Elvis was in the house. And so was Marvin Gaye, Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, and many other recording stars. Or at least their songs were when the Old School Revue All Stars, joined by the Saugatuck Horns and four singers, took the stage at the Rye Arts Center Feb. 6.
The program, called Road Trip to The Five Ms, was presented by the RAC in partnership with Sprye, the senior adult organization. Narrated by musician and music producer Roger Kaufman, the evening led listeners on an imagined visit to five music hubs of the 1960s and 70s: Memphis, Macon, Ga.; Muscle Shoals (in Alabama), Miami, and Motown (Detroit.)
With a band that included a guitar, bass, keyboard, drums, trombone and saxophones, the concert got off to a rollicking start with songs by Booker T and the MG’s, whose rock-and-roll instrumentals were hits in the ’60s. Kaufman explained that in Memphis “rock and roll was born when Elvis Presley hit the stage.” In the segregated South, he explained, producer Sam Phillips mixed the music of African Americans with a new star (Elvis) to create a whole new genre of music. Singer Billy Genuario then stepped on stage, donned sunglasses and swayed his hips while belting out “Jailhouse Rock” followed by “All Shook Up,” “Blue Suede Shoes,” and “Suspicious Minds.” The crowd was all in.
Soon, listeners were singing along as Stephanie Harrison cooed Dusty Springfield’s “Son of a Preacher Man” and “Baby I Love You” by Aretha Franklin, both recorded in Memphis.
In Macon, the birthplace of Otis Redding and Little Richard, Kaufman described the creation of Capricorn Records which recorded Percy Sledge, Redding, and Little Richard. “They wanted to create the same kind of energy as in Memphis,” Kaufman explained, as singer Bobby Harden, who toured with the original Blues Brothers Band, crooned Redding’s hits “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay” and “I Can’t Turn You Loose.” Genuario returned to sing “Good Golly Miss Molly” and “Tutti Frutti,” by Little Richard and then the “tour” moved on to Muscle Shoals.
Though the program was billed as a celebration of Black History Month, the acts honored were not limited to Black artists. At the Muscle Shoals studio in Alabama, groups like the Rolling Stones and the Allman Brothers recorded hit records, Kaufman said. Genuario fronted the band singing Ramblin’ Man and Midnight Rider, Allman hits. Then Singer Audrey Martells channeled Mavis Staples, singing “I’ll Take You There,” a song made famous by The Staple Singers. Next was a rousing rendition of the Etta James song “Tell Mama.”
In Miami, Kaufman said, producers Henry Epstein and Henry Stone created TK Records, which recorded KC and the Sunshine Band along with other acts that incorporated tropical and Caribbean sounds into their music. “Clean Up Woman” a 1970s hit by Betty Wright was sung by Harrison while Genaurio returned to sing “What You Won’t Do for Love,” by Bobby Caldwell.
Finally, Kaufman got to where the crowd was primed to go: Motown. As Harden belted The Temptations’ hit “My Girl” and then Gaye’s “What’s Going On,” people were finding it hard to stay in their seats. The group finished off with duets: “You’re all I Need to Get By” by Martells and Harden and “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” sung by Genuario and Harrison.
By then, the crowd of 100 or so could stay seated no longer. Swaying and singing, people rose and joined the reverie, pushing back from their chairs and enjoying the journey.
