Funkiest Man Alive: Rufus Thomas and Memphis Soul

by Matthew Ruddick, Rob Bowman (Foreword)

Rufus Thomas may not be a household name, but he is widely regarded as the patriarch of Memphis R&B, and his music influenced three generations. His first singles in the early 1950s were recorded as blues transitioned into R&B, and he was arguably one of the founding fathers of early rock ’n’ roll. In the early 1960s, his songs “The Dog” and “Walking the Dog” made a huge impact on the emerging British “mod” scene, influencing the likes of the Georgie Fame, the Rolling Stones, and the Who. And in the early 1970s, Thomas rebranded himself as the “funkiest man alive” and recorded funk classics that were later sampled by the likes of Public Enemy, Missy Elliot, and the Wu-Tang Clan.

In Funkiest Man Rufus Thomas and Memphis Soul , Matthew Ruddick reveals the amazing life and career of Thomas, who started as a dancer in the minstrel shows that toured the South before becoming one of the nation’s early African American disc jockeys, and then going on to record the first hit singles for both Chess Records and Stax Records. Ruddick also examines the social fabric of the city of Memphis, analyzing the factors behind the vast array of talent that appeared in the late 1950s, with singers like Isaac Hayes, William Bell, Maurice White (Earth, Wind & Fire), and Thomas’s older daughter, Carla Thomas, all emerging from the tightly knit African American community. He also tells the story of Memphis-based Stax Records, one of the nation’s leading R&B record labels. From the earliest blues, the segregated minstrel shows, and the birth of rock ’n’ roll through to the emergence of R&B and funk, Rufus Thomas saw it all.

344 pages, Hardcover

Published March 28, 2023

Reviews

[Sheehan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Without a doubt Rufus deserves his own history book, a life of vast reach and influence in the Memphis scene, his career was also the continuous through line of the Stax record label story. Unfortunately for this book, the history of Stax is already pretty well documented in Guralnick's "Sweet Soul Music," so at least the middle third of this book that covers Rufus Thomas' relationship to Stax, just reads like rehash of Sweet Soul Music.

If you care about Rufus, and are interested in Stax, but not exhaustively, this book could be a solid 4 stars, but if you have read "Sweet Soul Music," this book feels about 20% overwrought, there was at least one chapter where I wondered if we lost the thread on Rufus and had just transitioned into a Stax history.

That personal criticism aside, this book is a well-researched celebration of Thomas' life in Memphis from his vaudevillian days through to being celebrated internationally in Italy. Rufus lead a fascinating life of hard work, supporting others, and building community. His story is a great life to learn about and I am really happy to have more scholarship on his time making music!

[Robert Marovich · Rating 4 out of 5]

My review will appear in the next edition of the Association for Recorded Sound Collections Journal.