There is only one star left from the shout-outs of Arthur Conley’s “Sweet Soul Music.” That’s the original legendary Soul Man, Sam Moore, of Sam & Dave fame, who celebrates his 79th birthday today.
Also one of the historic acts of Ahmet Ertegun and Jerry Wexler’s Atlantic Records, Moore–whose voice has never sounded better and is very much in demand– was named one of Rolling Stone’s top singers of all time a couple of years ago. His classic hits include “Soul Man,” “Hold On I’m Coming,” and “When Something is Wrong with My Baby.” As a performer, Sam has testified on Capitol Hill and has been a strong supporter of the Performance Rights Act to get singers radio royalties.
Sam’s last album was “Original Sensational” in 2006 featuring Sting, Bruce Springsteen, Jon Bon Jovi, and many others. It was produced by Randy Jackson. He’s starting to put together songs and musicians for a new album in 2015 to celebrate his 80th birthday. Sam is also in demand in his adopted hometown of Scottsdale, Arizona, where he will likely turn up doing a couple of private shows at the Super Bowl this coming February.
A couple of weeks ago when I was visiting the Letterman show, their star band player Felicia Collins told me: “I love it when Sam sings with us. He’s the only one who sings in the right key!”
Sam’s current single is a tribute to the late country star George Jones, sung with Nashville bluegrass group Nu Blu:
