Carla Thomas has been hailed as the Queen of Memphis Soul since 1961, when her sweet, yearning ballad “Gee Whiz (Look At His Eyes)” became a monster pop and R&B smash. One of the first essential signings at Stax Records, Carla served up a non-stop string of hits throughout the ‘60s: “Let Me Be Good To You,” “B-A-B-Y,” “I Like What You’re Doing (To Me),” and in partnership with Otis Redding, a sassy ‘67 duet treatment of Lowell Fulsom’s “Tramp.”
Carla hails from an extraordinarily musical family. Her late father Rufus was a Memphis R&B and funk pioneer and a top deejay at WDIA (not to mention Carla’s first duet partner); her late brother Marvell was an invaluable session keyboardist at Stax, and her little sister Vaneese is a star in her own right, having cut two sizable R&B hits of her own in 1987, “Let’s Talk It Over” and “(I Wanna Get) Close To You).” Her 2016 CD The Long Journey Home was widely acclaimed. Together, Carla and Vaneese Thomas are double dynamite!

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