An essential stop while visiting Memphis, is the Stax Museum of American Soul Music, at McLemore and College in what's known as Soulsville, USA. The museum pays homage to Memphis soul music and the old Stax Records label.
Highlights:
2,000 exhibits, videos, stage costumes, photographs, instruments used to record the Stax sound
A 100 year old reconstructed gospel church as an exhibit
Hall of Records, where approximately 800 45 single records and 300 LPs are on display
Recreation of Stax's legendary Studio A.
Seasonally-changing exhibits, with internationally acclaimed photography exhibitions
Located in Soulsville USA at the site of the original Stax Records.
The Stax Museum can be overwhelming, so take your time. A 100-year-old church, moved from the Mississippi Delta, begins the tour to show the roots of soul, and a similar attention to context and detail is common throughout the Museum.
From the award-winning introductory documentary film to an authentic 100-year-old Mississippi Delta church that explains the gospel roots of soul music, the Stax Museum of American Soul Music winds and twists through a labyrinth of exhibits.
These exhibits promote and preserve the legacy of American Soul Music and its contributions internationally, highlighting musical giants such as Isaac Hayes, Otis Redding, the Staple Singers, the Bar-Kays, Booker T. & the MIGs, Johnnie Taylor, Little Milton, Al Green, Aretha Franklin, Ike & Tina Turner and hundreds of others.
Among the more than 2,000 exhibits, videos, stage costumes, photographs, instruments used to record the Stax sound, you'll find items such as:
- Halon Jones' saxophone that was retrieved from a lake intact after the fatal crash of Otis Redding and the Bar-Kay's
- Otis Reading's favorite brown suede jacket
- Albert King's famous purple Flying V guitar
- Tina Turner's gold sequined stage dress and Ike Turner's silver lame suit and Fender guitar
- The organ used by Booker T. Jones to record Green Onions
- Isaac Hayes' restored, peacock-blue 1972 Super fly Cadillac El Dorado complete with television, refrigerator, and gold trim.
You'll be amazed in the Hall of Records, where approximately 800 45 single records and 300 LPs are on display. And you'll stand on the exact spot where all of the great Stax music was made in the recreation of Stax's legendary Studio A.
In addition to these and other permanent exhibits, the Stax Museum Gallery hosts seasonally-changing exhibits, with internationally acclaimed photography exhibitions celebrating such icons as The Beatles, Bob Dylan, the Rolling Stones, the world's greatest hip hop artists, and virtually every famous Blues musician in history.
Definitely an essential stop while visiting Memphis!
Name:
Stax Museum of American Soul Music
Operating Times:
Tuesday through Sunday, 10 am to 5 pm. (closed Mondays).
Also closed on Easter Sunday, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year's Day.
Reservation Notes:
Reservations are NOT needed or accepted. Tickets can be used on any operating day within 6 months of the purchase date.
Duration:
self guided
Booth Location:
926 E. McLemore Ave. Memphis, TN 38106
Nearest Intersection:
McLemore Ave and College Street
Age Requirements:
Child Ticket: 9-12 yrs. 8 yrs old and under are free.
Seniors 62 +, Active Military, and Students with valid ID - discounted rate.
Notes:
COVID-19 Safety Procedures: In addition to many other measures the museum is taking to ensure the safety of its guests and employees, a professional cleaning company will sanitize the museum each morning and again midday along with cleanings at other intervals as necessary. All museum staff members will wear masks and/or other protective gear, and we will require all museum guests over the age of four to do the same. We ask that our guests please stay safe and at home if they exhibit any flu-like symptoms. Museum staff will clean the museum throughout the day, wiping down frequently touched surfaces and our gift shop, which will remain open for museum visitors and those who wish to stop by only to shop. Acrylic sneeze guards have been installed at point of entry, and commonly used items in the museum, such as headphones in our music listening stations, have been removed. Hand sanitizing stations will be placed throughout the museum.
ITEMS NOT ALLOWED: Parcels, umbrellas, backpacks, cameras, audio/visual devices.
