Isaac Hayes
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Background information
Birth name Isaac Lee Hayes
Born August 20, 1942 (1942-08-20) (age 65)
Covington, Tennessee, USA
Origin Memphis, Tennessee, USA
Genre(s) R&B, funk, soul, disco
Occupation(s) Singer, songwriter, arranger, record producer, and actor
Instrument(s) Piano, keyboards, vocals, saxophone
Years active 1962-present
Label(s) Enterprise/Stax, ABC, Columbia Records, Pointblank
Associated
acts David Porter, The Bar-Kays
Website
http://www.isaachayes.com
Isaac Lee Hayes (born August 20, 1942, in Covington, Tennessee) is an American soul and funk singer, songwriter, musician, record producer, arranger, and actor. Hayes is best known as one of the creative forces behind Stax Records, for which he served as both an in-house songwriter/producer and a recording artist.
In addition to his work in popular music, Hayes has also written scores for several motion pictures as well. His best known film score, for the 1971 blaxploitation film Shaft, earned Hayes an Academy Award for Best Original Song (the first Academy Award received by an African-American in a non-acting category) and two Grammy Awards. Hayes received a third Grammy for his 1971 album Black Moses.
In 1992, Hayes was crowned an honorary king of Ghana's Ada district thanks to his humanitarian deeds. From 1997 to 2006, he voiced the character "Chef", a singing ladies' man and elementary school cook, on the animated sitcom South Park.
Early years
Isaac Lee Hayes was the second-born child of Isaac Sr. and Eula Hayes, but after their deaths was raised by his grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Willie Wade Sr. The child of a poor family, he grew up picking cotton in Covington, Tennessee. He dropped out of high school, only to be encouraged later by his former high school teachers at Manassas High to get his diploma. He earned his diploma at the age of 21. He began singing at the age of five at his local church. Soon after, he taught himself how to play the piano, electronic organ, flute, and saxophone.
Stax Records and Shaft
Hayes began his recording career in the early 1960s, as a session player for various acts of the Memphis-based Stax Records and later writing a string of hit songs with songwriting partner David Porter, including "You Don't Know Like I Know", "Soul Man", "When Something Is Wrong with My Baby", and "Hold On I'm Comin" for Sam and Dave. In 1968 he released his debut album Presenting..., a bluesy, largely improvised effort that did not chart highly.
The next album was Hot Buttered Soul (1969). This album is noted for his image (shaven skulled, gold jewelry, sun glasses, etc) and his distinct sound (extended orchestral songs, heavy on organs, horns, and guitars, deep bass vocals, etc). Only four songs long, Hayes re-interprets "Walk On By" into a twelve-minute exploration, "By The Time I Get To Phoenix" starts with an eight-minute long monologue before breaking into song, and the lone original number, the funky "Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquidalimystic" (sampled in Public Enemy's epic "Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos"), runs nearly ten minutes, a significant break from the standard three minute soul/pop song format and singles-based albums.
"Walk On By" would be the first of many times Hayes would take a Bacharach standard, generally made famous as three minute pop songs by Dionne Warwick or Dusty Springfield, and transform it into an unrecognizable, lengthy and almost psychedelic number.
In 1970 Hayes released two albums, The Isaac Hayes Movement and To Be Continued. The former stuck to the four song template of his previous album. Jerry Butler's "I Stand Accused" begins with a trademark spoken word monologue, and Bacharach's "I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself" is re-worked. Both were hit singles[citation needed]. The latter spawned the classic "The Look Of Love", another Bacharach song transformed into an eleven-minute epic of lush orchestral rhythm (mid-way it breaks into a rhythm guitar jam for a couple of minutes before suddenly resuming the slow love song). An edited three-minute version was a hit single[citation needed]. The album also featured the instrumental "Ike's Mood" which segued into his own version of "You've Lost That Loving Feeling". Hayes released a Christmas single "The Mistletoe and Me" (with "Winter Snow" as a B-side).
In early 1971 Hayes composed music for the soundtrack of the Blaxploitation film Shaft (he also enjoyed a cameo as the bar tender of No Name Bar in the film). The title theme with its wah-wah guitar and multi-layered symphonic arrangement would become a worldwide hit single and spent two weeks at number one in the Billboard Hot 100 in November of that year. The remainder of the album was mostly instrumentals covering big beat jazz, bluesy funk, and hard Stax-styled soul. The other two vocal songs, the social commentary "Soulville" and the nineteen-minute jam "Do Your Thing" would be edited down to hit singles. Hayes won an Academy Award for Best Original Song for a Motion Picture for the "Theme from Shaft" and was nominated for Best Original Dramatic Score for Shaft.
Later in the year Hayes released a double album Black Moses that expanded on his earlier sounds and featured the hit single "Never Can Say Goodbye". The other single "I Can't Help It" was not featured on the album.
In 1972 Hayes would record the theme tune for the TV series The Men and enjoy a hit single (with "Type Thang" as a B-side)[citation needed], and release several other singles such as "Feel Like Making Love", "If Loving You Is Wrong (I Don't Want To Be Right)", and "Rolling Down A Mountainside". Although these songs never made it to an album, Fantasy Records would later collect them after buying out Stax and release these and other songs as a "new" album Hotbed in 1978. Stax themselves would re-release Hayes' debut album this year with the new title In The Beginning.
Hayes was back in 1973 with an acclaimed live double album Live At Sahara Tahoe, and follwed it up with the album Joy, his eighth album that featured the almost eerie beat of the fifteen-minute title track and a new direction moving away from covers. An edited "Joy" would be a hit single.
In 1974, Hayes featured in the Blaxploitation films Three Tough Guys and Truck Turner, and recorded acclaimed (but comparatively low-selling) soundtracks for both, Tough Guys being almost devoid of vocals and Truck Turner yielded a single with the title theme. Although low-selling, the soundtrack score was used by filmmaker Quentin Tarantino in the Kill Bill film series.
HBS (Hot Buttered Soul Records) and bankruptcy
During the mid-1970s Stax Records was having serious financial problems and was ready to close. With ten albums under his belt, Hayes left the label and formed his own, Hot Buttered Soul. His new album, 1975's Chocolate Chip saw Hayes embrace the disco sound with the title track and lead single. "I Can't Turn Around" would prove a popular song as time went on. This would be Hayes last album to chart top 40 for many years. Later in the year, the all instrumental Disco Connection fully embraced disco.
In 1976, the album cover of Juicy Fruit featured Hayes in a pool with naked women, and spawned the title track single and the classic "Storm Is Over". Later the same year the Groove-A-Thon album featured the singles "Rock Me Easy Baby" and the title track. However, while all these albums were regarded as solid efforts, Hayes was no longer selling big, leading to the closure of Hot Buttered Soul and Hayes and his wife were forced into bankruptcy, owing over $6 million.
Polydor and hiatus, film work
In 1977, Hayes was back with a new deal with Polydor Records, a live album of duets with Dionne Warwick did moderately well, and his comeback studio album New Horizon sold better and enjoyed a hit single "Out The Ghetto", and also featured the popular "It's Heaven To Me".
1978's For The Sake Of Love saw Hayes record a sequel to Shaft ("Shaft II"), but was most famous for the single "Zeke The Freak", a song that would have a shelf life of decades and be a major part of the House movement in the UK.
In 1979, Hayes returned to the Top 40 with Don't Let Go and its disco-styled title track that became a hit single, and also featured the classic "A Few More Kisses To Go". Later in the year he added vocals and worked on Millie Jackson's album Royal Rappin's.
Neither 1980s And Once Again or 1981's Lifetime Thing produced notable songs or big sales, and Hayes chose to take a break from music to pursue acting.
In the 1970s, Hayes featured in the films Shaft (1971) and Truck Turner (1974); he also had a recurring role in the TV series The Rockford Files as ex-con strongman Gandolph Fitch, including one episode alongside duet-partner Dionne Warwick. In the 1980s and 90s, he appearred in numerous films, notably Escape from New York (1981), I'm Gonna Git You Sucka (1988), Prime Target (1991), Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993), and Johnny Mnemonic (1995), as well as in episodes of The A-Team and Miami Vice. He also attempted a musical comeback, embracing the style of drum machines and synth for 1986s U-Turn and 1988s Love Attack, though neither proved successful.
Return to school
Hayes launched a high-selling and successful comeback on the Virgin label in 1995. Branded was considered a return to form, and received positive reviews throughout the music press. A companion album Raw and Refined was released around the same time and featured a collection of previously unheard instrumentals, both old and new.
Hayes would become even more in the public consciousness with his long running role as overweight loverman "Chef" in the controversial hit TV series South Park. (See below)
Hayes was inducted into the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame in 2002. The same year, a documentary highlighting Isaac's career and his impact on many of the Memphis artists in the 1960s onwards was produced, "Only The Strong Survive".
In 2004, Hayes appeared in a recurring minor role as the Jaffa Tolok on the television series Stargate SG-1. The following year, he appeared in the critically acclaimed independent film Hustle & Flow.
Family
Isaac Hayes is the father of 12 children, 14 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.[1] His fourth wife Adjowa[2] gave birth to a son named Nana Kwadjo Hayes on April, 10, 2006.[3] One son is his namesake, Isaac Hayes III.
Basketball team ownership
On July 17, 1974 Isaac Hayes, along with Mike Storen, Avron Fogelman and Kemmonis Wilson took over ownership of the American Basketball Association team the Memphis Tams.[4] The prior owner was Charles O. Finley, the owner of the Oakland A's baseball team. Hayes' group renamed the team the Memphis Sounds. Despite a 66% increase in home attendance, hiring well regarded coach Joe Mullaney and, unlike in the prior three seasons, making the 1975 ABA Playoffs (losing to the eventual champion Kentucky Colonels in the Eastern Division semifinals) the team's financial problems continued. The group was given a deadline of June 1, 1975 to sell 4,000 season tickets, obtain new investors and arrange a more favorable lease for the team at the Mid-South Coliseum. The group did not come through and the ABA took over the team, selling it to a group in Maryland that renamed the team the Baltimore Hustlers and then the Baltimore Claws before the club finally folded during preseason play for the 1975-1976 season.[5]
Scientology activism
Hayes is also an outspoken Scientologist, frequently identified by Scientology as a success story. He has called Scientology the "gateway to eternity" and "the path to happiness and total spiritual freedom."
Hayes has contributed endorsement blurbs for many Scientology books. The frontispiece page for Scientology: The Fundamentals of Thought (1997 paperback edition) quotes Hayes as saying:
"If you really want to know about the mind, the spirit and life itself, read Scientology: The Fundamentals of Thought. It will put you on the right path!"
Hayes also appears in the Scientology film Orientation, giving a testimonial on how Scientology has helped him.
In February 2006, Hayes appeared in a Scientology music video called "United".
South Park's Chef
By the late-1990s, he became very popular as the voice of Chef on the Comedy Central series South Park. A song from the series performed by Chef, "Chocolate Salty Balls (P.S. I Love You)", received some international radio airplay in 1999. It reached Number One on the UK singles chart and also on the Irish singles chart. The track also appeared on the album Chef Aid: The South Park Album in 1998.
Hayes's departure and criticism
In the South Park episode "Trapped in the Closet", a satire and exposé of Scientology which aired on November 16, 2005, Hayes did not appear in his role as Chef. While appearing on the Opie and Anthony radio show about a month after the episode aired, Hayes was asked, "What did you think about when Matt and Trey did that episode on Scientology?" He replied, "One thing about Matt and Trey, they lampoon everybody, and if you take that **** serious, I'll sell you the Brooklyn bridge for two dollars. That's what they do."
In an interview for The A.V. Club on January 4, 2006, Hayes was again asked about the episode. Hayes said that he told the creators, Matt Stone and Trey Parker, "Guys, you have it all wrong. We're not like that. I know that's your thing, but get your information correct, because somebody might believe that ****, you know?" He then told them to take a couple of Scientology courses to understand what they do. In the interview, Hayes defended South Park's style of controversial humor, noting that he was not pleased with the show's treatment of Scientology, but conceding that he "understands what Matt and Trey are doing."[6]
On March 13, 2006, a statement was issued in Hayes' name, indicating that he was asking to be released from his contract with Comedy Central, citing recent episodes which satirized religious beliefs as being intolerant. "There is a place in this world for satire, but there is a time when satire ends and intolerance and bigotry towards religious beliefs of others begins," he was quoted in a press statement. The statement, however, did not directly mention Scientology. A response from Stone said that Hayes' complaints stemmed from the show's criticism of Scientology and that he "has no problem -- and he's cashed plenty of checks -- with our show making fun of Christians, Muslims, Mormons or Jews."[7] Stone adds, "[We] never heard a peep out of Isaac in any way until we did Scientology. He wants a different standard for religions other than his own, and to me, that is where intolerance and bigotry begin." Stone and Parker agreed to release Hayes from his contract per his request.
On March 20, 2006, Roger Friedman of Fox News reported having been told that the statement was made in Hayes's name, but not by Hayes himself, as he suffered a stroke in January. He wrote: "Isaac Hayes did not quit South Park. My sources say that someone quit it for him. ... Friends in Memphis tell me that Hayes did not issue any statements on his own about South Park. They are mystified."[8] Hayes spokeswoman Amy Harnell denied that Hayes had a stroke.[9]
A March 23, 2006 BBC News story quoted Stone as saying, "In 10 years and over 150 episodes of South Park, Isaac never had a problem with the show making fun of Christians, Muslims, Mormons or Jews. He got a sudden case of religious sensitivity when it was his religion featured on the show."[10]
On October 26, 2006 Hayes himself confirmed that he had a stroke.[11]
On 24 January 2007, the New York Post reported that Hayes had told their reporter "They didn't pay me enough" and "They weren't that nice".[12]
"The Return of Chef" episode
The South Park season 10 premiere (aired March 22, 2006) featured The Return of Chef. The episode addressed Hayes' departure using sound clips from Chef's past appearances, intentionally sounding like a bad splicing job. It depicts Chef as brainwashed by the Super Adventure Club, and, as a result, becoming a budding child molester. There are many striking resemblances between Stone and Parker's depiction of the Church of Scientology and the Super Adventure Club which pulls Chef away from South Park using brainwashing. It is a thinly veiled telling of the Hayes/South Park break up story from the point of view of Trey Parker and Matt Stone, who use the church/club metaphor to attack Scientology even more openly and harshly than in the episode that supposedly caused Hayes' departure.[citation needed].
The episode ends with Chef choosing to stay with the club rather than returning to South Park, and then dying a painful and graphically violent death. At his funeral, Kyle urges the town of South Park to "remember Chef as the jolly old guy who always broke into song," and that they not let "the events of the last week take away the memories of how much Chef made us smile." He also tells them that they should not blame Chef for his defection, but rather "be mad at that fruity little club for scrambling his brains." The final scene depicts Chef being resurrected in the image of Darth Vader by the Super Adventure Club. He is still credited in the shows.
