Singer-songwriter known for 'Shaft' theme, 'South Park'
Oscar-winning soul singer Isaac Hayes wHO, along with Al Green, James Brown and Stevie Wonder, was one of the prevalent black artists in the early seventies, died in Memphis on Sunday, his friend and former manager, Onzie Horne, said. Hayes was 65.
Horne told Reuters that he had spoken to Hayes' wife, world Health Organization confirmed that Hayes was found unconscious near a running treadmill at his home and rushed to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Hayes, a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame conscript, would own turned 66 on August 20.
The deep-voiced performer reached his commercial peak in 1972 when he north Korean won an Academy Award for his No. 1 dispatch "Theme from 'Shaft,' " an irresistibly urgent mix of wah-wah guitars and hi-hat cymbals spiced by the famous line, "They suppose this true cat Shaft is a bad mother-/Shut your mouth!"
Long ahead he became a soul singer, Hayes was a hitmaker at Memphis soul label Stax Records. He collaborated with lyricist David Porter to write and produce songs for the combustible soul duo Sam and Dave, including "Soul Man" and "Hold On! I'm a Comin'."
Hayes, natural Aug. 20, 1942, in Covington, Tenn., was raised by his grandparents later being orphaned. He united Stax in 1963, and often subbed for the label's primary keyboardist, Booker T. Jones.
With his shaved header, dark dark glasses, extravagant clothing and plentiful jewelry, Hayes was groomed as a star in his have right by Stax executives. He released his debut album, the poor-selling "Presenting Isaac Hayes," in 1968. He stone-broke through the following year with "Hot Buttered Soul," which contained just iV songs but sold more than a million copies.
His work on director Gordon Parks' urban crime drama "Shaft," a project he had hoped to star in, was the first base of many forays into movie soundtracks. He got in front of the camera for the 1974 cult classic "Truck Turner" and had kept officious with film work ever so since, lately appearing in the rap drama "Hustle & Flow."
In his by and by years, Hayes reached a new audience by supply the voice for Chef, the lustful sage on the sketch series "South Park." But he left the show a few years agone because he disagreed with its attacks on Scientology, the religious movement to which he belonged.
Hayes, born August 20, 1942, in Covington, Tennessee, was elevated by his grandparents after being orphaned. He united Stax in 1963, and often subbed for the label's primary keyboardist, Booker T. Jones.
