Stax Anniversary

Some of the bits of culture I was exposed to during my formative years- the things that really influenced me- were Monty Python's Flying Circus and the music of the Stax Records stars. God or whomever bless PBS and the soul radio stations out of Chicago.

I can't imagine what my childhood would have been like without the Ministry Of Silly Walks, The Fish Slapping Dance, Booker T. and the MGs, Otis Redding and Carla Thomas.

It's nice to see Mr. Stewart and Ms. Axton's massively influential label in the news again.

The sound was never exactly polished, but it had plenty of soul, and the Memphis sound created at Stax Records has found its own special place in the history of American music.Some of pop's most cherished recordings came out of the Stax studio, including Sam & Dave's "Soul Man," Otis Redding's "(Sitting On) The Dock of the Bay," and Isaac Hayes' Oscar-winning "Theme from Shaft."

Now, 50 years after a white country-fiddle player started down the road that led him to open a recording studio in a predominantly black, inner-city neighborhood, the Stax label is trying to make a comeback.