''Memphis Underground'' is a 1969 album by

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

flutist

Herbie Mann Herbert Jay Solomon (April 16, 1930 – July 1, 2003), known by his stage name Herbie Mann, was an American jazz flute player and important early practitioner of world music. Early in his career, he also played tenor saxophone and clarinet (inclu ...

, that fuses the genres of jazz and

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

(R&B). While Mann and the other principal soloists (

Roy Ayers Roy Ayers (born September 10, 1940) is an American funk, soul, and jazz composer, vibraphone player, and music producer. Ayers began his career as a post-bop jazz artist, releasing several albums with Atlantic Records, before his tenure at ...

Larry Coryell Larry Coryell (born Lorenz Albert Van DeLinder III; April 2, 1943 – February 19, 2017) was an American jazz guitarist. Early life Larry Coryell was born in Galveston, Texas, United States. He never knew his biological father, a musician. He ...

and

Sonny Sharrock Warren Harding "Sonny" Sharrock (August 27, 1940 – May 25, 1994) was an American jazz guitarist. He was married to singer Linda Sharrock, with whom he recorded and performed. One of only a few prominent guitarists who participated in the fir ...

) were leading jazz musicians, the album was recorded in

Chips Moman Lincoln Wayne "Chips" Moman (June 12, 1937 – June 13, 2016) was an American record producer, guitarist, and songwriter. He is known for working in R&B, pop music and country music, operating American Sound Studios and producing hit albums li ...

's American Sound Studio in Memphis, a studio used by many well-known R&B and pop artists. The

rhythm section A rhythm section is a group of musicians within a music ensemble or band that provides the underlying rhythm, harmony and pulse of the accompaniment, providing a rhythmic and harmonic reference and "beat" for the rest of the band. The rhyth ...

was the house band at American Studios. The recording was engineered and produced by

Tom Dowd Thomas John Dowd (October 20, 1925 – October 27, 2002) was an American recording engineer and producer for Atlantic Records. He was credited with innovating the multitrack recording method. Dowd worked on a veritable "who's who" of recording ...

. Three of the five songs on the album were covers of songs originally released by soul artists. " Hold On, I'm Comin'" (by Sam & Dave), who recorded at Stax records (with the Stax rhythm section), and "

Chain of Fools "Chain of Fools" is a song written by Don Covay. Aretha Franklin first released the song as a single in 1967 and subsequently it appeared on many of her albums. It hit number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot Rhythm & Blues chart and number two on ...

" (by

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the " Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in '' Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". Wit ...

) who recorded that song with the classic Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section at FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. Two members of the rhythm section on Franklin's recording ( Gene Chrisman and Tommy Cogbill) perform on ''Memphis Underground''. A third song, "

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

", was also released by R&B artist ( Gary U.S. Bonds), who recorded in Virginia. So though the only one song was certifiably of Memphis vintage, the conglomeration of young New York jazz musicians with one of the most storied Southern rhythm sections proved to be the catalyst for creating strong, fresh music that sounds like neither Memphis soul nor New York jazz. This unique sound appealed to a large audience.

Reception

The record is one of the best-selling Jazz albums of all time.

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

said "''Memphis Underground'' is a piece of musical alchemy, a marvelously intricate combination of the "Memphis sound" and jazz lyricism". ''Memphis Underground'' was a favorite album of writer Hunter S. Thompson, who mentions it positively in several chapters of his book '' Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail''. In the article ''

The Battle of Aspen "The Battle of Aspen" is an article published in ''Rolling Stone'' , dated October 1, 1970, and written by Hunter S. Thompson. The cover of the magazine ran the teaser "Freak Power in the Rockies," and the article was later reprinted with that ti ...

'', Thompson states that his "Freak Power" campaign used Mann's recording of "Battle Hymn of the Republic" as the background music for their commercials. Another writer, the British author Stewart Home, as a tribute to this Mann album, titled his 2007 novel (some call it an antinovel) ''Memphis Underground''. In the novel, Home makes multiple references to soul, northern soul and jazz soul music.

Track listing

# "Memphis Underground" (Herbie Mann) — 7:07 # "

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

" ( Frank Guida, Joseph Royster) — 2:07 # " Hold On, I'm Comin'" (

Isaac Hayes Isaac Lee Hayes Jr. (August 20, 1942 – August 10, 2008) was an American singer, actor, songwriter, and composer. He was one of the creative forces behind the Southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served both as an in-house songw ...

, David Porter) — 8:52 # "

" (

Don Covay Donald James Randolph (March 24, 1936 – January 31, 2015), better known by the stage name Don Covay, was an American R&B, rock and roll, and soul singer-songwriter most active from the 1950s to the 1970s. His most successful recordings incl ...

) — 10:42 # " Battle Hymn of the Republic" (Traditional, arranged by Herbie Mann) — 7:12

Personnel

* Herbie Mann – flute *

Reggie Young Reggie Grimes Young Jr. (December 12, 1936 – January 17, 2019) was an American musician who was lead guitarist in the American Sound Studio house band, The Memphis Boys, and was a leading session musician. He played on various recordings with a ...

– guitar *

Bobby Emmons Bobby Gene Emmons (February 19, 1943 – February 23, 2015) was an American keyboard player and songwriter. He was an active session musician in Memphis, Tennessee, and was the keyboardist of The Memphis Boys, playing keyboards on tracks by ...

– organ * Bobby Wood – electric and acoustic piano * Gene Chrisman – drums * Tommy Cogbill or Mike Leech - Fender bass (individual tracks not specified) * Also appearing on selected tracks: *

– vibes, conga on "Battle Hymn of the Republic" *

– guitar *

– guitar * Miroslav Vitouš - Fender bass on "Hold On, I'm Comin'" ;Technical *

– producer and engineer *

Joel Brodsky Joel Lee Brodsky (October 7, 1939 – March 1, 2007) was an American photographer, best known for his photography of musicians, particularly his iconic "Young Lion" photographs of Jim Morrison. In his lifetime, he is credited with photographing o ...

– cover photograph * William Albert Allard – back liner photograph

Renditions

In 1993, flutist

Alexander Zonjic Alexander Zonjic (Serbian Cyrillic: Александар Зоњић; born April 30, 1951) is a flutist born in Windsor, Ontario, who performs both light jazz and classical compositions in the United States, based in Detroit, Michigan. He is the s ...

covered the title track in his album "Passion."

References

{{Authority control 1969 albums Atlantic Records albums Herbie Mann albums Albums produced by Tom Dowd Albums with cover art by Joel Brodsky

Reception

Track listing

Personnel

Renditions

See also

References