634-5789 (Soulsville, U.S.A.)
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"634-5789 (Soulsville, U.S.A.)" is a
soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...
song written by
Eddie Floyd Eddie Lee Floyd (born June 25, 1937) is an American R&B and soul singer and songwriter, best known for his work on the Stax record label in the 1960s and 1970s, including the No. 1 R&B hit song " Knock on Wood". Early life and education Floy ...
and
Steve Cropper Steven Lee Cropper (born October 21, 1941), sometimes known as "The Colonel", is an American guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He was the guitarist of the Stax Records house band, Booker T. & the M.G.'s, which backed artists such as ...
. 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 more than 50 songs that made the US R&B charts, many of which crossed over to the '' ...
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 the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...
album ''
The Exciting Wilson Pickett ''The Exciting Wilson Pickett'', released in 1966, was the third album by R&B and soul singer Wilson Pickett. The album charted at No. 3 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' R&B albums chart and No. 21 on the popular albums chart, becoming the highest-ch ...
'' with backing vocals by Patti LaBelle and the Blue Belles. The single reached number 1 on the ''Billboard'' Hot Rhythm & Blues Singles chart and number 13 on the
Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100, also known as simply the 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), o ...
singles chart.


Background

The phone number 634-5789 is a reference to
the Marvelettes The Marvelettes were an American girl group formed in Inkster, Michigan, Inkster, Michigan in 1960, consisting of schoolmates Gladys Horton, Katherine Anderson, Georgeanna Tillman, Juanita Cowart (now Cowart Motley), and Georgia Dobbins, who was ...
' 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 ...
".


Personnel

* Charles "Packy" Axton – tenor saxophone *
Steve Cropper Steven Lee Cropper (born October 21, 1941), sometimes known as "The Colonel", is an American guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He was the guitarist of the Stax Records house band, Booker T. & the M.G.'s, which backed artists such as ...
– guitar *
Donald "Duck" Dunn Donald "Duck" Dunn (November 24, 1941 – May 13, 2012) was an American bass guitarist, session musician, record producer, and songwriter. Dunn was notable for his 1960s recordings with Booker T. & the M.G.'s and as a session bassist for Stax R ...
– bass *
Isaac Hayes Isaac Lee Hayes Jr. (August 20, 1942 – August 10, 2008) was an American singer, songwriter, composer, and actor. He was one of the creative forces behind the Southern soul music label Stax Records in the 1960s, serving as an in-house songwr ...
– keyboards *
Al Jackson Jr. Albert J. Jackson Jr. (November 27, 1935 – October 1, 1975) was an American drummer, producer, and songwriter. He was a founding member of Booker T. & the M.G.'s, a group of session musicians who worked for Stax Records and produced their ...
– drums * Wayne Jackson – trumpet * Andrew Love – tenor saxophone *
Floyd Newman Floyd Newman (August 17, 1931 – May 23, 2023) was an American saxophonist, session musician and bandleader. As a baritone sax player, he was long associated with Stax Records, and as a member of The Mar-Keys’ horn section and the Memphis Ho ...
– baritone saxophone *
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 more than 50 songs that made the US R&B charts, many of which crossed over to the '' ...
– vocals Pickett, Wilson, The Exciting Wilson Pickett, Atlantic #8129, released 1966. Notes from Atlantic CD released 1993


Chart performance


Tina Turner version

Tina Turner Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock; November 26, 1939 – May 24, 2023) was a singer, songwriter, actress, and author. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", her vocal prowess, raspy voice, and electrifyin ...
recorded a live version of the track in 1986 as part of a segment in her '' Break Every Rule'' TV special, in which she interpreted classic soul songs with guitarist and singer
Robert Cray Robert William Cray (born August 1, 1953) is an American blues guitarist and singer. He has led his own band and won five Grammy Awards. Early life Robert Cray was born on August 1, 1953, in Columbus, Georgia, while his father was stationed at ...
, including "634-5789",
Sam Cooke Samuel Cooke (; January 22, 1931  – December 11, 1964) was an American singer and songwriter. Considered one of the most influential soul music, soul artists of all time, Cooke is commonly referred to as the "King of Soul" for his distin ...
's "
A Change Is Gonna Come "A Change Is Gonna Come" is a song by American singer-songwriter Sam Cooke. It initially appeared on Cooke's album '' Ain't That Good News'', released mid-February 1964 by RCA Victor; a slightly edited version of the recording was released as a s ...
" 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 the American rhythm and blues singer Chris Kenner in 1962. It later became a bigger hit in versions by Cannibal & the Headhunters and Wilson Pickett. ...
" and " In the Midnight Hour". 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 ''Private Dancer'' is the fifth solo studio album by singer Tina Turner. It was released on May 29, 1984, by Capitol Records and was her first album released by the label. After a challenging start to her solo career after divorcing Ike Turner, ...
" and "
Help! ''Help!'' is the fifth studio album by the English Rock music, rock band the Beatles and the soundtrack to their Help! (film), film of the same name. It was released on 6 August 1965 by Parlophone. Seven of the fourteen songs, including the sin ...
", both taken from the '' Tina Live in Europe'' album.


Chart performance


Other recordings

The song has also been recorded by:
Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...
,
Ry Cooder Ryland Peter 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, and h ...
,
Bon Jovi Bon Jovi is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Sayreville, New Jersey in 1983. The band consists of singer Jon Bon Jovi, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres, guitarists John Shanks and Phil X, percussionist Everett Bradley ...
,
Johnny Van Zant John Roy Van Zant (born February 27, 1960), also known as Johnny Van Zant, is an American singer and the current lead vocalist of Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd. He is the younger brother of Lynyrd Skynyrd co-founder and former lead vocalist ...
,
Tower of Power Tower of Power is an American R&B and funk based band and horn section, originating in Oakland, California, that has been performing since 1968. The band has had a number of lead vocalists, the best-known being Lenny Williams, who fronted ...
,
Trace Adkins Tracy Darrell Adkins (born January 13, 1962) known professionally as Trace Adkins, is an American country music singer and actor. Adkins made his debut in 1996 with the album ''Dreamin' Out Loud'', released on Capitol Records Nashville. Since t ...
,
The Elgins The Elgins were an American vocal group on the Motown label, active from the late 1965 to 1967. Their most successful record was " Heaven Must Have Sent You", written and produced by the Holland–Dozier–Holland team, which was a hit in the ...
, Rare Earth, and
Sam & Dave Sam & Dave were an American soul and R&B duo who performed together from 1961 until 1981. The tenor (higher) voice was Sam Moore (1935–2025) and the baritone/tenor (lower) voice was Dave Prater (1937–1988). Nicknamed "Double Dynamite", " ...
.


Popular culture

*Eddie Floyd and Wilson Pickett performed "634-5789" in the 1998 movie ''
Blues Brothers 2000 ''Blues Brothers 2000'' is a 1998 American musical action comedy film directed by John Landis from a screenplay written by Landis and Dan Aykroyd, both of whom were also producers, and starring Aykroyd and John Goodman. The film serves as a seq ...
'', appearing as the proprietors of "Ed's Love Exchange" which, according to the storyline in the movie, could be reached at 1-
900 __NOTOC__ Year 900 ( CM) was a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Abbasid Caliphate * Spring – Forces under the Transoxianian emir Isma'il ibn Ahmad are victorious at Balkh (Northern Afghan ...
-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. As a practice between individuals temporarily separated, it is as ...
lines).


See also

*" 853-5937" *"
867-5309/Jenny "867-5309/Jenny" is a song written by Alex Call and Jim Keller and performed by Keller's band Tommy Tutone. It was released on the album '' Tommy Tutone 2'' (1981) through Columbia Records. It peaked at number four on the ''Billboard'' Hot 10 ...
" *
Fictitious telephone number Ranges for fictitious telephone numbers are common in most telephone numbering plans. One of the main reasons these ranges exist is to avoid accidentally using real phone numbers in movies and television programs because of viewers frequently calli ...


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