Eddie Floyd - Knock On Wood (1967)

Eddie Floyd is an American soul singer and songwriter.

Eddie Floyd was born in Alabama in 1937, but grew up in Detroit, Michigan. It was there that he became a founding member of R&B vocal group The Falcons, which also included Joe Stubbs, Mack Rice, and later Wilson Pickett. They had hits in 1959 with "You're So Fine" and 1962 with "I Found A Love", but broke up when Pickett left to become a solo star. Floyd attempted to build a solo career for himself as well, first releasing some singles on his uncle's Lupine label (which The Falcons had also recorded for). None of these charted, so he next moved to Washington, D.C. to found the Safice label with his D.J. friend Al Bell, but again had little success. His big break came in 1965 when he and Bell moved to Memphis, and he joined Stax Records as a songwriter. He co-wrote several songs with Steve Cropper - "Ninety Nine And A Half (Won't Do)" and "634-5789 (Soulsville USA)" were both hits for Wilson Pickett when he came to record at Stax.
In 1966 he wrote a song with Cropper originally intended for Otis Redding, but Stax were persuaded to release Floyd's own version. The gritty soul of "Knock On Wood" finally gave him his breakthrough as an artist in his own right, becoming a #1 R&B hit, and also breaking through to #28 on the pop chart. His debut album came out early the next year, featuring mostly self-penned songs, including his own version of "634-5789". It also generated another Top 20 R&B hit with "Raise Your Hand", which got to #16. Backing came from Booker T & The MGs.

|> I've Never Found A Girl (1968)
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