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Editorial Reviews
Funky. Emotional. Raw. Powerful. That was soul music in the Civil Rights era; and Stax Records did it like no other. Stax quickly became a hit-making machine, producing a massive catalog of Top 100 records that defined the "Memphis Sound;" such as 'Soul Man', '(Sittin On) The Dock Of The Bay', 'Green Onions', 'Midnight Hour', 'I'll Take You There', 'Respect Yourself', 'Theme from Shaft' and many more. Stax also launched the careers of a who's-who of soul music greats: Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, The Staple Singers, Isaac Hayes, Eddie Floyd, Carla and Rufus Thomas, Albert King and Booker T. and the MGs, to name just a few. Now, with the release of this exciting new DVD, Grammy-nominated filmakers Robert Gordon and Morgan Neville ("Muddy Waters Can't Be Satisfied") present the first comprehensive look at Stax, the greatest soul label of all time.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
32 of 32 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
This documentary on the Stax soul powerhouse is very well done. Fine mix of rare performance clips and interviews that puts the story in full perspective. Those who have seen the documentary on PBS may be disappointed in the small number of extra features (just a rehearsal cut of the surviving MGs, William Bell, and Isaac Hayes done earlier this year), but that's okay, as the documenary itself does such a brilliant job.
The scenes where Stax was temporarily ruined by gangsters is an eerie foretelling of the Suge Knight/Death Row saga involving rap music in recent times. At least Stax and Motown never had shootouts with each other in spite of their rivalry (the Motown musician's snobbish comments about Stax and Otis Redding in particular will shock and anger many fans today).
Miraculously, the documentary ends on a high note in spite of the thuggery, mismanagement, and failure to read the fine print that doomed the label for a number of years. The scene of Booker T. and the MG's perfoming "Time is Tight" (trust me, you'll know this if you hear it) as the label's fortunes crumble is a masterpiece of editing.
On the whole, this documentary is as entertaining and inspiring as it is informative. However, their rivals in Detroit (Berry Gordy and co.) need to get with it and put some of their stuff on DVD as Stax is doing such an excellent job with this, the Otis Redding documentary, and the 1967 Live Stax-Volt Tour DVD.
Support these so that more classic soul can at long last be available on non-bootleg DVD in America.
The scenes where Stax was temporarily ruined by gangsters is an eerie foretelling of the Suge Knight/Death Row saga involving rap music in recent times. At least Stax and Motown never had shootouts with each other in spite of their rivalry (the Motown musician's snobbish comments about Stax and Otis Redding in particular will shock and anger many fans today).
Miraculously, the documentary ends on a high note in spite of the thuggery, mismanagement, and failure to read the fine print that doomed the label for a number of years. The scene of Booker T. and the MG's perfoming "Time is Tight" (trust me, you'll know this if you hear it) as the label's fortunes crumble is a masterpiece of editing.
On the whole, this documentary is as entertaining and inspiring as it is informative. However, their rivals in Detroit (Berry Gordy and co.) need to get with it and put some of their stuff on DVD as Stax is doing such an excellent job with this, the Otis Redding documentary, and the 1967 Live Stax-Volt Tour DVD.
Support these so that more classic soul can at long last be available on non-bootleg DVD in America.
27 of 28 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
This film is the best, most comprehensive documentary on Stax Records ever released. It covers the entire history of Stax from its origins in Memphis to its resurrection as a part of the Fantasy Organization in the 1980s and 1990s. All the famous artists are there, unlike some of the other footage that has been released, starting with a French documentary in the early 1990s. It makes fascinating viewing for all Soul enthusiasts.
However, this is not meant to be a comprehensive review. This film's highlight is that it contains the rarest clip of Albert King EVER shown (this is besides his brief appearance in Wattstax and the bonus clip of him doing "I'll Play The Blues For You"). It is in colour and he is playing his break from "Blues Power". While the audio narration goes over part of this, if you are a Blues lover this is the rarest film of him ever shown. He is also playing his Korina wood Gibson Flying-V original "Lucy" (now worth in excess of $100,000). Wouldn't it be unbelieveable to see the entire concert--King at his height in the late 1960s! It is in colour and the sound is great too! To access it on the DVD-go to scene selection and view it from "CBS".
I apologise if my enthusiasm for this may be too much. But this is so rare, and even if it's only just over a minute, all Blues lovers should see this. It is at least 12 years earlier than anything ever released so far.
Plus the documentary is five stars too!!!!
However, this is not meant to be a comprehensive review. This film's highlight is that it contains the rarest clip of Albert King EVER shown (this is besides his brief appearance in Wattstax and the bonus clip of him doing "I'll Play The Blues For You"). It is in colour and he is playing his break from "Blues Power". While the audio narration goes over part of this, if you are a Blues lover this is the rarest film of him ever shown. He is also playing his Korina wood Gibson Flying-V original "Lucy" (now worth in excess of $100,000). Wouldn't it be unbelieveable to see the entire concert--King at his height in the late 1960s! It is in colour and the sound is great too! To access it on the DVD-go to scene selection and view it from "CBS".
I apologise if my enthusiasm for this may be too much. But this is so rare, and even if it's only just over a minute, all Blues lovers should see this. It is at least 12 years earlier than anything ever released so far.
Plus the documentary is five stars too!!!!
18 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
This excellent documentary on the classic Stax Records label emerges as a fascinating social and cultural overview. From Booker T. and the MGs to the Staple Singers, the Stax icons are seen in all their glory. Filmmakers Robert Gordon and Morgan Neville have done a remarkable job chronicling the soulful triumphs and brutal realities of the Memphis hit factory. "Respect Yourself" packs a dynamic musical punch.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
STAXX
This is the longer version of an edited video at the staxx museum in memphis. A must for anyone interested in the evolution of music in the 60's.
Published 5 months ago by James Spears
Showing Some SERIOUS LOVE For Soulsville
This was a documentary that kind of hit me out of the blues and amazed me when I saw it. I was familiar with the Stax/Volt story of course but had never seen it presented with this... Read more
Published 20 months ago by Andre S. Grindle
Wonderful documentary
Back in the 1960s, Motown and Stax represented the two sides of the same musical coin- soul music, that is. Read more
Published on February 24, 2010 by Ian Watts
Truly outstanding - a must have!
If you grew up in the 60s and followed music you must have this DVD. If you didn't experience that period but you are a music lover you will not regret buying this one. Read more
Published on December 18, 2009 by PINS
a wonderful story
This is a wonderful story of modern pop music and ingenuity. If you are not already aware of Stax, you probably are aware of the artists like Isaac Hayes or Sam and Dave (Soul... Read more
Published on November 23, 2009 by Bart Trevino
A soul-satisfied customer
Respect Yourself: The Stax Records Story is an engaging documentary. The story of this label is captivating, and the presentation is even-handed and poignant at times. Read more
Published on November 20, 2009 by Another Literary One
Superbly done
Few of the Stax artists were to my taste, but this is the best documentary I've ever seen about modern pop music. It is musically and historically fascinating. Read more
Published on February 22, 2009 by Nicolas S. Martin
Stax Review
Respect Yourself: The Stax Records Story is informative and historical without being political or favorable to one or more performing artists portrayed in this DVD. Read more
Published on February 8, 2009 by R. C. Nakai
An exciting story, told really well
I am a big Stax-fan, but I was unprepared for how exciting and interesting the story of Stax Records is. And this documentary tells it extremely well.
Published on January 29, 2009 by Andreas Wiik
more than i hoped for
i learned a lot of history about stax and memphis. the footage was great as well as the music. super
Published on January 26, 2009 by Thomas Richardson
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