Eddie Floyd’s Hall of Fame Career & New Autobiography on ‘Songcraft’

The Songcraft podcast catches up with the Stax Records legend who wrote classics such as “Knock on Wood,” “634-5789,” “Ninety-Nine and a Half,” “Raise Your Hand,” “Big Bird,” “I’ve Never Found a Girl” and “California Girl” to talk about his remarkable career, his surprising hand in Lynyrd Skynyrd’s success, and his new autobiography Knock! Knock! Knock! On Wood: My Life in Soul.

Eddie Floyd first found success on the Billboard charts as a songwriter for Carla Thomas, Solomon Burke, and Wilson Pickett, who had hits with “634-5789 (Soulsville, U.S.A.)” and “Ninety-Nine and a Half (Won’t Do).” Other artists continued to hit the charts with his songs, including Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, William Bell, Rufus Thomas, Esther Phillips and Amii Stewart, who reached #1 on the pop rankings with her disco version of “Knock On Wood” in 1979. 

From his early life as a doo-wop singer with The Falcons, to his successful career with Stax Records, to his stints as the lead singer of both The Blues Brothers Band and Bill Wyman’s Rhythm Kings, Floyd has always considered himself, first and foremost, a songwriter. His catalog has been covered by Mavis Staples, Janis Joplin, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Eric Clapton, David Bowie, Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi, Tom Jones, Ike & Tina Turner, Albert King, Seal, James Taylor, Al Green, Etta James, Ella Fitzgerald, and others. He has been inducted into both the Alabama Music Hall of Fame and the Memphis Music Hall of Fame and recently released his autobiography.

Songcraft features in-depth career-spanning interviews with songwriters of various genres and eras. Nashville natives and long-time Los Angeles residents Scott B. Bomar and Paul Duncan launched the show in 2015 as a forum for everyone from casual music fans to fellow creative types to hear songwriters in conversation about their influences, the stories behind their songs, and how they’ve honed their craft. Songcraft was the first podcast of its kind to launch in the US. 

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