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#1 R&B, #2 Pop
Almost every wedding reception I have ever been to plays three songs that get the entire crowd up to dance. Those songs would of course be Marcia Griffin’s “Electric Slide,” Betty Wright’s ” Clean-Up Woman” and of course Jean Knight’s “Mr. Big Stuff.”
“Mr. Big Stuff” was one of the largest selling singles to ever come out of the Stax label and yet it was rejected by the Stax “suits” before it was finally accepted for release. Once management came to their senses and released the song, it sat at the top of the R&B charts for 5 weeks! It also stayed on the Pop charts at #2 for two weeks.
“Mr. Big Stuff” was composed by Joseph Broussard, Carrol Washington, Carol Washington and Ralph Williams. It was to be Knight’s only top ten hit.
In October 2007 Knight, born Jean Calista, was inducted into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame. This video is of her performance at the induction ceremony.
Check out these additional live performances of “Mr Big Stuff” at OSML’s sister site EOINA.
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#8 R&B USA, #27 Pop USA, #22 UK
Hailing from Birmingham, Alabama, singer-songwriter Frederick Knight was with a few other record labels before he came to Stax.
“I’ve Been Lonely For So Long” was his first of two hit singles while with the Stax label. Composed by Knight and Weaver, the song also appeared on Knight’s Stax Album of the same name. Released in 1973, the LP charted #58 in 1974.
TRIVIA: Frederick Knight’s “I’ve Been Lonely For So Long” LP contained a cover of “Someday We’ll Be Together,” the one and the same Johnny Bristol, Jackey Beavers and Harvey Fuqua penned song, that was the last Supremes 1969 hit recorded by Diana Ross.
After a second hit, Stax folded and Knight started his own record label Juana Records, where singer Anita Bell had a 1979 #1 Pop and R&B hit with the Knight penned song “Ring My Bell” here in the USA and across the pond in the UK.
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#106 Pop
You may remember Carla for her 1967 chart topping duet (#2 R&B, #26 Pop) with Otis Redding, “Tramp,” but she was also William Bell’s third duet partner.
“I Can’t Stop,” composed by Carla and William Bell, is another track from the 1968 William Bell “Duets” LP.
In 1969, the song also appeared on another Stax album of duets that included all of the Stax Artists. The LP, “Boy Meets Girl,” did not do very well on the charts.
[Audio clip: view full post to listen] William Bell, like Motown’s Marvin Gaye, had more than one duet partner while at Stax: Judy Clay was his first. But after she went back to Atlantic Records there were other partners. The LP pictured above, “William Bell Duets,” was released in 1968 and included “Strung Out” along [...]
[Audio clip: view full post to listen] #17 R&B USA, #75 Pop USA, #8 UK This is one of the classic oldies that I had completely forgotten about until I heard it playing on Sirius Satellite Radio “Soul Town” a few years ago. As soon as I heard it I was taken back to another [...]
[Audio clip: view full post to listen] #4 R&B , #35 Pop Otis created the song “Respect” as he recorded it for what was his third LP “Otis Blue/Otis Redding Sings Soul”. This was just one of the many hits on this classic 1965 set that went #1 R&B the year of release and reached [...]
[Audio clip: view full post to listen] #4 Adult Contemporary , #6 Pop When looking over my notes trying to select what soulful British singer I was going to post about, it struck me out of the blue that not only hadn’t I selected any women for this month, but I would be remiss in [...]
