On a recent trip to Bellingham, Washington, DJZigZag dug out this used 1982 publication "MEMPHIS: A Folk History". While the book devotes only a few pages to the rich New World African Music history of this Tennessee town built on the Fourth Chickasaw Bluff, it is rich in the lore of the city that in 1923 was declared Murder City, U.S.A. Thirty years later it was being billed as the Nation's Quietest City. Mid twentieth century Stax Records with its roster of stars - Johnny Taylor, Otis Redding, The MG's (Memphis Group), Rufus Thomas, Sam & Dave, Mabel John etc indelibly mark the city as Soul City, U.S.A. in the minds of the world's Black Music lovers.
DJZZ has also been spurred on by reading "THE ONE: The Life and Music of James Brown" by RJ Smith and the gentle coaxing of Sunny Sweet Daddy Fonk to order and finally begin reading "THE JAMES BROWN READER: 50 Years of Writing About the Godfather of Soul" (2008). From early writings of Chicago Defender scribes to later musings by writers in Goldmine, The New York Times, The Village Voice, Penthouse and The Montreal Star this collection has added to a more complete understanding of the enigmatic Soul Brother No. One.
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