[pullquote quote="One of the highlights of my life as a teacher at Columbia College was having Isaac as a guest speaker in my class." credit="Terri Hemmert"]This Friday in Memphis, Tennessee they will hold a ceremony to mark the naming of part of I-40 the [lastfm]Isaac Hayes[/lastfm] Memorial Highway. Isaac died of a stroke around this time two years ago. He was the Black Moses, one of the key singers and songwriters for the legendary Stax record label in Memphis. His soundtrack for Shaft around the same time that [lastfm]Curtis Mayfield[/lastfm] composed the music for the film Superfly was a highlight in the history of soul music and african american cultural arts.
One of the highlights of my life as a teacher at Columbia College was having Isaac as a guest speaker in my class. No one in that room will ever forget that magical evening. What an amazing man. Nice fall trip would be a drive to Memphis to eat a lot of bbq, hear some music on Beale Street, buy a shirt at Lansky’s, visit Graceland, Sun Studios and the Stax Museum, and take a drive down the Isaac Hayes Memorial Highway. He wasn’t just the chef on South Park. He was The Soul Man. If you don’t believe me, get the Wattstax dvd and prepare to have a soul transplant.

Check out the m.c…..the Rev. Jesse Jackson.

And I think Isaac would approve of this.