Stax Reissuing Two Isaac Hayes Classics

Stax Records, now part of the Concord Group, will be reissuing two of Isaac Hayes ' classic 70's album on February 24.

Up first is Black Moses , originally issued in 1971. This double-CD of Hayes' most critically acclaimed album includes a complete replication of the original album cover which folds out into a cross-shaped image of the artist. New to the set is liner notes by Rob Bowman who wrote Soulsville U.S.A.: The Story of Stax Records .

The album was notable for the fact that so many of the tracks were covers, including the Jackson 5 's Never Can Say Goodbye , the Carpenters Close to You , and Kris Kristofferson 's For the Good Times . Hayes took the songs and crafted soulful versions that, at times, ran upwards of ten minutes in length. The singer noted that the album came out of the pain of a divorce. Bowman says "Isaac's ability to take other people's material and make it so deeply personal is nothing short of brilliant."

The album went to number one on the R&B, number two on the Jazz and number ten on the Pop Album charts while Never Can Say Goodbye was a number five R&B and number 22 Pop single. It won the Grammy for Best Pop Instrumental Performance.

Also being released is 1976's Juicy Fruit (Disco Heat) . The album was nowhere near as good or as big as most of his previous works, mostly attempting to tap into the current disco trend. It was also his third release of that year for his new label, ABC, and was one of his few albums on which he wrote all of the songs. The combination proved problematic with the songs being formulaic and non-descript.

The album peaked at 18 on the R&B and 124 on the Pop charts and didn't produce any hit singles.