Photo courtesy of Sony Music Entertainment Archives

“A whole hell of a lot more,” answered Teddy Pendergrass in Issue 33 when Wax Poetics writer Ronnie Reese asked him what else he was besides his music. Despite being confined to a wheelchair since his auto accident in 1982, Theodore Pendergrass was a fiery persona, as Reese found out that day in a fairly contentious interview. Pendergrass didn’t take no junk. That’s why he left his successful gig with Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes after leading them to new vocal heights as front man. Pendergrass’s solo career, launched in 1976 on Gamble and Huff’s Philadelphia International label, brought the singer into the realm of superstardom. Until it came crashing to a relative halt one cold night in March of 1982. But the controversial wreck that left the star a quadriplegic couldn’t even stop this powerhouse baritone, as he continued to record in the ’80s, scoring a number one hit with “If You Don’t Know Me By Now,” and even recently performed while battling colon cancer. Teddy Pendergrass died at the young age of fifty-nine on January 13, 2010.

Courtesy of Mississippi Valley Collection, University of Memphis Libraries

One of the greatest record producers ever, Poppa Willie Mitchell ruled the soul charts with hits on Hi Records for O. V. Wright, Bobby “Blue” Bland, Otis Clay, Ann Peebles, and Syl Johnson. But everything changed the day a young soul crooner named Al Green arrived at his doorstep in South Memphis. read more »

Mr. Walt, DJ Evil Dee, 88 Keys, and John Carraro at the Roosevelt Hotel record show.

We were saddened to hear last week that our friend John Carraro passed away. He was a well-known record dealer who made a big impact with New York hip-hop producers at the Roosevelt Hotel record show during the 1990s. Our condolences go out to his wife, Jacqui, who would often be found at his side at the Roosevelt. In John’s honor, we’ll be republishing his essay on working the Roosevelt, meeting hip-hop’s heroes, and learning the secret history of the breakbeat, originally published in Issue 9.

Rudy Ray Moore, the incendiary performer whose raunchy routines and rhyming style broke new ground for generations of comic entertainers and hip-hop artists, died Sunday of complications from diabetes. He was eighty-one. read more »

James Brown was always in the moment. His greatest records, from “Cold Sweat” to “Talkin’ Loud and Sayin’ Nothin’,” were performances; that is, they were recorded as if he and the band were sweating through a live show. The affect left their grooves soaked-through with spontaneity. read more »