"634-5789 (Soulsville, U.S.A.)" is a

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

song written by Eddie Floyd and

Steve Cropper Steven Lee Cropper (born October 21, 1941), sometimes known as "The Colonel", is an American guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He is the guitarist of the Stax Records house band, Booker T. & the M.G.'s, which backed artists such as Ot ...

. It was first recorded by

Wilson Pickett Wilson Pickett (March 18, 1941 – January 19, 2006) was an American singer and songwriter. A major figure in the development of soul music, Pickett recorded over 50 songs which made the US R&B charts, many of which crossed over to the ''Bill ...

on December 20, 1965 and included on his 1966

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most i ...

album '' The Exciting Wilson Pickett'' with backing vocals by Patti LaBelle and the Blue Belles. The single reached number 1 on the ''Billboard''

Hot Rhythm & Blues Singles The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

chart and number 13 on the

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

singles chart.

Background

The phone number 634-5789 is a reference to

the Marvelettes The Marvelettes were an American girl group that achieved popularity in the early to mid-1960s. They consisted of schoolmates Gladys Horton, Katherine Anderson, Georgeanna Tillman, Juanita Cowart (now Cowart Motley), and Georgia Dobbins, who wa ...

' 1962 hit "

Beechwood 4-5789 "Beechwood 4-5789" is a song written by Marvin Gaye, William "Mickey" Stevenson and George Gordy. It was a 1962 hit single for the Motown girl group The Marvelettes on Motown's Tamla subsidiary record label. The song became a hit again when it w ...

Chart performance

Tina Turner version

Tina Turner Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock; November 26, 1939) is an American-born Swiss retired singer and actress. Widely referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", she rose to prominence as the lead singer o ...

recorded a live version of the track in 1986 as part of a segment in her ''

Break Every Rule ''Break Every Rule'' is the sixth solo studio album by Tina Turner. It was released on September 5, 1986, through Capitol Records in the US. It was the follow-up to Turner's globally successful comeback album, ''Private Dancer'', released two ye ...

'' TV special, in which she interpreted classic soul songs with guitarist and singer Robert Cray, including "634-5789",

Sam Cooke Samuel Cook (January 22, 1931 – December 11, 1964), known professionally as Sam Cooke, was an American singer and songwriter. Considered to be a pioneer and one of the most influential soul artists of all time, Cooke is commonly referred ...

's " A Change Is Gonna Come" and Wilson Pickett's "

Land of a Thousand Dances "Land of a Thousand Dances" (or "Land of 1000 Dances") is a song written and first recorded by American rhythm and blues singer Chris Kenner in 1962. It later became a bigger hit in versions by Cannibal & the Headhunters and Wilson Pickett. A ve ...

" and "

In the Midnight Hour "In the Midnight Hour" is a song originally performed by Wilson Pickett in 1965 and released on his 1965 album of the same name, also appearing on the 1966 album ''The Exciting Wilson Pickett''. The song was composed by Pickett and Steve Cropp ...

". The four tracks were later included on her 1988 album '' Tina Live in Europe'' and "634-5789", sung as a duet with Cray, was also issued as a single in certain territories, reaching number 14 on the Dutch singles chart. The B-sides were " Private Dancer" and " Help!", both taken from the '' Tina Live in Europe'' album.

Chart performance

Other recordings

The song has also been recorded by: Otis Redding,

Ry Cooder Ryland Peter "Ry" Cooder (born March 15, 1947) is an American musician, songwriter, film score composer, record producer, and writer. He is a multi-instrumentalist but is best known for his slide guitar work, his interest in traditional music, an ...

, Johnny Van Zant, Tower of Power,

Trace Adkins Trace may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * ''Trace'' (Son Volt album), 1995 * ''Trace'' (Died Pretty album), 1993 * Trace (band), a Dutch progressive rock band * ''The Trace'' (album) Other uses in arts and entertainment * ''Trace'' ...

, The Elgins and Rare Earth.

Popular culture

*Eddie Floyd, Wilson Pickett, and Jonny Lang appeared in the 1998 movie ''

Blues Brothers 2000 ''Blues Brothers 2000'' is a 1998 American musical comedy film directed by John Landis from a screenplay written by Landis and Dan Aykroyd, both of whom were also producers. The film, starring Aykroyd and John Goodman, is a sequel to the 1980 fi ...

'' and performed "634-5789". Floyd and Pickett played the proprietors of "Ed's Love Exchange" which, according to the storyline in the movie, could be reached at 1- 900-634-5789 (a reference to

phone sex Phone sex is a conversation between two or more people by means of the telephone which is sexually explicit and is intended to provoke sexual arousal in one or more participants. All parties participate voluntarily; it is typically accompanied ...

lines).

References

1966 songs 1966 singles 1988 singles Wilson Pickett songs Tina Turner songs Songs about telephone calls Songs written by Steve Cropper Songs written by Eddie Floyd Atlantic Records singles The Blues Brothers songs {{1960s-R&B-song-stub

Background

Chart performance

Tina Turner version

Chart performance

Other recordings

Popular culture

See also

References