Bob Mehr's Memphis Music Beat: Chips Moman, American Studios band to be recognized with marker

http://www.commercialappeal.com/go-memphis/music/memphis-music-beat/bob-mehrs-memphis-music-beat-chips-moman-american-studios-band-to-be-recognized-with-marker

From the site:

The 2014 edition of Elvis Week (Aug. 8-17) is fast approaching. The calendar of Presley-related events is packed, as ever, with concerts, panels, film screenings and celebrations of all kinds. And while the King will be the focus of most of the proceedings, another set of Memphis icons will also be given the spotlight.

On Wednesday, August 13, Chips Moman and the American Studios band will finally get some long-overdue recognition with the unveiling of a Shelby County Historical Marker near 827 Thomas Street. The address — at Thomas and Chelsea Avenue — is the site of the former American Recording Studio, the place where Moman and the band cut Elvis’ crucial 1969 “comeback” sessions, and recorded dozens and dozens (roughly 120, depending on the source) of chart hits between 1962 and 1972.

 

Rick Hall: Always Looking For That Song

http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2014/07/rick-hall-pt-1.html

From the site: 

Hall: I was a fan of Wilson Pickett long before I had even heard of Aretha Franklin. I had no idea who she was at the time. I knew her father though. We used to listen to him preach. That was our entertainment when we were driving. We had to stay awake, so we would listen to him preach. We figured that since we had so much success, we should try recording Aretha. Most every writer who ever writes about this gets it wrong. We did not just use the usual four guys for it. Chips Moman helped. He was a record producer who had worked with Elvis Presley. He had done “Son of a Preacher Man” and all of these things. Chips was also a guitar player who knew what to play and when to play it. Most of the other guys just hunted for things. “Funky Broadway” was his lick. “Land of a Thousand Dances” was his lick. He said, “Jimmy, why don’t you play this, and I’ll play that.” 

 

Carl Perkins, Ann Peebles, Chips Moman Among the Memphis Music Hall of Fame's 2014 Inductees

http://abcnewsradioonline.com/music-news/2014/7/1/carl-perkins-ann-peebles-chips-moman-among-the-memphis-music.html
From the site:

The 2014 honorees have been announced for induction into the Memphis Music Hall of Fame.  Among the nine luminaries who will be welcomed into the institution this fall at the Hall's third annual induction ceremony are rock 'n' roll pioneer Carl Perkins, acclaimed soul singer Ann Peebles, renowned producer/songwriters Chips Moman and Al Bell, blues great Furry Lewis, folk singer/songwriter Jesse Winchester and influential power-pop band Big Star.

The inductees were announced this past week at a press conference held at Memphis' Hard Rock Café Beale Street.  A Memphis Music Hall of Fame museum and exhibit currently is under construction and is expected to open early next year at 126 Beale Street, the former site of Lansky Bros., a famous clothing store known for providing outfits for such rock 'n' roll legends as Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison and others.  Memphis' Hard Rock Café is scheduled to reopen at the same location this Thursday.

In conjunction with their induction, every new honoree will be celebrated with their own tribute page on the Memphis Music Hall of Fame's website, and will receive the Mike Curb Award, the Memphis Hall's official trophy.

The nine new inductees join 38 previous honorees, including Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Otis Redding, Al Green, Isaac Hayes, Booker T. and The MG's, ZZ Top, The Staple Singers, B.B. King, Sun Records founder Sam Phillips, Johnny Cash, Albert King, Carla Thomas and The Bar-Kays.

Teenie Hodges

Sad to hear of the recent passing of Teenie Hodges -- the great guitarist and songwriter who played on and wrote many of the great Memphis R&B recordings from Hi / Willie Mitchell and others.

Here is a nice tribute from Rolling Stone:

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/teenie-hodges-songwriter-and-guitarist-for-al-green-dead-at-68-20140624

From the site:

"Teenie created the groove, the pocket, as one would call it. That came from the way he played rhythmically," musician and friend David Porter told the Commercial Appeal. "That groove was what made the records for Al Green and so many others such big hits. And that sound, that feel, it came totally from Teenie's spirit. That's what the world should know about this man: his heart is in all those records."