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When it comes to '50s and '60s R&B, there's a lot of competition in terms of which label delivered the best stuff, but there's no question that any and every list of possible contenders would feature Stax Records. But you can't talk about Stax without talking about two other labels: Satellite and Volt. Satellite came first, then the label changed its name to Stax in honor of its two owners (Jim Stewart and Estelle Axton). Volt, meanwhile, was Stax's sister label, but at a certain point the two labels became so synonymous that people started referring to them in the same breath. Okay, that's

Every Tuesday and Thursday, former Warner Bros. Records executive and industry insider Stan Cornyn ruminates on the past, present, and future of the music business. Finding a Treasure in Memphis R&B was Atlantic’s theme in New York, 1959, but other towns, elsewhere, felt their soul just as deeply. There was Motown R&B (Detroit). And down south, there was Memphis, Tennessee, and a struggling young label, that had ended up calling itself Stax Records, and it created Southern R&B. Stax named itself for its two owners: the ST for Jim Stewart, a thin, bespectacled white lad; and Estelle AX as in

Stax Records turns the big 6-0 this year, which is an anniversary well worth celebrating, so we’ve teamed up with the fine folks from the Concord Music Group in order to pay tribute to Soulsville, USA in a big way. This grand celebration kicks off tomorrow with the release of 10 new best-of collections from 12 of the biggest names in Stax Records’ history. Who’s in the mix? We’re glad you asked, because it gives us the perfect opportunity to tell you! Otis Redding - Get it on: Amazon || iTunes || Rhino Carla Thomas - Get it on: Amazon || iTunes || Rhino Booker T & The MGs - Get it on: Amazon |

On this day in 1967, Stax Records' finest Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Eddie Floyd, Arthur Conley and Booker T and The MG's headlined at London's Hammersmith Odean, England. Here is a clip of Otis and Booker T performing together: