Isaac Hayes - The Theme From "Shaft"

(There's nothing more to say but - I CAN DIG IT.)

1971. America was easy then. We had Tony Orlando & Dawn singing "Knock Three Times," we had The Bee Gees singing "How Do You Mend A Broken Heart." The only real 'controversal' song in music that year was "Indian Reservation" by The Raiders. A great song, but I was only 7 years old, so the only real song I remember from that time (sad to say) was The Osmonds "One Bad Apple." But then, a film came out in that summer that changed a lot of people's minds about so much. That film?

It was "Shaft," starring Richard Roundtree. And I know you're already remembering the bassline and the wah-wah pedal fury of the lead guitarist - and don't forget those high-hat drums and those tambourines. The horns drift in slowly, and then, a heavy bass voice appears...

Gordon Parks, the black photographer and media icon, had been chosen to direct a new movie dealing with "the black experience." He had helped in developing the 1971 film "Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song," and since it made money (especially in the more 'urban' areas, in which most major studios never counted on), M-G-M wanted another money maker - I mean, film.

Gordon consulted with Melvin Van Peebles, the director of "Sweet Sweetback," for ideas. Melvin had heard thought of doing a white detective in the ghetto story, but then found a script floating around the M-G-M lot titled "Shaft," about a white detective in the ghetto. Gordon and Melvin took the basic premise, flipped the skin tone, and made a few minor changes. John Shaft as we know him now was born, a detective who wasn't gonna take any of The Man's bullshit and did things his way.

Although they had a shooting schedule, they had most of the actors lined up, they needed two things: a lead actor and a soundtrack. Melvin got to work. He looked to someone to compose the music, and it neede to be a tough and gritty score. Since they had used Earth Wind and Fire for "Sweeetback," they needed someone who could wrap their vocals over the title song as well, a theme song that was to establish John Shaft's role in the film as the hero.

Enter Issac Hayes.

Issac had been recording music for almost 20 years at that point. He had written many of the biggest soul songs of the sixties - "Soul Man" and "Hold On I'm Comin'" among them. He was more than eager to help out with the theme music for the film, but he promised to write and record the theme song only on one condition - if "Shaft" producer Joel Freeman promised him an audition for the lead role of John Shaft himself!

Meanwhile though, he got to work, as it was explained to him that the song had to familiarize the audience with him. Hayes recorded the rhythm parts on the theme first, scored the entire rest of the film, then returned to the theme song. (He never actually got to audition, but who knows how that might have turned out!) Eventually they found their lead in Richard Roundtree, they lined up the budget (a whole million dollars!) and in three very short weeks they had it in the can.

"Sweetback" had just began to fade from the urban movie houses when "Shaft" came out in July of 1971. Immediately, they were filled with people young and old who wanted to see The Man get his and John Shaft get his. The film was a runaway box-office success, eventually grossing twelve million dollars, and for 1971, this was huge.

The film begins with John Shaft walking down the ghetto streets as the music swells around him, and then the words in that song just explode off the screen into your ears:

Who's the black private dick
That's a sex machine to all the chicks?
SHAFT!
Ya damn right!

Who is the man
That would risk his neck for his brother man?
SHAFT!
Can you dig it?

Who's the cat that won't cop out
When there's danger all about?
SHAFT!
Right on!

They say this cat Shaft is a bad mother
SHUT YOUR MOUTH!
I'm talkin' 'bout Shaft.
THEN WE CAN DIG IT!

He's a complicated man
But no one understands him but his woman
JOHN SHAFT!

The song itself became unforgettable, and although it wasn't intended to be put out as a single, the success of the film and the popularity of the album's sales (and constant play in many black nightclubs) led to M-G-M quickly putting out a 45 record of the theme, released on Enterprise Records in September. By November it hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and stayed there two weeks.

In 1972 it was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song from a movie. At the Oscars show that Feburary, Issac performed the song live wearing his trademark gold metal chain coat. Later that night the song won, and he accepted it in a rented tuxedo.

However... the story just doesn't end there.

In 1972, mainstream America still listened to the pap of pop: Nilsson's "Without You," Roberta Flack's "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face," Sammy Davis Jr.'s "The Candy Man." All in all, life was pretty uneventful in the world, even though this little thing called Watergate had appeared in the occasional newspaper.

One bright spot happened that year in the world of music - the Wattstax concert was held at the Los Angeles Coliseum on August 20, 1972. It was organized by Stax Records to commemorate the seventh anniversary of the Watts riots in Los Angeles. The event was seen by some as "the Afro-American answer to Woodstock," and it was a seminal moment in black music, and if you've never heard of it, or seen the concert footage, or LISTENED TO THE MUSIC ON CD, then shame on you. (Go look it up... I'll wait...)

Issac Hayes performed there, and was advertised as the closer. He came in with the arrival befitting the man, now known as "Black Moses" due to the popularity and heavy politics of his funk and soul music. As soon as Rev. Jesse Jackson of Operation PUSH (yeah, that one) announced him, the crowd of over 20,000 went wild. "The Theme From Shaft" began, and he strutted onstage like the valiant victor of funk music he was.

He performed for almost an hour, and he was glorious. The album "Wattstax" went on to be bootlegged over the years, remastered, and has been released in a sadly only about half-full repackaged form which is nowhere near complete, and I've said so in my review on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/WATTSTAX-3-CD-Deluxe-Various-Artists/dp/B000SNUNY2/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1252621342&sr=8-3.

The song has found it's own legs since. In 1978, at the beginning of the disco era, a 12 inch mix titled "Shaft II" appeared. It has been parodied, copied, it's been used on "Sesame Street," in films making fun of the blackspoitation genre like "I'm Gonna Get Ya Sucka" (in which Issac Hayes appeared as one of the backup heroes called Hammer), and every time you hear it you're the hero in the movie, and you wear all black, and with a .45 in one hand, you've got the situation well in hand.

SHAFT!

Right on...

This is one of the greatest songs ever made, not only because it's timeless due to your older brother playing it over and over, but you've heard it in college, on the radio, in ads, and anywhere The Man is holding someone down and you need to swoop in and bust some heads.

Damn right.

Check out our man kickin' it old school: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2cHkMwzOiM