VARIOUS - EAST MEMPHIS MUSIC: THE HITS – PROMO 5 LP BOXED SET (1982) STAX/HI NM

	£		70
	$		93

VARIOUS - EAST MEMPHIS MUSIC: THE HITS – PROMO 5 LP BOXED SET (1982) STAX/HI

81 songs mainly from the Stax and Hi catalogues

Overall condition for covers, vinyl and booklet:

NEAR MINT/EXCELLENT

Thick outer cover has slight wear on top rim (2cm) (see photo), therefore graded as EXCELLENT condition

Thick inner cover in NEAR MINT condition

Each LP is housed in its own sleeve on which is printed the track listing. All sleeves and vinyl are in NEAR MINT condition.

Booklet has a minor tear (0.5cm) (see photo) on the first page at the opening, therefore graded as EXCELLENT condition

In 1982, Irving Music Inc. (part of Rondor Music International Inc.) based in Hollywood, California, purchased the publishing company East Memphis Music, whose catalogue comprised mainly of songs from the legendary Memphis-based Stax and Hi labels.

Shortly following their acquisition of the East Memphis Music catalogue, Irving Music Inc. produced a 5-LP boxed set entitled ‘East Memphis Music – The Hits’ containing selections from their new catalogue. 1,000 copies were pressed and distributed within the record industry chiefly to record companies to encourage their artists to record versions of songs from it. Whereas the majority of the 81 tracks are recognisable as being the Stax and Hi hits of the day, there are several interesting exceptions. For example, ‘live’ versions of well-known songs rather than the studio-recorded hit 45s are presented: ‘Mr. Pitiful’, ‘I Can’t Turn You Loose’, ‘Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa (Sad Song)’ by Otis Redding and ‘Gee Whiz’ by Carla Thomas. Furthermore, ‘cover’ versions including ‘Born Under A Bad Sign’ (Cream), ‘Soul Man’ (The Blues Brothers) and ‘Take Me To The River’ (Talking Heads) are chosen in preference to the originals.

The most intriguing inclusions are three tracks quoted on the inner sleeve as ‘Originally Performed By…..’, followed by the name of the artist. The first of these is ‘I’ll Be The Other Woman’ - ‘Originally Performed By The Soul Children’. This track is certainly by The Soul Children, but it is neither the original 45 nor the LP version (from the album ‘Friction’). Most probably it’s an alternate take or a later unreleased cut. The second is ‘You Got Me Hummin’’, ‘Originally Performed By Sam & Dave’ but is actually by J. Blackfoot (formerly of The Soul Children) which appeared on his Sound Town LP ‘Physical Attraction’. This album didn’t come out until 1984, thus Blackfoot had to have recorded it some years earlier, possibly whilst he was still at Stax. The final track of this trio is ‘Lovin’ On Borrowed Time’ which has ‘Originally Performed By William Bell’ on the sleeve. In this version, J. Blackfoot takes lead vocals together with possibly Shelbra Bennett which suggests it’s an unreleased track by The Soul Children. Finally, ‘It’s So Wonderful’ was penned by Frederick with Sam Dees. Although stated on the sleeve as ‘Performed By Frederick Knight’, aural evidence would strongly suggest the vocalist to be Sam Dees, whose publishing catalogue is handled by Rondor Music International Inc.!

The packaging includes a 16-page LP-size booklet containing a short potted history of the Memphis Sound. This is followed by the lyrics, the publisher and year of original publication of 79 out of the 81 songs in alphabetical order, the remaining two tracks being instrumentals by Booker T. & The MGs. These are interspersed with black and white publicity shots of Otis Redding, Sam & Dave and Rufus Thomas amongst others.

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