Rock ‘n’ Soul is launching an ever-expanding music oral history project in conjunction with Rhodes College’s “Crossroads to Freedom” Digital Archive, titled “Line Notes: Words Behind the Music.” In celebration of its 10th anniversary, the Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum is teaming up with Rhodes College students to record, preserve and disseminate oral history interviews relating to the city’s rich musical history and legacy. The students are fellows in the college’s “Crossroads to Freedom” Digital Archive program and the Mike Curb Institute for Music and already have extensive experience conducting Memphis oral histories.
"Liner Notes" will include an on-going series of interview receptions with musical icons conducted after hours at the Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum. The histories will be combined with over 80 hours of previously recorded interviews first obtained in cooperation with the Smithsonian Institution when the museum opened in 2000. The new interviews will also be included in the Crossroads to Freedom Digital Archive at www.crossroadstofreedom.org. Edited clips will also be shared on this Rock 'n' Soul website. The first "Liner Notes" reception was held on April 1 at the Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum. Rhodes College students conducted new oral history interviews with Memphis music icons who helped shape the city’s musical heritage and/or participated in its globe-changing story, including:
Al Bell – Former owner & CEO of Stax Records, current President and CEO of Al Bell Presents, LLC and Chairman of the Memphis Music Foundation.
John Fry – Founder of Memphis’ Ardent Music LLC and Ardent Studios.
Eddie Ray – Former Vice President of Memphis’ Cream Hi Records and Stax Publishing; former VP with MGM Records.
Sam Samudio – Memphis musician, Grammy winner and former lead singer of Sam the Sham & The Pharaohs.
“It’s a great opportunity for the Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum to advance its critical mission to preserve and tell the story of Memphis music by teaming with the extensive and comprehensive Crossroads program already established at Rhodes College,” said John Doyle, Executive Director of the Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum. “With education being the foundation of the Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum, Liner Notes provides us the opportunity to celebrate our 10th anniversary by teaming with one of our city’s finest academic institutions to produce time critical education materials accessible to our students and, via the web, a global audience compelled by Memphis’ world changing history.”
The program’s name, "Liner Notes," references the notes of information once printed on the protective paper sleeves of traditional 12-inch vinyl albums, now on the labels of CD jewel cases. Just as Memphis’ oral history interviews will provide the words behind the music, original album liner notes usually included information about the musician, lyrics, credits to those instrumental individuals behind the scenes, as well as details of the musical piece, sometimes placing it within historical or social context. “Appropriate name, because that’s the exact information we hope these interviews help us to capture for future access and benefit,” confirms Suzanne Bonefas, Director of Special Projects for Rhodes College and Director of the college’s Crossroads to Freedom program.