“Written In Their Soul: The Stax Songwriter Demos” brings together 146 demos from the Stax Records vaults highlighting the strength of songwriting talent at the legendary label. Including 140 tracks that have never been heard before, this collection combines both songwriter demos and in some cases, full blown arrangement into a 7-CD set.
The first three discs contain demos by the Stax songwriters that were recorded and released by Stax artists on one of the Stax family of labels (Stax, Volt, Enterprise, We Produce, Koko, Respect, etc.). The fourth disc contains demos by the Stax songwriters that were recorded and released on record labels Other than the Stax family of labels (Atlantic, Decca, Hi, Chimneyville, etc.).
The final three discs contain demos by the Stax songwriters that were never released anywhere. Including songs from legendary songwriters such as William Bell, Steve Cropper, Eddie Floyd, Bettye Crutcher and many more this collection includes unheard versions of some of Soul, and music’s, most well-known songs. The collection is packaged in a 7×7 boxset which includes a new essay written by Stax’s original Director of Publicity Deanie Parker and GRAMMY-winning writer Robert Gordon, archival photos and an intro by multi-GRAMMY award winning compilation producer Cheryl Pawelski.
Stax Records, now owned by Concord and distributed by Craft Recordings, was founded by Jim Stewart in 1957 in Memphis, Tennessee. It rose from a small, family-operated company to become one of the most influential soul music record labels in the world, helping create “The Memphis Sound” and launching the careers of icons such as Otis Redding, Isaac Hayes, Booker T. & the M.G.’s, the Staple Singers, Sam & Dave, Rufus and Carla Thomas, The Bar-Kays, and dozens of other artists who helped change popular culture forever. In all, Stax placed 167 hit songs in the Top 100 in Pop and 243 hits in the Top 100 in R&B.
The Fat Angel Sings 