What Is Soul Music?

Definition: Soul music originated around the beginning of the Sixties as R&B's grittier cousin; specifically, a form of rhythm and blues which leaned heavily on the black gospel tradition. For most of the 20th century, secular and sacred music had been kept separate and distinct in America, but when a whole generation of African-American vocalists raised in church choirs began to meld that experience with the popular music heard on the radio, soul music was born. This caused no small rift in the black community, especially when artists like Ray Charles and Sam Cooke made the crossover blatant by changing the lyrics to sacred songs and making them about more worldly issues (Charles' 1955 hit "I Got A Woman" was based heavily on "It Must Be Jesus" by the Southern Tones, while Cooke's "Yeah Man," which eventually inspired Arthur Conley's hit "Sweet Soul Music," was based on a gospel standard).

Soul borrowed gospel's "call-and-response" style, in which a vocalist is answered by his backup singers; it can be found on Charles' 1959 smash "What'd I Say," widely considered the first true soul record, as well as the work of duo Sam and Dave. In addition, soul usually featured bluesy lead guitar, churchy organ/piano, and feverish singing; much of the foundation for its rhythm lies in early-Sixties New Orleans music, refined and made harder by the house bands at Memphis' Stax Records and New York's Atlantic label.

Considered at the time to be the most "real" and authentic of black music strains, soul naturally became closely identified with the civil rights movement. By the end of the decade, music had become more polarized, and black musicians began to move into the even harder and more socially aware sounds of funk. The mainstream, meanwhile, embraced the sweeter, poppier sounds of "Philly Soul," which led directly to the birth of disco later in the next decade.

Also Known As: R&B, Deep Soul, Southern Soul