Guardian Music — In Otis Redding's hands, Try a Little Tenderness fires a secular devotion that is every bit as intense as its spiritual cousinOf all the great soul singers, perhaps Solomon Burke is most famed for bringing the fervour of the church to his recordings... more info

ContactMusic — Soul II Soul star Jazzie B says James Brown treated him like a "little brother". The DJ, producer and singer worked with James - known as the 'Godfather of Soul' - on one of his albums as well as touring with him, and reveals the star really took him... more info

Popdose — James Brown got all of the headlines, be they for his fancy moves, his fancier suits or his brushes with the law. But the JB Horns, those great groovers who provided the punctuation to every grunt, gasp and squeal, remain an underrated element to the... more info

NME — Wonder joins Aretha Franklin and James Brown more info

Aquarium Drunkard — Several months back my pal Duke had a group over to his house to check out a James Brown concert DVD he’d just picked up. Afterwards the discussion turned to recent vinyl finds at the Rose Bowl Flea Market; during which Duke broke out an LP that di... more info

Guardian Music — 13 August 1973: Number 1 in our series of the 50 key events in the history of R&B and hip-hop musicConsidering the event is thought to be the birth of a globe-spanning, music-based culture almost half a century old, the ambitions that lay behind it w... more info

Guardian Music — 7 July 1987: Number 15 in our series of the 50 key events in the history of R&B and hip-hop musicOne of the most revered acts, with MC Rakim often acclaimed as the Greatest of All Time (aka GOAT). Yet their masterpiece, which matched Rakim's laid-bac... more info

Guardian Music — 26 February 1965: Number 6 in our series of the 50 key events in the history of rock musicIn early 1965, the Rolling Stones were in an exquisite quandary. They were the second biggest group in Britain by that point and rising fast in the US. But thei... more info

Guardian Music — 3 May 1969: Number 15 in our series of the 50 key events in the history of rock musicSly and the Family Stone were the most good-time group since the Lovin' Spoonful. What they did with their fourth album, Stand!, wasn't rocket science – Sly Stone ... more info

Guardian Music — August 1963: Number 10 in our series of the 50 key events in the history of pop musicPop on TV in the mid-60s was the chaotic and brash Ready Steady Go! – the audience milled about the studio while cameras pushed through; artists performed from fou... more info