Isaac Hayes: Arbiter of Wisdom, Guidance, Truth and Humor

You'd think, Isaac Hayes, who penned the theme to Shaft and sported a smoothly shorn head, dark shades, sleeveless daishiki's and chunky gold chains and embodied the essence of cool, was probably a bad mutha. As it turns out, the remembrances of Hayes, paint him not as a bad boy but as an arbiter of wisdom, and some one who tried to keep those he met moving in the right direction.

Isaac Hayes' smooth funk stylings and his elegance as a musician were timeless. Never stale or dated; when you heard him you recognized the genius. While a 60's icon and musical heavyweight, he became known to legions of new fans when he voiced the animated character "Chef" on Trey Parker and Matt Stone's hit series "South Park". According to Wikipedia, Isaac Hayes, who was a practicing scientologist, left the show after a story line ridiculed the religion of Scientology.

As seems fitting, Hayes as well as Bernie Mac, who died less than a day before him, starred in the new film Soul Men. It hardly seems necessary to rehash his wealth of musical accomplishments because that has been covered by those better versed than me. I just thought I would share what others are saying in tribute to Isaac Hayes.

Isaac Hayes on Isaac Hayes

"I tried to be as real as I possibly could," Hayes shared on MTV back in 2000.

Sam Moore on Isaac Hayes

"He gave me my voice. He taught me, showed me and nurtured my voice. He didn't teach me how to sing, he taught me how to be a better singer. That was Isaac." Sam Moore, the surviving member of the great soul duo Sam & Dave shared during a comment to MTV news his memories of Hayes. Isaac Hayes along with David Porter were a songwriting team, responsible for a string of the duo's hits.

Bootsy Collins on Isaac Hayes

Flamboyant P-Funk musician Bootsy Collins shared his remembrances of Isaac Hayes on MTV news. "I met Isaac Hayes when I was on the road with James Brown in the '70s," he recalled, "We played a few festivals together. In my later years, I got to know the man behind the music. He was the first official black man to be known as a real rapper.

Aretha Franklin on Isaac Hayes

Aretha Franklin, legendary Queen of Soul shared, in a statement, her remembrance of Hayes, "[Hayes was] so musically advanced and timeless in his compositions. He was loved and appreciated by so many. He was an enduring symbol of the struggle of the African-American man and was a shining example of soul at its best."

Patti Labelle on Isaac Hayes

Patti Labelle remembered her last performance with Hayes, in Washington, DC. "Although he was under the weather, he was still performing," she said. "He was the man - he had 'the show must go on' spirit. In his absence, he will be remembered through his great music. He will forever be in our hearts and souls."

Dionne Warwick on Isaac Hayes

Dionne Warwick shared her sadness at the loss of Isaac Hayes. She wrote, "I've lost one of my best buddies and it is not easy to reckon with." ""His renditions of songs that I had recorded, especially 'Walk on By', in my opinion 'the definitive version', will always be another memory each time I sing it, and the humorous side that he showed few (that I knew so well)." Warwick shared that Hayes wrote the song "Déjà Vu" as a birthday present for her.

Heavy D on Isaac Hayes

Heavy D, rap artist and music producer shared his remembrances of Hayes on Essence.com. "His presence-the height, the bald head and the beard-made him look intimidating, like he might whoop somebody's [behind], but his spirit was angelic. He was soft-spoken and every time I saw him he would always give me these great hugs."

Rhys Ifans on Isaac Hayes

British actor and lead singer of the Peth band wrote a tribute to Hayes on the band's Myspace page. "The Peth are saddened to hear about the death of 'Black Moses' himself Mr Isaac Hayes. Another uniquely original artist has left us for the great stage in the sky or elsewhere!"

Patti Austin,on Isaac Hayes

Patti Austin shared the depth of Hayes loss on a statement posted on essence.com, "Sexy, funny, talented, genius, trend-setting, delightful-the accolades go on and on. I will miss Isaac. It will be years from now that we will fully comprehend his true impact on our world."

This is only a smattering of the accolades lifted up for Isaac Hayes, consummate musician, statesman, artist and friend.

Sources:

http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1592562/20080811/hayes_isaac.jhtml

http://www.nme.com/news/isaac-hayes/38802

http://www.nme.com/news/isaac-hayes/38866

http://www.essence.com/essence/photogallery/0,14168,1832454-1,00.html