Carla Thomas Research Papers

With her sophisticated style and soulful voice, Carla Thomas was able to make a name for Stax Records of Memphis and aid in the development of an entirely new genre of music. With the help of her father, she began performing at a young age. By the time she was 18, she had become the first woman to chart a top ten hit on the Hot 100 with a song she wrote herself. In the following years, Carla Thomas became known as the Queen of Memphis Soul, the counterpart to the “King,” Otis Redding. Her music greatly influenced the Memphis sound and transformed Southern Soul music forever.

Carla Thomas was born into the music industry. Her father, the late Rufus Thomas, began his career in the entertainment industry in the 30s as a traveling tap dancer, vaudeville

Although the singers were meant to be of high school age, Carla Thomas was allowed to join in 1952 at the age of ten because of her father’s role at the station (Freeland.) Carla’s early experience with the music industry allowed her to develop her talents as a performer, vocalist, and songwriter while remaining in school. In an interview she explains that she was not into the overwhelming “glitter and glamour” of show business at the time. “I just wanted to be there. I loved watching him dance and sing, and even on the radio I would miss not one show” (NPR.) She continued to perform as a part of the Teen Town Singers until she graduated high

The song reflected the growing maturity in her creative approach. "My writing style had begun to change," Carla said in 1994, "I was a little more grown up" (SoulTracks.) Later that year, Satellite became Stax Records and Carla Thomas finished recording her first full length album “Gee Whiz.” Built around her biggest hit single, the record is far more pop-oriented than the sound for which Stax would become known. Both the material and the arrangements show substantial influences from pop standards, doo wop, and Nashville country (Unterberger.) Thomas had written some of the songs herself but about half of the tracks were covers of pop standards. It also features a composition by her father Rufus Thomas and one by famous Memphis producer Chips Moman, who produced five of the tracks on the album