Soul fans have known Eddie Floyd for six decades. In the late
1950s, he co-founded The Falcons ("You're So
Fine", "I Found a Love"), a Detroit vocal group that
included Wilson Pickett, and paved the way for The
Temptations and The Four Tops.
In the early sixties, Floyd was a songwriter with Stax
Records, penning hits for Carla Thomas, Sam & Dave,
Wilson Pickett, and Rufus Thomas. With Steve
Cropper, he wrote “Knock On Wood” for Otis Redding.
But Stax liked Eddie’s demo so much, they released
his version instead. “Knock On Wood” was one of the
biggest hits of 1966 and has been a Soul staple ever
since.
With the exception of the opening track (a live version
of “Raise Your Hand”), POWER was recorded in
Jackson, Mississippi (1979) after the demise of Stax.
But Eddie was surrounded by Stax vets Carson
Whitsett (organ and keys), Michael Toles (guitar), Ray
Griffin (bass), James Robertson (drums), and the
Memphis Horns (Andrew Love and Wayne Jackson).
Backing vocals, besides Eddie himself, included
Valerie and Cheryl from Amber and Jewel Bass. “The
Beat Song” (b/w “London”) was released in Europe by
Arista in 1980. All other tracks are being released here
for the first time (Eddie did record an earlier version of
“I’ll Always Have Faith In You” for Stax).
This album captures Eddie in peak form vocally.
Definite standouts include the title song “Power”,
“Missing
You”, and “Raise Your Hand”.