Hold On I'm A Comin' / I Thank You
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Album Summary
Released in 1968 on the storied Stax Records label out of Memphis, Tennessee, this album brought together two of the most electrifying tracks from Sam Moore and Dave Prater's celebrated run at Stax — 'Hold On I'm A Comin'' and 'I Thank You.' Behind the boards and behind the pen stood the formidable team of Isaac Hayes and David Porter, two young geniuses who had locked into a creative groove that was setting the soul world on fire. These weren't just songs thrown together — they were the product of a label operating at the absolute height of its powers, with the Stax house band laying down that raw, grease-and-grit Memphis soul that no amount of money could manufacture anywhere else. This release captured Sam & Dave at their most vital, a testament to what happens when the right voices meet the right songs in the right city at the right moment in time.
Reception
- The album performed with strength on both the R&B and pop charts, affirming Sam & Dave's standing as one of Stax Records' most commercially potent acts during the late 1960s.
- Critics held the album up as a prime example of Memphis soul at full throttle, with special reverence given to the volcanic vocal interplay between Sam Moore and Dave Prater.
- The release cemented Sam & Dave as reliable hitmakers in an era when the soul market was fiercely competitive, demonstrating that the Hayes-Porter formula was virtually bulletproof.
Significance
- The album stands as a defining document of the Stax Records aesthetic — horn-driven, rhythm-soaked, and unapologetically raw — a sound that stood in proud contrast to the polished Motown machine and gave Memphis soul its own unmistakable identity.
- Sam & Dave's call-and-response vocal tradition, showcased across these tracks, left a deep imprint on soul and R&B performance styles, influencing generations of vocal duos and gospel-rooted performers who followed in their wake.
- The Hayes-Porter songwriting partnership reached a commercial and artistic peak with this material, demonstrating a rare gift for crafting soul songs that were simultaneously deeply felt and irresistibly infectious.
Samples
- "Hold On I'm A Comin'" — one of the most recognized and sampled tracks in the Stax catalog, with a long history of interpolations and samples across hip-hop and R&B spanning multiple decades.
- "I Thank You" — sampled and covered widely across soul, hip-hop, and pop, with its infectious groove and declarative hook proving endlessly adaptable for artists seeking to channel classic Memphis soul energy.
Tracklist
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A Hold On I'm A Comin' —
2:30
-
B I Thank You 117
2:40
Artist Details
Sam & Dave — the dynamic duo of David Prater and Sam Moore — came together in Miami in the early 1960s and went on to become one of the most electrifying acts to ever grace the soul and R&B scene, cutting their teeth at the legendary Stax Records in Memphis where they crafted that raw, sweat-drenched sound built on call-and-response vocals, blazing horns, and the unmistakable Booker T. & the MGs rhythm section. Their chart-smashing hits like Soul Man and Hold On, I'm Comin' didn't just top the charts — they became anthems of Black pride, joy, and resilience that spoke straight to the heart of a generation, earning them the rightful title of "Double Dynamite." Their influence runs so deep that decades later, the world was still feeling the seismic tremors of what these two men put down in that Memphis studio, cementing their place as true architects of Southern soul.
