Arthur Alexander
Encyclopedia
Arthur Alexander was an American
country
soul
singer. Jason Ankeny, music critic for Allmusic, said Alexander was a "country-soul pioneer" and though largely unknown, "his music is the stuff of genius, a poignant and deeply intimate body of work on par with the best of his contemporaries."
. Working with Spar Music in Florence, Alabama
, Alexander recorded his first single, "Sally Sue Brown," under the name of June Alexander,(short for Junior),which was released in 1960 on Jud Phillips' Judd Records
. (Phillips is the brother of music pioneer Sam Phillips
).
A year later, Alexander cut "You Better Move On
" at a former tobacco warehouse-turned-recording studio in Muscle Shoals
. Released on Nashville's Dot Records
, the song became a soul/R&B chart hit, and laid the foundation for the modern recording studio FAME. "You Better Move On" is perhaps Alexander's best-known song, covered
by the Rolling Stones
, the Hollies
, George Jones
& Johnny Paycheck
and Mink DeVille
. "Anna (Go to Him)
", a U.S. R&B Top Ten Hit, was covered by the Beatles
and Humble Pie
. The Beatles
also did live recordings of "Soldier of Love
", which was also performed by Marshall Crenshaw
and Pearl Jam
, "A Shot of Rhythm and Blues
", and "Where Have You Been" recorded live at the Star-Club
, in Hamburg, 1962. "Set Me Free" (covered by Esther Phillips
and Joe Tex
) were also major hits and established Alexander as a pioneering arranger of others' tunes, as well as an established songwriter
in his own right.
In the mid-1960s, Alexander switched to another label, Sound Stage 7
, but failed to find commercial success. Although a 1972 album for Warner Brothers was promising, the singer's potential seemed to wither. He secured a pop hit with "Every Day I have to Cry" on Buddah Records
in 1975, but the success remained short-lived. The follow-up single "Sharing The Night Together" (written by Muscle Shoals songwriters Ava Aldridge and Eddie Struzick) reached #92 on the R&B charts, but earned Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show
a Top 10 hit in 1978.
For many years, Alexander was out of the music business; he was a bus driver for much of this time. In 1990, he was inducted into the Alabama Music Hall of Fame. He began to perform again in 1993 as renewed interest was shown in his small but important catalogue. His last album Lonely Just Like Me was his first in 21 years. He signed a new recording/publishing contract in May 1993 but suffered a fatal heart attack
the following month, three days after performing in Nashville
with his new band.
(who recorded "Sally Sue Brown" on his 1988 LP Down in the Groove
.) "Go Home Girl" was also recorded by Ry Cooder
on his 1979 album, Bop Till You Drop
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
singer. Jason Ankeny, music critic for Allmusic, said Alexander was a "country-soul pioneer" and though largely unknown, "his music is the stuff of genius, a poignant and deeply intimate body of work on par with the best of his contemporaries."
Career
Alexander was born in Sheffield, AlabamaSheffield, Alabama
Sheffield is a city in Colbert County, Alabama, United States, and is included in The Shoals MSA. As of the 2000 census, the population of the city is 9,652. Sheffield is the birthplace of notable attorney, actor, former senator and presidential contender Fred Thompson...
. Working with Spar Music in Florence, Alabama
Florence, Alabama
Florence is the county seat of Lauderdale County, Alabama, United States, in the northwestern corner of the state.According to the 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the city's population was 36,721....
, Alexander recorded his first single, "Sally Sue Brown," under the name of June Alexander,(short for Junior),which was released in 1960 on Jud Phillips' Judd Records
Judd Records
Judd Records was started by Jud Phillips, brother of Sun Records co-founder Sam Phillips. Early releases were mostly recorded in Nashville or Memphis, but carried an address of Memphis, New York and Florence...
. (Phillips is the brother of music pioneer Sam Phillips
Sam Phillips
Samuel Cornelius Phillips , better known as Sam Phillips, was an American businessman, record executive, record producer and DJ who played an important role in the emergence of rock and roll as the major form of popular music in the 1950s...
).
A year later, Alexander cut "You Better Move On
You Better Move On (song)
"You Better Move On" is a song by Arthur Alexander from 1961 that reached #24 on the US charts in March 1962. The song was recorded at FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama...
" at a former tobacco warehouse-turned-recording studio in Muscle Shoals
Muscle Shoals, Alabama
Muscle Shoals is a city in Colbert County, Alabama, United States. As of 2007, the United States Census Bureau estimated the population of the city to be 12,846. The city is included in The Shoals MSA. It is famous for its contributions to American popular music.-Geography:Muscle Shoals is located...
. Released on Nashville's Dot Records
Dot Records
Dot Records was an American record label and company that was active between 1950 and 1977. It was founded by Randy Wood. In Gallatin, Tennessee, Wood had earlier started a mail order record shop, known for its radio ads on WLAC in Nashville and its R&B air personality Bill "Hoss" Allen...
, the song became a soul/R&B chart hit, and laid the foundation for the modern recording studio FAME. "You Better Move On" is perhaps Alexander's best-known song, covered
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
by the Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
, the Hollies
The Hollies
The Hollies are an English pop and rock group, formed in Manchester in the early 1960s, though most of the band members are from throughout East Lancashire. Known for their distinctive vocal harmony style, they became one of the leading British groups of the 1960s and 1970s...
, George Jones
George Jones
George Glenn Jones is an American country music singer known for his long list of hit records, his distinctive voice and phrasing, and his marriage to Tammy Wynette....
& Johnny Paycheck
Johnny Paycheck
Johnny Paycheck was the legal name of Donald Eugene Lytle , a country music singer and Grand Ole Opry member most famous for recording the David Allan Coe song "Take This Job and Shove It"...
and Mink DeVille
Mink DeVille
Mink DeVille was a rock band known for its association with early punk rock bands at New York’s CBGB nightclub and for being a showcase for the music of Willy DeVille. The band recorded six albums in the years 1977 to 1985. Except for frontman Willy DeVille, the original members of the band played...
. "Anna (Go to Him)
Anna (Go to Him)
"Anna " is a song written and originally performed by Arthur Alexander. His version was released as a single by Dot Records on September 17, 1962...
", a U.S. R&B Top Ten Hit, was covered by the Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
and Humble Pie
Humble Pie (band)
Humble Pie was a rock band from England, finding success both in the UK and the US. They are remembered for songs such as "Black Coffee" "30 Days in the Hole", "I Don't Need No Doctor", and "Natural Born Bugie"...
. The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
also did live recordings of "Soldier of Love
Soldier of Love (Lay Down Your Arms)
"Soldier of Love " is a 1962 song, written by Buzz Cason and Tony Moon, originally recorded by soul artist Arthur Alexander, appearing as a B-side to his single "Where Have You Been"...
", which was also performed by Marshall Crenshaw
Marshall Crenshaw
Marshall Crenshaw is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist best known for his song "Someday, Someway".-Biography:...
and Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam is an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. Since its inception, the band's line-up has included Eddie Vedder , Jeff Ament , Stone Gossard , and Mike McCready...
, "A Shot of Rhythm and Blues
A Shot of Rhythm and Blues
"A Shot of Rhythm and Blues" is a song written by Terry Thompson and first recorded by US soul singer Arthur Alexander. It was originally released in the USA in 1961, and in the United Kingdom the following year, as the b-side of You Better Move On....
", and "Where Have You Been" recorded live at the Star-Club
Star-Club
The Star-Club was a music club in Hamburg, Germany that opened Friday 13 April 1962 and was initially operated by Manfred Weissleder and Horst Fascher. In the sixties, many of the giants of rock music played at the club. The club closed on 31 December 1969 and the building it occupied was...
, in Hamburg, 1962. "Set Me Free" (covered by Esther Phillips
Esther Phillips
Esther Phillips was an American singer. Phillips was known for her R&B vocals, but she was a versatile singer, also performing pop, country, jazz, blues and soul music.-Early life:...
and Joe Tex
Joe Tex
Joseph Arrington, Jr. , better known as "Joe Tex", was an American Southern soul singer-songwriter, most popular during the 1960s and 1970s...
) were also major hits and established Alexander as a pioneering arranger of others' tunes, as well as an established songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
in his own right.
In the mid-1960s, Alexander switched to another label, Sound Stage 7
Sound Stage 7
Sound Stage 7 was an American, Nashville, Tennessee based record label of the 1960s and 1970s, noted mainly for its soul music releases. The label's biggest star was Joe Simon, who placed numerous singles on the U.S...
, but failed to find commercial success. Although a 1972 album for Warner Brothers was promising, the singer's potential seemed to wither. He secured a pop hit with "Every Day I have to Cry" on Buddah Records
Buddah Records
Buddah Records was founded in 1967 in New York City. The label was born out of Kama Sutra Records, an MGM Records-distributed label, which remained a key imprint following Buddah's founding...
in 1975, but the success remained short-lived. The follow-up single "Sharing The Night Together" (written by Muscle Shoals songwriters Ava Aldridge and Eddie Struzick) reached #92 on the R&B charts, but earned Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show
Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show
Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show was an American pop, country and soft rock band, formed around Union City, New Jersey in 1967 as The Chocolate Papers. They enjoyed considerable commercial success in the 1970s with hit singles including "Sylvia's Mother", "The Cover of the Rolling Stone", "A Little Bit...
a Top 10 hit in 1978.
For many years, Alexander was out of the music business; he was a bus driver for much of this time. In 1990, he was inducted into the Alabama Music Hall of Fame. He began to perform again in 1993 as renewed interest was shown in his small but important catalogue. His last album Lonely Just Like Me was his first in 21 years. He signed a new recording/publishing contract in May 1993 but suffered a fatal heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
the following month, three days after performing in Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
with his new band.
Legacy
Alexander is the only songwriter whose songs have been covered by the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and Bob DylanBob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
(who recorded "Sally Sue Brown" on his 1988 LP Down in the Groove
Down in the Groove
Down in the Groove is singer-songwriter Bob Dylan's 25th studio album, released by Columbia Records in May 1988.A highly collaborative effort, it was Dylan's second consecutive album to receive almost unanimous negative reviews...
.) "Go Home Girl" was also recorded by Ry Cooder
Ry Cooder
Ryland Peter "Ry" Cooder is an American guitarist, singer and composer. He is known for his slide guitar work, his interest in roots music from the United States, and, more recently, his collaborations with traditional musicians from many countries.His solo work has been eclectic, encompassing...
on his 1979 album, Bop Till You Drop
Bop till You Drop
Bop till You Drop is Ry Cooder's ninth album, released in 1979 . This was the first major-label digitally recorded album of Pop music...
.
Singles
- "Sally Sue Brown/"The Girl That Radiates That Charm" Judd (1960)
- "You Better Move OnYou Better Move On (song)"You Better Move On" is a song by Arthur Alexander from 1961 that reached #24 on the US charts in March 1962. The song was recorded at FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama...
"/"A Shot of Rhythm and BluesA Shot of Rhythm and Blues"A Shot of Rhythm and Blues" is a song written by Terry Thompson and first recorded by US soul singer Arthur Alexander. It was originally released in the USA in 1961, and in the United Kingdom the following year, as the b-side of You Better Move On....
" Dot (1961) London (UK) (1962) - "Soldier of Love (Lay Down Your Arms)Soldier of Love (Lay Down Your Arms)"Soldier of Love " is a 1962 song, written by Buzz Cason and Tony Moon, originally recorded by soul artist Arthur Alexander, appearing as a B-side to his single "Where Have You Been"...
"/"Where Have You Been All My Life" Dot (1962) London (UK) (1962) - "AnnaAnna (Go to Him)"Anna " is a song written and originally performed by Arthur Alexander. His version was released as a single by Dot Records on September 17, 1962...
"/"I Hang My Head And Cry" Dot (1962) London (UK) (1963) - "Go Home Girl"/"You're the Reason" Dot (1962) London (UK) (1963)
- "Dream Girl"/"I Wonder Where You Are Tonight" Tina Knittel (1963)
- "Baby, Baby"/"Pretty Girls Everywhere" Dot (1963)
- "Where Did Sally Go"/"Keep Her Guessing" Dot (1963)
- "Black Knight"/"Old John Amos" Dot (1964) London (UK) (1964)
- "Detroit City"/"You Don't Care" Dot (1965)
- "Baby For You"/"The Other Woman (In My Life)" Sound Stage (1966) London (UK) (1966)
- "Show Me The Road"/"Turn Around (And Try Me)" Sound Stage (1966)
- "Love's Where Life Begins"/"Set Me Free" Sound Stage (1968)
- "I Need You Baby"/"Spanish Harlem" Monument (1968)
- "Bye Bye Love"/"Another Time, Another Place" Sound Stage (1968)
- "Cry Like A Baby"/"Glory Road" Sound Stage (1969)
- "I'm Coming Home"/"It Hurts To Want It So Bad" Warner Brothers (1972)
- "Burning Love"/"It Hurts To Want It So Bad" Warner Brothers (1972)
- "Mr John"/"You've Got Me Knockin'" Garry Fink (1972)
- "Lover Please"/"They'll Do It Every Time" Warner Brothers (1973)
- "Every Day I Have To Cry Some"/"Everybody Needs Someone To Love" Buddah (1975) Buddah (UK) (1976)
- "Sharing The Night Together"/"She'll Throw Stones At You" Buddah (1976) Buddah (UK) (1977)
- "Hound Dog Man's Gone Home"/"So Long Baby" Music Mill (1977)
Studio albums
- You Better Move On (LP, 1962) Label: Dot & London (UK)
- Arthur AlexanderArthur Alexander (album)- Track listing :# "I'm Comin' Home" – 1:55# "It Hurts to Want It So Bad" – 2:17# "Go on Home Girl" – 2:43# "In the Middle of It All" – 3:05...
(LP, 1972) Label: Warner Brothers - Lonely Just Like Me (CD, 1993) Label: Nonesuch/Elektra
Album reissues
- Story Of Rock 'N' Roll (LP, 1977) Label: Ariola (Germany) (Reissue of You Better Move On)
- Arthur Alexander (LP, 1989) Label: Ace (UK)
- You Better Move On (CD, 1993) Label: MCA (1994) MCA (UK) (Reissue of LP with bonus tracks)
- Rainbow Road: The Warner Bros. Recordings (CD, 1994) Label: Warner Archives (Reissue of self-titled Warner LP above with bonus tracks)
- Lonely Just Like Me: The Final Chapter (CD, 2007) Label: Hacktone (Reissue of CD with bonus tracks)
Compilation albums
- Various Artists - Greatest Rhythm And Blues Stars (1965) Label: Guest Star (two tracks by Alexander)
- Carl Perkins - Sing A Song With Me (1979) Label: Koala (four demos by Alexander)
- A Shot Of Rhythm And Soul (1982) Label: Ace (UK)
- Soldier Of Love (1987) Label: Ace (UK)
- The Greatest (1989 & 2006) Label: Ace (UK)
- The Ultimate Arthur Alexander (1993) Label: Razor & Tie
- Jon Tiven's Ego Trip - Blue Guru (1996) Label: Fountainbleu (one over-dubbed demo by Alexander)
- Various Artists - Bill Haney's Atlanta Soul Brotherhood (1998) Label: Kent (UK) (one track by Alexander)
- Various Artists - Bill Haney's Atlanta Soul Brotherhood Vol 2 (1998) Label: Kent (UK) (one track by Alexander)
- The Monument Years (2001) Label: Ace (UK)