Sunday, March 13, 2016

Reggie Young Chicken Pickin’

http://www.samsmileymusic.com/reggie-young-chicken-pickin/

From the site:

I have only written a little bit about Reggie Young, but he is one of the absolute masters of chicken pickin’.  He’s worked with most of the greats in country music and some of his absolute best work is with Merle Haggard, including on this recording of “Where’s all the Freedom.”  This tune is from the album Chicago Wind, which Merle recorded away from his typical live band featuring Redd Volkaert, not to mention Roy Nichols.  Talk about a serious guitar tradition…!

Terry Manning On photographing MLK, Recording with Chris Bell, and Being Stabbed by Stevie Nicks

http://www.memphisflyer.com/MusicBlog/archives/2016/03/11/terry-manning-on-photographing-mlk-recording-with-chris-bell-and-being-stabbed-by-stevie-nicks

From the site:

Though his own early recordings are highly regarded by critics and collectors, Terry Manning's best known for the records he's made as a music engineer and producer working with artists like the Staples Singers, ZZ Top, Isaac Hayes, and Led Zeppelin. Before cofounding the storied Compass Point recording studio in the Bahamas, Manning spent time in Memphis, working with both Stax and Ardent, and he can spin terrific yarns about things like the time he walked into Chips Moman's American Studios on Danny Thomas to discover grown men chasing a rat around the room swinging electric guitars like clubs. Manning's also a dedicated photographer and has been since the 1960s. "Scientific Evidence of Life on Earth During Two Millennia," an exhibit of urban landscapes mixed with images from his long and storied career opens at Stax this week. He’s also playing concerts at Stax, the Hard Rock Cafe on Beale, and an intimate showcase in "Elvis' Living Room" on Audubon, in conjunction with Rhodes College's Mike Curb Institute for Music.

American Recording Studios ... The other Historic Memphis Studio

amer-sound-studio-marker-2014[1]

http://historic-memphis.com/biographies/american-studios/american-studios.html

From the site:

American Studios was started in 1965 by Lincoln Wayne "Chips" Moman and Don Crews.   Moman had left Stax in 1964 after a falling out (some say over lack of recognition) and opened the new studio where he assembled a group of very talented studio musicians.  The studio quickly became well known and successful.  The success convinced Elvis Presley to record in Memphis for the first time since 1955.   But by 1972 Moman had closed American and sold the building.  And like the original Stax Studio, the American building was demolished in 1990.  Today, in its place is a parking lot.  There's No plaque or marker to note what was there and still no official recognition for American or Chips Moman.