Bluestone on Arthur Alexander

Arthur Alexander's music is categorized on my iTunes sometimes as blues and sometimes as R&B.  Wikipedia calls it 'country soul,' and my uncle just describes it as Muscle Shoals.  The fact is that he has a couple bluesy tunes, but otherwise, country soul is not far off.  Arthur Alexander, along with Big Boi and Andre 3000 from Outkast, is the man that first got me interested in music.  I heard him on the radio when I was about 8 years old and I bought his album, Lonely Just Like Me and then The Greatest.  Arthur lived from 1940 to 1993, born in Sheffield, Alabama and a major influence on American music.  He recorded his first single in Alabama, in 1960 for Judd Records.  It was the mean, bluesy Sally Sue Brown.  Little boys better run for cover, if you don't wanna be a broken hearted lover!  In third grade, I used to say "Sally Boo Brown" hundreds of times a day, until finally my teacher made me stop.  The song has a simple, catchy blues riff and Arthur sings it like he always does.  In 1961, he started recording at the Muscle Shoals studio, where he first released You Better Move On. , which was covered by the Rolling Stones, then Anna (1962), which was covered by The Beatles.  The Beatles always said Alexander was a major influence on their work.  The Beatles also covered Arthur's incredible song Soldier of Love.  According to Wikipedia, Arthur's music career fell apart so badly that he spent years as a bus driver.  It's really a shame because he is absolutely incredible.  he has so many hits like Where Have You Been, After You, and Without A Song.  Unfortunately, I can't find the bluesy Mr. John, but please purchase his album Lonely Just Like Me on Amazon.com.  Arthur is good for wooing the ladies, feeling the blues, or getting up and dancing.  He was a great artist who left an important legacy behind, I love him.