Soul Music

What does it mean to have “soul”? Soul does not only mean an inner spirit or spark of life. Soul from soul music can be a philosophy, a lifestyle, a manner, an outlook just as much as it can be food, taste, fashion, culture, or just a certain style. So, what does a song need for it to have “soul” or not to have “soul”? Primarily, soul music needs to have a strong gospel influence specifically, an African American Methodist Evangelical gospel type of knowledge. Then, you need a complex mix of rhythm & blues (R&B) music with elements of blues, country, jazz & classical music.

Gospel music shares a lineage with the blues they both make use of the technique of “call and response”. This is a technique whereby the lead singer or preacher presides over a choir or congregation in rhythm and song. The blues was invented by African Americans out of slavery and then later, in the “Jim-Crow” south. “Sharecroppers” or just flat out poor field hands worked the fields during the 19th & 20th centuries and developed this great style of music. Simultaneously, many of those same recently freed slaves, developed gospel music when they converted to the Christian Protestant religion. There in the churches of the south, developed a high paced evangelical, hymnal style of “call & response”.

R&B music or rock & roll music, specifically, the vocal style known as “doo-wop” music, had been around since the late forties and all throughout the fifties. During that time doo-wop sound was always distinct from gospel music, soul combines elements from both genres of music. The voices in the harmony are structured like doo-wop, with two or more of a lead, tenor, 2nd tenor, baritone, and/or bass voice, but in the style of gospel singing, especially with that call & response technique among other techniques.

Another aspect of soul music is its use of secular lyrics with gospel-styled singing and music. A perfect example is “I Got a Woman” released in 1955 by the Father of Soul Music, Ray Charles. Instead of singing to Jesus, a young man could be singing of love for his girl or wife. In R&B, some of the lyrics can get down-right raunchy, lascivious or even vulgar. Many songs used a lot of youthful street code, innuendo, and metaphors to keep ahead of the sensors curve. Like the metaphor of dancing. But on the whole, the lyrics of the early sixties soul music were secular but generally clean, genuine or acceptable, that is until maybe some of the soul-funk songs of the later sixties.

Soul can be divided up into time periods like the 60s, 70s, 80s & Contemporary. Soul can be divvied up by location such as cities like NY, Detroit, Philadelphia, Chicago, Memphis, New Orleans, or states like Alabama, Georgia, and the Carolinas. Then you have “Northern Soul” which occurred only in the UK in the 70s comprised of rare 60’s and early 70’s records. Whatever flopped in America had new life in Britain. Then there is “Blued-Eyed Soul” which is soul music sung by white artists and entertainers.