The Stax Records singer whose early hits helped define the Memphis sound.
For a quick sense of her style, put on 'B-A-B-Y' and 'Woke Up In The Morning' back to back. That's the range, polished hitmaking and easy, conversational soul.
When 'Gee Whiz (Look At His Eyes)' hit in 1960, it announced a new voice on the Memphis scene. Her 1966 R&B chart-topper 'B-A-B-Y' became one of Stax's signature singles, and songs like 'A Love Of My Own' show the warmth and directness she brought to the label's catalog. She was part of that first wave of Stax artists who gave the sound its identity.
She signed with Stax at 18, right out of high school, and 'Gee Whiz' became an immediate hit. Through the mid-60s she recorded albums like 'Comfort Me' and scored with 'B-A-B-Y', working alongside her father Rufus Thomas at the label.
Keep it compact: a lyric you come back to, a live memory, or the part of the catalog you would point someone toward first.
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