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Entries in American Studios (1)

Sunday
Jun032012

Review: 'Memphis Boys' book/CD

"Memphis Boys: The Story of American Studios" is a long-overdue history of an underrated studio that spawned some of the greatest pop, rock and soul music from 1964-72. 

The Memphis music factory operated in the shadow of Sun, Stax and Hi studios, but for a short period was the place to record. Stars parading through the studio during that period included Aretha Franklin, Dusty Springfield, The Box Tops, Neil Diamond, James Carr, Wilson Pickett, Solomon Burke and most famously, Elvis Presley. It was at American that Elvis covered "Suspicious Minds," written by Mark James, an American staff writer and sometime solo artist. 

 The story is a good one: Producer Chips Moman gets unceremoniously bounced from Stax and sets up shop in a non-descript building in a tough part of Memphis, surrounds himself with crack musicians and songwriters, and slowly builds a reputation for getting the best out of performers known and unknown. 

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