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Farming For A Better Future, page 34

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were several Shoals natives that contributed to the "Sound," such as Percy Sledge. The sound eventually went on to influence many great American and British artists such as Chuck Berry and the Beatles. (Below) Percy Sledge, 1960s (Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Library and Archives) (Right) FAME Recording Studios, 2010, Photographer Carol M. Highsmith (Library of Congress) Florence Alabama Music Enterprises (FAME) Several recording studios emerged in Muscle Shoals and the Quad City area, one of which was Florence Alabama Music Enterprises, later to be known simply as FAME Recording Studios. Established in 1961 by Rick Hall, FAME had its beginnings across the river in Florence where Hall partnered with Tom Stafford who owned Stafford Producing and Recording (SPAR). Despite some success, Hall eventually set out on his own in Muscle Shoals where he found greater success in Arthur Alexander's “You Better Move On,” which allowed him the funds to buy the now- famous studio. In the early years, FAME recorded and released musical artists such as Jimmy Hughes, cousin of Percy Sledge, who wrote and sang “Steal Away;” Aretha Franklin, who recorded “I Never Loved A Man (The Way I Love You)” in 1967; Clarence Carter, a Montgomery native who sang “Slip Away” in 1968; and Etta James' “Tell Mama” that same year. African American artists from all over began to come to Muscle Shoals to get in on the Sound from Little Richard, to Otis Redding to Wilson Pickett (Below) The Muscle Shoals Sound Studio, 2010, Photographer Carol M. Highsmith (Library of Congress) KEY ■ COMMUNITIES CEMETERIES CHURCHES ■ PLANTATIONS ■ SCHOOLS ■ OTHER * Indicates a Historical - Non-Extant Resource - (4562)    

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