Carla Thomas
As a teenager, Carla Thomas’s work gave young Stax Records higher visibility by attracting the attention of Atlantic Records.

The Power of Location
Carla Thomas was born December 21, 1942, in Memphis, where she attended Hamilton High School. Her place in Stax history demonstrates the power of location. The Thomases lived at Kerr Avenue and Wilson Street, just a few blocks from 926 E. McLemore Avenue. Had Jim Stewart and Estelle Axton chosen to open Satellite Record Company in another neighborhood, Rufus Thomas might not have walked into the place in 1960 to see what was going on. Instead, the father-daughter team of Rufus and Carla gave Stewart and Axton reason to believe with their “Cause I Love You,” in 1960, the first recording made at the newly refurbished studio.

“Gee Whiz” Hooks Atlantic
Her first solo recording “Gee Whiz (Look at His Eyes),” which she had written as a 16 year-old, became Satellite’s first hit record after its release in November 1960. Perhaps more importantly to the long-term development of Stax Records, Carla’s work attracted the attention of Atlantic Records executives in New York. Atlantic had established itself as the leading independent rhythm and blues record company in the world. After hearing Carla’s work, they agreed to distribute Stax, which brought the little Memphis label higher visibility and more retail opportunity than it might have gained on its own. Carla was the only Stax-recorded artist to release singles on the Atlantic label until Wilson Pickett broke out with “In the Midnight Hour” in 1965.

Part of The Stax Family
The Thomases had long since become part of the Stax family, recording their duets and solo material. Carla’s next big hit came in fall 1966 with “B-A-B-Y.” She also sang in duo with Otis Redding on the memorable “Tramp,” “Ooh Carla, Ooh Otis,” and “Lovey Dovey,” part of their King and Queen album. She sang duets with Stax leading men Johnnie Taylor and William Bell, and continued her solo work. Thomas performed at the Wattstax concert in Los Angeles in 1972.

Prolific Career
Her Stax recording career ended in 1973, though, according to Stax historian Rob Bowman, she had achieved twenty-four national chart hits. She lives in Memphis today.