Breathing the air, and walking upon the lime green carpets up to Rick’s office.  The studio offers a tour and as long as the studios are not being used, guests have access to most everything.  We walked into the studio with our guide Dick Cross, a writer and photographer for Muscle Shoals, and one of the founders of the Alabama Hall of Fame.  We scored big with our tour guide and being able to visit these spots with comments from the lens of Cross only enriched the journey. After the Swampers moved to Muscle Shoals studios, Hall turned his attention to pop music, (The walls leading to Hall’s office are covered with gold records, most from the pop sensation the Osmond Family,) as well as country music.  But still the hits kept coming, and artists are still recording there to this day, (Gregg Allman’s last recording was done at FAME, to honor his brother, Duane, who had camped out in the parking lot until he was hired.  Duane recorded on so many sessions for R&B acts, Wilson Pickett, King Curtis, Aretha and host of others before starting the Allman Brothers Band.  Ironically, when Duane brought the Allman’s idea to Hall, Hall rejected it.)

I know the magic is there because I walked through it, touched the walls and instruments and held the photos in my hands.  It was if the ghosts of those chords and melodies hung in the air, waiting for the next musician to pick up and instrument and play!!  Here in New Orleans, we have a fertile environment for the nurturing and growing of music, musicians and musical way of living. ( we throw some serious musical parties: Jazzfest, Voodoo Fest, French Quarter Fest etc.) so having music be a portion of the Lifeblood, is something this city is intimately familiar with, and to be able to go to another source of musical sorcery was a great experience for my feet and my soul.  Thank You, Rick Hall, for starting something we will never finish, but will patiently wait for the next tune!!