As I imagine is the case with many people my age, I first discovered Isaac Hayes through the music of people who sampled him–Tricky, Portishead, Hooverphonic, DJ Muggs, Public Enemy. If I’d been a few years younger my first exposure to him might have been Chef, and I’m glad it wasn’t. He was not a punchline. Like Barry White, he was a visionary musician who took one of the key emotional components of R&B–in Barry’s case lust, in Ike’s case desperation–and gave it the orchestra, operatic musical shape its lyrical content always implied. The last few minutes of his version of “Walk On By” sound like someone choosing to enjoy feeling the worst he’s ever felt because not doing so would be courting absolute emotional collapse. I’m really sad he’s gone.
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