Sam & Dave

Sam & Dave in 1966

When Sam & Dave arrived at Stax, they worked with producer & engineer Jim Stewart and songwriters including the MGs' guitarist Steve Cropper, who wrote or co-wrote four of their first eight recordings. The duo then moved to relative newcomer writers and producers Isaac Hayes and David Porter. Hayes and Porter wrote and produced the duo's biggest hits (although they did not receive production credits until the Soul Men LP and singles). According to Moore and Prater, they also greatly influenced the duo's singing style,[8] and shifted their recording style from the style of their Roulette records to a more live, more energetic gospel, call-and-response feel and beat driven soul style the group is known for today.

Sam & Dave's Stax records also benefited from the musicians and engineering at Stax. The Stax house band, Booker T. & the M.G.'s, and the Stax horn section, the Mar-Keys, were world-class musicians who co-wrote (often without credit) and contributed to recordings—the same musicians who recorded with Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett, Carla Thomas and other soul artists. Sam & Dave's Stax recordings through 1967 were engineered by Stax founder Jim Stewart, who created the Memphis Sound by recording live in a single take. Stewart is credited for instrumental mixes that allowed for instrumental separation and the distinct contribution of each instrument to the overall feel of the song.

While the first two Stax singles failed to chart, the third, the Hayes/Porter composition (with similarities, including the title, to a gospel standard) "You Don't Know Like I Know" hit #7 R&B in 1966. This was the first of 10 consecutive Top Twenty R&B chart hits over three years, and 14 R&B chart appearances during their career.

"Hold On, I'm Comin'" (R&B#1/Pop#21), released in March 1966, was an enormous R&B hit for Sam & Dave, and also their first single to break into the Top 40 Pop charts. The song was named the #1 song of the year for 1966 by the Billboard R&B charts, and spent 20 weeks on the R&B charts in 1966, peaking at #1 in June. In 1988, Rolling Stone named it one of the best 100 songs of the past 25 years. "Hold On, I'm Comin'" received a belated RIAA gold record for one million sales in 1995, 29 years after its release.[9] "Hold On, I'm Comin'" has since been recorded by dozens of other artists.

"Hold On, I'm Comin'" was also the first recording on which Moore took lead on the first verse and Prater was given the response role and second verse at Hayes and Porter's suggestion. The duo used this format (singing dual leads) on most of their songs. The song was created when Hayes called to Porter, who was in the bathroom. Porter supposedly said "Hold on, man. I'm comin'," and Hayes and Porter wrote the song within 10 minutes.[9] "Hold On, I'm Comin'", when released, received objections from radio stations over the suggestive title. This resulted in a name change by Stewart and quick re-recording and re-release, and nearly all the original U.S. copies of the single bear the title "Hold On, I'm A-Comin'".

The LP Hold On, I'm Comin' (4/66) reached #1 for 19 weeks on the R&B album charts in 1966. After Sam & Dave's chart success, Roulette quickly released the album Sam & Dave in 1966 as well, a collection of the A & B sides of their six Roulette 45s, which did not chart.

Sam & Dave's next huge R&B hit was "When Something is Wrong With My Baby," their only ballad single, which was released in January 1967. Stax author Rob Bowman called this "One of the most sublime records in soul music's history," and Mar-Keys trumpet player Wayne Jackson called it the greatest song he has ever heard. This was the only Sam & Dave hit where Dave sang the first verse solo; their other hits started with Sam & Dave together or Sam singing the first verse. "When Something is Wrong With My Baby" has since become an often recorded and performed duet for male and female singers performing together.

The duo also charted in late 1966 with the top 10 R&B hits "Said I Wasn't Gonna Tell Nobody," and "You Got Me Hummin". These three singles, along with other tracks, were compiled on Double Dynamite (12/66), Sam & Dave's second LP on Stax. The LP peaked at #7 R&B and #118 Pop.

Sam & Dave's biggest hit and best-remembered song, "Soul Man" (R&B #1/Pop #2),[10] was released in August 1967. It was the number #1 song in the US according to Cashbox magazine Pop charts in November 1967. Sam & Dave won the Grammy Award in 1967 for "Best Performance – Rhythm & Blues Group" for "Soul Man," their first gold record. "Soul Man" was voted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999. The song helped name the emerging music genre as "Soul Music". According to co-writer Isaac Hayes, the title was inspired by news reports of soul pride that emerged after the 1967 race riots, where stores that painting the word "soul" on your door was a message for looters to bypass your house. Hayes-Porter extrapolated that to "I'm a soul brother, I'm a soul man.". It has been recognized as one of the best or most influential songs of 50 years by the Grammy Hall of Fame, The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Rolling Stone, and R.I.A.A. Songs of the Century. "Soul Man" was used as the soundtrack and title for a 1986 film, a 2008 film Soul Men, a 1997–1998 television series. In 2019, "Soul Man" was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".[11]

The Soul Men LP (October 1967) was Sam & Dave's third Stax LP (R&B #5/Pop #68).[12] Musicologist Rob Bowman called Soul Men "One of the greatest soul music albums of all time." "Don't Knock It" from the LP was released as a single in France, but other songs were not released as U.S. singles due to the long run by "Soul Man" on the Pop charts (15 weeks), by which time "I Thank You/Wrap It Up" was ready for release. "May I Baby," the B-side of "Soul Man," is also regarded as a classic song on the LP by Whitburn's "Top Pop Singles" guide, and was a popular live song performed frequently by Sam & Dave.

In 1968, Sam & Dave again charted with the gospel-inspired "I Thank You/Wrap It Up" (R&B #4/Pop #9). Critics commented that the B-side "Wrap It Up" could have been a separate successful single, which it later became for The Fabulous Thunderbirds. Because the duo were so busy touring, Hayes & Porter traveled to Europe to record the vocal track on "Wrap It Up" in order to release the single. Due to the end of the distribution agreement between Stax and Atlantic Records in May 1968, "I Thank You" was Sam & Dave's final single on Stax. Although they continued to work at Stax with Hayes/Porter, as of May 1968, the duo's work was released on Atlantic Records. "I Thank You" sold over one million copies, earning it gold record status.[13]

Sam & Dave's first 1968 single for Atlantic was "You Don't Know What You Mean to Me," written by Eddie Floyd and Steve Cropper (R&B #19/Pop #48). Sam & Dave said it was their favorite of their songs.[14] Sam & Dave also released "Can't You Find Another Way (of Doing It)" (#20 R&B/#54 Pop), but it was not included in the I Thank You LP. Their final single of 1968, "Everybody Got to Believe in Somebody," charted in the lower levels of the pop charts and ended Sam & Dave's streak at 10 straight R&B top 20 singles.

Though on Atlantic, the I Thank You LP (10/68) included 1968 singles initially on both Stax and Atlantic. The LP peaked at #38 on the R&B charts, and was the only LP of their Stax recordings not to chart on the Pop LP charts.[15]

Sam & Dave's live act earned them the nickname "Double Dynamite." Phil Walden, Otis Redding's manager, said "I think Sam & Dave will probably stand the test of time as being the best live act that there ever was. Those guys were absolutely unbelievable. Every night they were awesome." An article from Time in October 1968 reads: "Of all the R&B cats, nobody steams up a place like Sam & Dave ... weaving and dancing (while singing!), they gyrate through enough acrobatics to wear out more than 100 costumes per year." Jerri Hershey described in Nowhere to Run: They carried red suits, white suits, three piece lime green suits, all with matching patent boots and coordinated silk hankies woefully inadequate to absorb a soul man's nightly outpourings. Both Sam & Dave talk a lot about sweat. To Dave, its proof that he's worked for his pay. For Sam its essential, almost mystical. He says he cannot work without it. "Unless my body reaches a certain temperature, starts to liquefy, I just don't feel right without it." Wayne Jackson said Sam & Dave left puddles of sweat onstage by the end of a performance.

In March 1967, Sam & Dave were co-headliners for the Stax/Volt Revue in Europe, which included Booker T & the MGs, The Mar-Keys, Eddie Floyd, Carla Thomas, Arthur Conley and headliner Otis Redding. It was the duo's first trip to Europe. Although Redding headlined the tour, many agreed Sam & Dave stole the show on many nights. According to Redding's and Sam & Dave's manager Phil Walden, Redding refused to be booked on the same bill with Sam & Dave again, not wanting to have to follow their explosive act. A live version of "Soothe Me" from Sam & Dave's Double Dynamite LP was recorded in Paris during the 1967 tour. Released as a single in mid-1967, it continued Sam & Dave's string of top 20 U.S. R&B hits and was their first in the UK Top 40.

After the tour, Sam & Dave worked as headliners in the U.S. and in Europe during Fall 1967, Fall 1968 and January 1970, and in Japan in 1969 and 1970. They averaged 280 shows per year from 1967 through 1969 and in 1967, they only took ten days off. Other high points included headlining the Montreal World's Fair in 1967, performing at the tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr. at Madison Square Garden in June 1968, being the first black soul act to headline the Fillmore East in December 1968, and headlining the Texas International Pop Festival for two nights in August 1969. Sam & Dave also performed on U.S. and European television, including two appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1969, appearing on The Tonight Show and American Bandstand in 1967, and performing on The Mike Douglas Show in 1969 and 1970. Moore frequently recalls the performances on The Ed Sullivan Show as a career highlight.

The year 1969 started well, with the Atlantic release of The Best of Sam & Dave LP in January. It contained all of their Stax A sides except "A Place Nobody Can Find" and several B-sides, and peaked at #24 on the R&B LP charts and #89 on the Billboard LP charts.[16] Their first single of the year, "Soul Sister, Brown Sugar," returned Sam & Dave to the R&B top 20, and was a #15 hit in the UK.[17] The follow-up "Born Again," reached the lower levels of the charts, and was the last single Sam & Dave recorded at Stax.

Jerry Wexler with co-producer Tom Dowd tried producing Sam & Dave in New York, with Atlantic songwriters and musicians. It took eight months to issue "Ooh, Ooh, Ooh", the first Atlantic single in August 1969. It was not a very good record, by Sam's own admission, and it represented the first time in four years that a Sam & Dave single failed to chart.

Two more singles followed in 1970, "Baby, Baby, Don't Stop Now," and "One Part Love, Two Parts Pain." The first was a leftover Hayes-Porter recording from Stax; the second was produced by Wexler and Dowd in New York, and was written by Stax executive Al Bell and Allen Jones. Both failed to chart. According to Wexler, "We just made some shit-ass records with them. I never really got into their sensibilities as a producer."[18] Wexler then sent the duo south to Muscle Shoals and Miami to work with producers Brad Shapiro and Dave Crawford for their next single "Knock It Out The Park," which also failed to chart.

Sam & Dave split in June 1970, according to Moore, as a result of his dissatisfaction with the duo and his desire to pursue a career solo.[19][20] According to Prater, they broke up because "[Moore] decided to do what he wanted to do on his own." Moore performed with his own revue in 1970.[19] He recorded three solo singles (none of which charted) for Atlantic over the next year and was preparing an album produced by King Curtis, which was shelved after Curtis was stabbed to death in 1971. Prater recorded a single for Alston. Neither was commercially successful as a solo act, and they reunited in August 1971.

In October 1971, their last Atlantic single, "Don't Pull Your Love," was a cover of a hit by Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds. This Shapiro/Crawford production was a minor hit (R&B #36/Pop #102), but not a substantial enough commercial success to keep the duo signed to the label. Sam & Dave recorded four final songs for Atlantic in August, 1972, none of which was released by the label. Their contract with Atlantic expired shortly thereafter.