I met Isaac Hayes at the Caron Foundations' annual dinner in June of 2004. He was sitting composed with a few people, and I introduced myself to him purely as a fan. His reaction was very warm and his smile, one of his many great assets, made me feel right at home. We chatted about music...what else is there. We were both at Cipriani's Restaurant as part of Carons' yearly fundraising effort, devoted to helping people in recovery from drugs and alcohol.
Just a few months ago in January of this year, I went to see Isaacs' show at the B.B. King Blues Club in New York. His spirit and his voice were in great form as usual, but he had some trouble moving around. It was very noticeable, and we were all a little concerned. but he still put on a great show. The theme from Shaft of course was the highlight of his evening. They played the long long long version and we the audience were slain, from the opening rhythms to almost 20 minutes later. What an incredible piece. He was the first Black American to win an Oscar for a movie score - he was an amazing talent.
--Garland Jeffreys
Isaacs' website: http://www.isaachayes.com/
Isaac Hayes - Shaft (1995)
1 comment:
Great post--thanks for sharing.
I love the B.B.King Blues Club--I bet the January show was incredible!
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