RG : OK so you were thinking about the connection?
AB: well you know when S&D recorded and we released ?you don?t know like I know? they established themselves in their style and how they were performing they established a beach head - - - we?re here! as time went on it got to the point they recorded ?hold on I?m coming? and ?when something is wrong with my baby? that said we had a winner..and it established them now as a winner?and then they recorded a song called
?Soul Man?..that was victory ...so they went from establishing the beach head hahahahaha? you don?t know like i know? to ?Hold On I?m Coming? and when ?Something Is Wrong With My Baby? ...it penetrated females through the country ...got so many comments from females across the country and even today ...and then when they released soul man they reached America and many people especially citizens especially of African origins ?it was something great to say as an African American but many Americans of European origins just thought it was a great classical song?it was a song that really spoke to an attitude of moving ahead?but that?s the one that gave them victory?an attitude that said I have confidence in myself no matter who I am or what my origins are ...I will achieve excellence in all ...I?m a soul man?it didn?t necessarily speak to ethnicity.

AB: Well ?something is wrong with my baby? is among thee greatest soul ballads that has ever been recorded and at the time given the other releases in the market place it just cut through all of them and went deep into the hearts of females?I saw females reacting to that ...i saw guys, when guys say ?something is wrong with my baby? well for a male to take that position well females loved that?the other thing that was great about it generally speaking the next to last place we could get records broke was New York and ?w.s.t.i.w.w.m.b. ? broke in New York city ...that blew my mind this is it s.t.i.w.w.m.y. this is New York
RG: how about ? I Thank You?
?i thank you? was recorded not to long ago by a gospel artist ...he was speaking of the creator?when S&D did it they were speaking about a female ..?You didn?t have to love me like you did and i thank you? ..it was powerful ...it was penetrating?I always appreciated songs that appealed to and impacted the females?that happened to be one of those?here males say to females?you didn?t have to love me like you did and I thank you? :..hahaha? quite a statement to make

RG: I imagine Joe has someone telling the story about hold on I?m coming
AB: well I?ve heard it told a couple of different ways but the crux of it is that Issac and David were working and David had gone to the rest room and Issac had to get David to hurry up and come out of the rest room and David said ?Hold On I?m Comin???and that?s where it was born?and somewhere in there they realized it was a great title for a song and they went on writing it and came up with that masterpiece?.but the main point is that David Porter was in the rest room and Hayes was trying to get him out of there and David said ?Hold On I?m Coming? ..he had been in for quite a while ...and he said ?Hold On I?m Coming? ? and Hold On I?m Coming was born?hahaha

AB: I don?t know I think one of the reasons maybe is because the leader ship in the record companies that dominate things and have for many years now have not been interested in releasing that type of music and that pushed away anybody who wanted to sound like S&D?or sang like Sam Moore and Dave and that was an opportunity cause there was a new type of music that they wanted to mass produce and release in the market place?i suppose at that time ...it was the kind of company who just believed in an artist for their god giving talent and not putting them in a box?we allowed the artist to just be their selves and went after their god given talent and we went after that?and since then the emphasis has been placed on a kind of music that could be mass merchandized, it was first called cross over ...a music that did not sound so black ...that could be merchandized for the white audiences ...the kind of music that S&D did and we did at STAX was not considered crossover or the type of music we could mass merchandised for the general public ...so any artist like that that sang like that had to change or they would not be accepted ...but there are unique artists out there that can perform like Sam & Dave but I must tell you that S&D were one of a kind ?they were great artists and there were other great artists at that time but I miss Sam and Dave ...and there hasn?t been anyone nor will there ever be anyone like them?they were truly a phenomenon ...I don?t know how to explain it ...they were a phenomenon