Closely associated with the Stax label and the theme music of the movie Shaft,
Isaac Hayes' feel for infectious and innovative dance music made him one of
black music's most influential acts. The son of a poor share-cropping family, he
was raised by his grandparents, began singing at his local church and taught
himself to play piano, organ, flute and saxophone. He started performing in
clubs in the late 1950s and began his recording career in the early 1960s as a
session musician at Stax Records, writing a string of hit songs such as Soul
Man, When Somethin' Is Wrong With My Baby...