Soul: Memphis' Original Sound

Thom Gilbert was born in New York City and raised on Long Island. His work has been seen in Interview, New York Magazine, Gotham, NY Times Magazine, LA Confidential, GQ and Hampton's Magazine. He has won numerous awards including the Hasselblad Masters Series. This is Mr. Gilbert's first solo book. He calls his portraiture honest. It comprises elements of trust he establishes with his subjects to bring out a moment of their true identity. Mr. Gilbert as already completed a similar approach with the pro surfing world and their culture called Now You See Them as well as a project photographing the people who were closest to Elvis Presley titled Brushing Shoulders with Elvis. Includes a foreword by Dan Aykroyd.

If a picture can speak 1,000 words, then author and photographer Thom Gilbert's Soul: Memphis' Original Sound is comparable to an encyclopedia. Aside from a few brief pages of text, the book consists of more than 200 intimate, pristine portraits documenting the people, places and items responsible for the soulful Memphis sound of the 1960s and '70s. From B.B. King to Isaac Hayes' Cadillac to the Lorraine Motel, Gilbert's book is a history lesson in soul, especially showcasing Stax Records - home to Hayes, Sam And Dave, Otis Redding and others - and Royal Studios, where Al Green, Bobby "Blue" Bland, Syl Johnson and others cut timeless classics. -- Quinn Peterson, Life & Times December 22, 2014 A picture may be worth a thousand words, but 200 images of the artists who define the sound of Memphis defy calculation - at least when photographed by Thom Gilbert. Through the perfection of his lens and the uniqueness of his vision, Gilbert captures the history of Memphis music in the newly released book: Soul: Memphis' Original Sound. December 2014