By Chris Morris, Variety | Sam Moore, who had classic hits with the soul duo Sam and Dave in the 1960s, died Friday morning in Coral Gables, Florida. He was 89. The cause of death was post-surgery complications, according to the singer’s rep.
Moore took the tenor part on perennials that are familiar even to generations not yet born during the duo’s ’60s heyday, including “Hold On, I’m Comin'” (a No. 1 R&B hit in 1966), “Soul Man” (which reached No. 2 on the Hot 100 as well as topping the R&B chart in 1967) and “I Thank You” (a top 10 hit on both charts in 1968).
Signed to Atlantic Records in 1965, Sam & Dave notched seven top-10 R & B singles in 1966-67. Their bestselling work was recorded at Stax Records in Memphis, and most of it was penned by the top songwriting team of Isaac Hayes and David Porter.
Their signature tune “Soul Man” vaulted to No. 1 on the R & B chart, and No. 2 on the pop rolls, in 1967, and scored a Grammy Award as Best R & B group performance. In 1979, the song enjoyed a second life when it was covered by the Blues Brothers, the tongue-in-cheek duo featuring “Saturday Night Live” alums John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd.
The dynamic, hard-working pair was among the most potent live acts of their day; during the celebrated Stax/Volt Revue tour of Europe in 1967, Sam & Dave came close to upstaging the trek’s billed headliner, Otis Redding.
Robert Gordon wrote in “Respect Yourself,” his 2013 Stax history, “Both were high-energy performers, and their force mushroomed when they were together.… They were double dynamite, each at full tilt, exploding together with exponential force.”
Harmonious onstage, Moore and Prater proved a contentious pair in the wings, and, after an initial split in 1970, they re-teamed for another uncomfortable decade together. Prater later replaced Moore with another vocalist, Sam Daniels, in a retooled “Sam & Dave.” The singers’ rocky relationship served as the basis for the 2009 comedy “Soul Men,” starring Samuel L. Jackson and Bernie Mac (and featuring Isaac Hayes in a supporting role); Moore unsuccessfully sued distributor Miramax after its release.
Moore struggled for years with drug addiction, but he toured with regularity after recovering in the early ‘80s. He made high-profile appearances with such rock stars as Lou Reed, who cut a new version of “Soul Man” for the like-named feature in 1986, and Bruce Springsteen, who featured him on the 1992 album “Lucky Town.”
He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Prater in 1992.
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Read more of Mr. Moore’s bio here:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/music/news/sam-moore-half-of-sam-dave-duo-that-rose-to-fame-with-soul-man-and-hold-on-i-m-comin-dies-at-89/
Photo: Sam Moore
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