In 1967, Stax Records sent its top artists on a first-ever tour of Europe, which became known as the legendary Stax/Volt European Tour. Now, to recognize the 50th anniversary of the milestone event that catapulted Stax into the international limelight, the Stax Music Academy has been invited to follow in their footsteps with its first-ever European Tour of England and France.
For this show the Stax Music Academy will celebrate the famous 1967 tour with music by Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Carla Thomas, Eddie Floyd, Arthur Conley, Booker T. & the MGs and more.
Two special performances include opening for Stax legend Mavis Staples on July 17 in Bristol, England at Colston Hall, one of the original 1967 tour venues, and opening for Stax icon and recent GRAMMY winner William Bell on July 21 at the Sage Gateshead Americana Festival in Sage/Newcastle, England.
Preparations for the tour have so far included a May 30 master class with GRAMMY Lifetime Achievement Award winner Booker T. Jones of Stax legends Booker T. & the MGs, who critiqued and performed with the students performing on the tour.
During the tour, a photography exhibit by renowned celebrity and fashion photographer Simon Emmett featuring images of Stax Music Academy students and other Memphis photos is on display through Aug. 2 at the Leica Store Mayfield in London. Emmett’s work regularly appears in publications such as Vanity Fair, Rolling Stone, Vogue, Esquire, GQ, Allure and numerous others. Among the long list of famous faces the London-based photographer/director has captured are Adele, Rihanna, Rod Stewart, Cameron Diaz, Michael Caine, Bryan Ferry, and Tony Blair. He chose the Stax Music Academy images for this first-ever solo exhibition.
If you are a lifelong Stax Records fan but don’t know how the Soulsville Foundation is carrying the legacy of the label then this is the show for you! The Stax Music Academy is the only school in the world teaching students the art form of American soul music and the sound that was created in Memphis during the 1960s and 1970s becoming a worldwide phenomenon.
Stax Music Academy trips represent the first opportunity to travel beyond Memphis for many of the young people involved. It has proven to have significant impact on the students’ desire to succeed in life, to boost their self-confidence and self-esteem, and to help them think globally.
The Stax Music Academy 2017 European Tour is a SNAP! Summer Soul Tour and is sponsored in part by the Memphis Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development.
For ticket details, visit staxstudenttour2017.com.