Playback with Black Market Dub
In this episode we dive into Isaac Hayes’ 1971 double album Black Moses and talk about why he should be remembered first and foremost as a revolutionary musician, not just a pop-culture character.
We dig into the story of Stax Records, how Hayes went from staff writer/producer to solo trailblazer, and how Black Moses expands on the ideas of Hot Buttered Soul: long, cinematic arrangements, slow-burn grooves, and radical reinterpretations of other people’s songs. We compare the two albums, talk about the marketing and imagery around “Black Moses,” and why this record still doesn’t get the same shine as his most famous work.
In this episode:
– Track highlights and arrangements across Black Moses
– How it connects to Hot Buttered Soul, Stax’s crisis, and the post-Shaft moment
– The Bar-Kays / Isaac Hayes Movement band and the lush, orchestral soul sound
– Isaac Hayes’ legacy as a composer, producer and singer vs the way he’s often reduced in pop culture
Chapters:
00:00 (Intro)
13:31 (What is Black Moses? First Impressions)
44:05 (Stax Records, Isaac Hayes' prior work)
1:03:03 (Black Moses Analysis)
1:42:20 (Rant against 'Automatic Sequence, Final thoughts)
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