Thanks to some young record company owners in Minneapolis, 74-year-old North Augusta resident Mickey Murray is enjoying renewed national and international attention.
Secret Stash Records not only re-issued Murray’s 1970 vinyl album People Are Together with new packaging but flew Murray up to Minneapolis in January to perform the album’s songs for a promotional release party at the Cedar Cultural Center.
He was backed by a six-piece band that included Secret Stash owners Eric Foss on drums and Cory Wong on electric guitar.
The company specializes in limited edition vinyl and CD releases of forgotten classic recordings.
“Last summer they started calling me from their record company, and I told them I wasn’t interested,” Murray said from his North Augusta home. “But they kept calling and sounded convincing, so I kept talking to them.
“Now they’re talking about me doing another album with them, but I’m 74 and not sure how much I want to get back into it. I enjoy my church and my garden and getting out and walking.”
You can find videos from that show on youtube.com by typing “Mickey Murray, Secret Stash” into the search window or other videos of Murray’s singles by just typing “Mickey Murray.”
All of that is amazing for a guy who retired from Georgia Pacific in 2007 and whose main public appearances in recent years have been in the choir of Old Storm Branch Baptist Church in North Augusta and at parties, weddings and family gatherings.
In the late 1960s, Murray was one of the nation’s best known soul music singers with his 1967 recording of Shout Bamalama selling a million copies. His fans included the Godfather of Soul himself, James Brown.
He recorded on the powerful King/Federal labels, opened shows for Aretha Franklin at Harlem’s famed Apollo theater and toured with such hot rhythm and blues acts as Wilson Pickett, The Staple Singers and The Isley Brothers.
Murray and his brother, Clarence, started out singing gospel songs in Augusta and North Augusta. His brother would become a lead vocalist with the legendary Swanee Quintet based in Augusta. Murray sang with the Dixie Jubilaires.
It was Murray’s band teacher, Raymond Dean, at Jefferson High School in Bath, who hooked him up with Augusta show promoter Sam Gantt, the manager of a popular band called The Zippers.
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