Sam and Dave

By Kalamu ya Salaam  

Anyone who is even halfway interested in Soul music needs to either own The Definitive Soul Collection or own the original recordings from which these selections are taken. That’s all I have to say about that.

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On another note, I do have a theory about why Sam Moore and Dave Pratter were both popular in the sixties and why we ought to listen to them today.

Most critics point to Sam and Dave as being heavily church influenced—an influence the artists themselves have acknowledged as far as their style of singing goes. Well here comes some heretical thoughts for you to consider.

I believe these cats were blues men and while they may have gotten their early experience singing in the church, they are reflections of Southern street folk. In the seventies that meant they were also strong supporters of the movement.

When I say strong, I don’t mean they put money in the collection plate and joined in a march or two. If you weren’t around during that period, you probably have not thought about all of the folk who were the foot soldiers fighting the Klan, resisting racist cops, and generally throwing monkey wrenches into the machinery of the system.

Remember those pictures of fire hoses knocking people down, people who got up and kept marching? Dogs turned loose on demonstrators, police attacking with billy clubs and rifle butts, sometimes bayonets and during the heavier conflicts shooting at the blacks and backs of our skin. And the people fighting back: punching out a German Shepherd and going lick for lick with the South’s finest.

Those were intense times. Imagine what it took to stand up to high pressure water hoses. What fortitude you have to muster up to march down main street to meet Bull Connor and his twisted crew.

Now imagine the aftermath. Imagine a broken arm, a busted skull, a couple of days in the slammer, a lost job, a $300 or $400  fine. Imagine all the heavy social dues you had to pay. Eventually most of the leaders got taken care of but what about the little people, the ones who always bear the brunt of the cost of bringing about change?

These were people who had little and gave a lot, gave much, much more than those to whom much had already been given. The intensity, the rawness, the instant energy, the seriousness of Sam and Dave music was a reflection of what peoples was doing on a daily basis.

The foot soldiers didn’t want to hear no bullshit music. Think about it. That’s where the strength of Sam and Dave’s music came from. It’s something we need to never forget, need to always remember, need to study up on and learn as much as we can about how we got into a position to be able to learn as much as we can—whether we’re taking advantage of all our advantages is a whole other question.

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I do need to acknowledge the talented song writing team of Isaac Hayes and David Porter who crafted perfect vehicles for Sam and Dave. I particularly like the pick-ups, those little introductory phrases that made the songs instantly identifiable. *   *   *   *   * Lastly, for those who might not fully understand my theory about the movement, I’ll leave you with this little quote to marinate on: At one time, I was trying to find myself, so I became a follower of Elijah Muhammad. I would listen to Malcolm X in the street, he was so mesmerizing. Malcolm was something of a Nat King Cole. What I mean by this, is that he had green eyes, just like Nat King Cole.

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One more thing. Sam and Dave, who met at a nightclub in Miami, started off signed to Roulette Records, a mafia outfit.

You read correctly. I said MAFIA outfit. The entertainment industry was gangsta heaven, I mean real gangstas and not act-like gangstas.

Sam and Dave had a good five year run and then things went south. Atlantic and Stax had a falling out. Sam and Dave were signed to Atlantic but produced by Stax. No more Stax production work, no more Hayes and Porter songs. No more…

It’s not a pretty story. (There’s a whole lot more but that’s all for another time.)

The music was strong because the times were tough and to cut through the bullshit you needed something sharp and strong that could cut deep and long, hence Soul music, not mention that switchblade, sword, and axe that was sixties jazz.

See, what you’re listening to, regardless of what the lyrics seem to be saying, what you’re listening to is the weapon of music; our spear and shield—other than literally gumming up the works by inserting our bodies into the gears of industry, we didn’t have much else we could fight with.

Sam and Dave this was strong, black, mannish music. Listen. Listen, see if it don’t do something to you, something for you.

Goodnight. Good luck.

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posted 18 May 2009