Motown, Stax, the Invasion, and America’s reply

The British Invasion hits white pop hard; Black pop led by Motown and Stax largely rides through and keeps thriving.

Pause and sort the styles of these three chapters. In the mid-1960s they run, in many ways, in parallel. We begin with the British Invasion from 1964 through 1966–67—“I Want to Hold Your Hand” through 1967’s Sgt. Pepper. America’s reply runs from many white pop players feeling beaten, edged out by British acts, to a summer-1965 return—folk-rock figures like Dylan and the Byrds from last chapter. Motown’s rise runs parallel to the Invasion, with hits even before it, and keeps heating through Invasion years as if barely touched. Stax rises a bit after the Invasion—we covered 1965–66, then 1967–68 Aretha and that southern-soul style. So what are the effects? I would say: because of Motown, Black pop holds the pop charts through the 1960s. From the Shirelles, Ronettes, Crystals, Ben E. King, Drifters to the Supremes, Temptations, Four Tops, Martha and the Vandellas—looking along that line, the base seems to shift from New York to Detroit, but Black pop artists keep a relatively steady grip on the top slots. Stax’s late-1960s rise in the pop world more or less widens Black pop’s market, because the music openly folds in Black elements, especially gospel tradition. When we say Stax we often mean southern soul as a style—much of what we discussed is not cut at Stax, or even in Memphis. The point is that in this stretch many new sounds and the roles of producers and writers still sit inside older music-business patterns, especially in Black pop. Another point I keep stressing: Black pop is not pushed off the charts by the Invasion. The Invasion matters as a fresh force injecting energy into pop, but it does not cut others’ livelihood. It changes things; it does not shove Black music off the lists. Motown and Stax react to the Invasion far less intensely than white pop. Influence is not zero, but compared with white pop bands like Paul Revere & the Raiders or the Byrds wanting something to answer the Beatles with, Black pop is affected much less. What catches my eye is Motown–Stax similarity—because, as I keep saying, they are always set in opposition: whose music is “Blacker.” Look at likenesses: both labels have dedicated studios for their music; even Muscle Shoals Sound as a Stax-side ally remains an independent room serving writers and bands. Similarities are many. Is Stax really “Blacker” than Motown? On race questions we need care. A simple comparison. Motown’s players and artists are almost all Black; a few white guitarists and some white staff in operations, but it is Black-owned and almost entirely Black. Stax is white-owned; to its credit, Black and white numbers are roughly half and half. Pure head-count, Motown is the “Blacker” label. But things are rarely that simple, especially with race. Look at other evidence around the theme. Stax records do sound freer. Many southern-soul sides on Stax carry elements that would rarely appear on Motown—especially vocals. In Gordy’s hands he would likely trim much of the improvisation and gospel-tinged traces, fearing they would push some white listeners away. So Motown’s music shows heavy human constraint and production. Ironically, that resembles how 1950s Atlantic worked against Chess and similar labels. This time Motown is the carefully crafted company; Stax, though tied to Atlantic, is the freer one; Motown is clearly more pop-oriented, more crossover to the mainstream. (Translator’s note / 小鼓注: For the Atlantic–Chess story, see Chapter 1, Section 8, “Prelude 8 – R&B after 1945.” Atlantic’s output is more polished; Chess’s is rougher—rather like Motown versus Stax. Stax relates to Atlantic first through licensing/distribution, and second because Atlantic engineer Tom Dowd also works Stax’s studio; see this chapter’s Section 4, “Soulsville U.S.A.: Stax and southern soul.” The irony is that Atlantic is the polish-minded label, yet Stax—closely partnered with Atlantic and even sharing an engineer—sells a rougher sound. In sum, Professor Covach may be saying that Motown’s polish and Stax’s roughness are to a considerable degree products of commercial calculation. A careful scholarly stance should not reduce Motown–Stax sonic differences to a simple culture-war of identity.) So when we compare Stax and Motown, weigh these factors. Do you find Stax Blacker, more authentic, more accepting of Black identity—or do you find the charge that “Motown betrayed Black spirit” itself unfair? Open question; I leave it with you. Next we focus on one person who, on every count, holds Black spirit without inviting that charge: the Godfather of Soul—James Brown.