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Click here to see Isaac Hayes at the St. Lucia Jazz Festival 2007.

20 August 1942 – 10 August 2008

Isaac Hayes was found lying unconscious by his treadmill in his home located east of Memphis, Tennessee. He was taken to Baptist Memorial Hospital in Memphis, where he was pronounced dead at 2:08pm. Hayes is survived by 12 children, 14 grandchildren and his forth wife Adjowa.

Isaac Lee Hayes was born in the rural poverty of a sharecropper’s family in Covington, Tennessee. He and his sister were orphaned in infancy so were raised by their grandmother. Hayes secretly dropped out of Manassas High School mainly due to the fact he felt self-conscious about his limited attire. His teachers did not want to loose Hayes as they felt “he had too much to offer” so they passed on their hand-me-down clothes to Hayes which eventually encouraged him to ‘stick it out’ and get his diploma, which he earned at the age of 21.

Hayes sang in church at age 5, but stopped after adolescence kicked in (when his voice broke). However, He would be encouraged to pursue music after raising the roof at a school talent show. Hayes would later join the school band and learn to
play the saxophone. He would progress to sing with various groups including gospel group the Morning Stars and the Ben Branch house band at Curry’s Club Tropicana in north Memphis. Hayes would add the piano to his repertoire by ‘literally faking it’ at a R&B job at the Southern Club because he ‘needed the money.’

Still in his early 20’s, Hayes would become adept enough at the piano to work with bandleader Floyd Newman. Newman was also the session baritone musician for Stax Records. Newman and Hayes would eventually co write the single “Frog Stomp” released on the Stax label in late 1963. He would eventually play keyboards for the likes of Otis Redding and fill in for Booker T (Booker T & the MG’s) and collaborate with songwriter and producer David Porter. Under the name ‘Soul Children’, Hayes and Porter would eventually become Stax’s hottest duo penning Sam & Dave hits such as “Hold On! I’m Comin’,” “I Thank You” and the Grammy award-wining “Soul Man.” As the ‘Soul Children’, Hayes & Porter would also pen compositions for the likes of Carla & Rufus Thomas, Johnnie Taylor and many others on the Stax label.

Though Hayes’ debut “Presenting Isaac Hayes” was not commercially successful, this intimate jazz-flavoured jam session would form the blueprint for Hayes’ future projects.

Stax lost Otis Redding (Stax biggest star) to a plane crash in 1967 and would go through a major reshuffle in 1968. Stax would eventually be sold to Gulf & Western Corporation, with its back-catalogue going to Atlantic Records. In 1969, Hayes would release the groundbreaking “Hot Buttered Soul” on the new Stax subsidiary ‘Enterprise’ label (named after the Star Trek Enterprise). Hayes would go on to record a further record breaking seven no1 R&B albums over the following five years, he would also score a phenomenal 20 albums on the R&B and Pop charts between 1969 and 1980.

Early 1971 would see the release of the most well known blaxploitation film and soundtrack “Shaft.” Hayes also appeared in the movie (as the bartender of No Name Bar). “Shaft” the single would become a worldwide hit spending two weeks at number one in the US Billboard Hot 100 and earn Hayes an Oscar for Best Musical Score, two Grammy awards, a Golden Globe, the NAACP’s Image Award and the Edison award (Europe’s highest music honour).“Black Moses” was released later that year reaching the top ten in the US charts earning Hayes his third Grammy.

Hayes continued to release acclaimed albums and compose theme tunes for television, but by 1974 Stax / Enterprise were in financial turmoil. Hayes sued Stax for $5.3 million, but as Stax were unable to pay, they made ‘alternative legal arrangements’ with Hayes, eventually releasing him from his contract. In 1975, Hayes formed his own label HBS (Hot Buttered Soul) and continued to release well received albums such as “Chocolate Chip” and the live double-LP “Man And a Woman (recorded at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta).

Despite many years of recording success, Hayes was forced to file for bankruptcy in 1976. He also lost much of his personal property and the rights to all future royalties from music he had composed. He would re-emerge towards the end of 1977 with a new deal with Polydor Records and new album releases in the shape of “New Horizon”, “For the Sake Of Love”, “Don’t Let Go” and “Royal Rappin’s” (collaboration with Millie Jackson).

In the 1980’s, Hayes would produce albums for the ikes of Linda Clifford, Donald Byrd and the Masqueraders as well as continuing his acting career for film and television. The album “U-Turn” was released in 1986 on the Columbia record label. This album would spawn the top ten R&B single “Ike’s Rap.” His second Columbia release, “Love Attack” was released in 1988.

After a recording hiatus, Hayes released the album “Branded” on the Virgin label in 1995. At this point Hayes had changed his focus to become a lecturer at colleges and prisons, inspiring students and inmates to fulfil their lives’ potentials without drugs. He also campaigned for greater economic development in Africa after an inspirational visit with Barry White. His commitment in this area would eventually be recognised by many, including princess Naa Asie Ocansey of Ghana, who would be instrumental in insuring that Hayes be honoured by giving him the name Nene Katey Ocansey I (Nene meaning ‘King’ in the Ga Dialect, Katey means ‘brave warrior’).

Hayes’ voice was instantly recognisable as ‘Chef’ in the long running hit TV Series South Park. However, Hayes would later stop providing the voice for the character after the shows’ ‘inappropriate ridicule’ with regards to his belief in the Scientology Religion.

Isaac Hayes was inducted in the Rock’n Roll Hall of Fame in 2002. His legacy is assured with much of his music still being played, sampled by artists across many genres and re-issued for future generations to enjoy.

Robin Francis
© Michael Valentine Studio Ltd.