UNSUNG HEROES OF SOUL #Soul Music

Along with her own songs, Barbara Acklin wrote hits for the likes of Gene Chandler, Jackie Wilson, Dusty Springfield, Peaches & Herb, and the Chi-Lites.

A native of New Orleans, Johnny Adams had a multi-octave range and swooping vocal mannerisms that earned him the nickname “The Tan Canary.”

Singer-songwriter Arthur Alexander is best known for remakes of his songs by others. Allmusic.com said of Alexander, “His music is the stuff of genius, a poignant and deeply intimate body of work on par with the best of his contemporaries.”

William Bell was one of the first artists to sign with Stax and remains active in music to this day.

A Philadelphia group, Brenda & The Tabulations were clearly influenced by the doo-wop harmonies of the 1950s. Brenda Payton’s voice was sweet and occasionally rough-edged, making the group sound paradoxically innocent and world-weary.

James Carr's haunting baritone suggested a demon-driven man perpetually at the end of his rope—which he was.

“Clarence Carter is both an artist steeped in the most traditional aspects of Southern music and one of the most modern of all deep bluesmen.” - Dave Marsh

Otis Clay was a Grammy Award nominee and a Blues Hall of Fame inductee who became massively popular in Japan.

The Contours gave Motown one of its earliest hits, a recording that charted in both 1962 and 1988.

A prolific songwriter, Don Covay was better known for covers of his material by others than for anything he himself recorded. His songwriting credits include Aretha's Franklin big hit, "Chain of Fools."

Lee Dorsey was an early New Orleans funkateer who worked with the veteran songwriter-producer, Allen Toussaint.

Initially based in Phoenix, Arizona, Dyke & The Blazers wrote and recorded "Funky Broadway" a year before Wilson Pickett did it.