A soulful ‘60s influence from outside Motown

As “Dreamgirls” loosely reminds us, Motown Records was the vision of an ambitious young man who knew exactly where he wanted to go musically and wasn’t about to let anything get in his way.

In the same spirit, there’s probably also a movie in the story of the man behind another great black-music record label of the ‘60s: Stax, the home of Otis Redding, Isaac Hayes, the Staple Singers and Booker T. & the MG’s.

Only Jim Stewart, the co-founder of Stax, had no real idea of where he was headed in 1957 when he launched Satellite Records, the precursor to Stax. The handful of Satellite recordings leaned toward rockabilly, pop and country, which makes sense because Stewart was a white country fiddler who, according to Rob Bowman’s liner notes in a new Stax CD retrospective, knew or cared little about black music.

Before starting Satellite, Stewart worked in the bonds department of a Memphis bank and played nights in the house band at a country nightclub where reportedly a young Elvis Presley sometimes sang when Stewart’s band was on break.

Stewart was still in his 20s when he opened the record label with his sister, Estelle Axton. (The Stax name came from the first two letters in Stewart’s and Axton’s last names.) After three years, they leased an old movie theater in a black section of town and converted it into a studio and record shop.

The move had a major effect on the label’s shift from country-pop to R&B-soul; because the shop’s customers suddenly were mainly African Americans. Not only did Stewart start stocking albums that his customers requested, but he also started making records that would appeal to those customers.

“Stax 50th Anniversary Celebration” contains many of the most memorable R&B; singles of the ‘60s and ‘70s, including Redding’s “(Sittin’ on) The Dock of the Bay,” Sam & Dave’s “Soul Man,” Eddie Floyd’s “Knock on Wood” and Isaac Hayes’ “Theme From ‘Shaft.’ ”

Though there are numerous Stax reissues available in CD, this is the first label overview since the Concord Music Group purchased the Stax catalog in 2004, and it goes a long way in explaining the legacy of the great label.

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Various Artists

“Stax 50th Anniversary Celebration”

Stax

The back story: Stax specialized in a gritty, Southern-fried R&B; that, especially in the early years, incorporated elements of country and gospel in a soulful way that distinguished it from Motown, which frequently served up R&B; with more pop flavoring.

The first disc starts nicely with Carla Thomas’ dreamy “Gee Whiz (Look at His Eyes),” but it’s the second track -- the Mar-Keys’ instrumental “Last Night” -- that first showcases the jabbing horns and marvelously seductive rhythm that defined the best of Stax.

But the real breathtaking moment is four tracks later when you first hear Redding’s soulful, sensual voice on “I’ve Been Loving You Too Long (to Stop Now),” one of the all-time great R&B; moments. Redding, who ranks with Ray Charles, Sam Cooke and Al Green on the short-list of great soul vocalists -- is also featured on three other tracks, including the posthumous hit, “(Sittin’ on) The Dock of the Bay.”

Another essential figure in the evolution of Stax was Al Bell, a former disc jockey who oversaw promotion and marketing until eventually becoming president of the label. In reviewing the Stax history years ago, he pointed to the musical diversity.

“You had Steve Cropper, who was a white guy who loved blues but had rock ‘n’ roll influences,” Bell said, speaking specifically about the MG’s, the integrated foursome that played on so many Stax sessions. “You had Al Jackson, who loved blues and soul music but who had a jazz background because his father was a jazz musician.

“You had Duck Dunn, who was a bass player who loved basic R&B; music but who had country influences. Then you had Booker T., who was studious, the intellectual, who brought something altogether different to the music. And all this was going on in a city that was heavily segregated, so there was this real sense of building something together.”

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Various Artists

“Hightone Records Anthology: Rockin’ From the Roots”

Time Life/Hightone

The back story: There’s not much connection between Hightone and Stax except for a guiding musical purity. Unlike many record labels whose identity is largely anonymous, Hightone has been committed since 1983 to quality artists who work in the rootsy Americana style, and the list of artists on this two-disc set reads like an honor roll of the genre.

Think of it as a form of modern folk music; honest reflections on life without the glitz of showbiz attached. Among the artists on the anthology: Dave Alvin, Chris Gaffney, Joe Ely, Buddy and Julie Miller, Dale Watson, Jimmie Dale Gilmore and Rosie Flores. For anyone wanting to dig even deeper into the Hightone catalog, the Oakland-based label also has a more ambitious four-CD, one-DVD set titled “American Music: The Hightone Story.”

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Backtracking, a biweekly feature, highlights CD reissues and other historical pop music items.