A member of Stax's first family, Marvell Thomas dead at 75

A member of Stax's first family, Marvell Thomas, died Monday following a brief, undisclosed illness. The Memphis musician was 75.

The son of Bluff City entertainment icon Rufus Thomas, and the older brother of singing sisters Carla and Vaneese Thomas, Marvell was a respected pianist, producer and arranger in his own right, having played on many of the foundational hits for Stax and later on landmark albums like Isaac Hayes' “Hot Buttered Soul.”

The Stax Museum of American Soul music confirmed Thomas' death and on Tuesday the Thomas family released a statement that read in part, "To us, he was our husband, father, and brother.  He has left a rich musical legacy to be enjoyed by all."

“Marvell Thomas was one of those rare behind-the-scenes musicians,” said Stax spokesman Tim Sampson. “He contributed so much to the ‘Memphis Sound’ but never quite got the mass recognition he merited, although he always seemed to accept that role. The keyboards, arrangements and production talents he lent to everyone from his sister Carla Thomas to Isaac Hayes were absolutely essential to the success of Stax Records.”

Speaking to the Commercial Appeal in 2011, on the occasion of his induction to the Beale Street Walk of Fame, Thomas — known for both his candor and his dedication to the more famous members of his family — seemed humbled by the honor. "I was very flattered, because the general public doesn't know about people like me," said Thomas. "They know singers, but they don't know the producers and songwriters and session guys. So it's good to be recognized."

“It was a testament to his career that when he was honored with a brass note on Beale Street, Stax artists flew in from all over the country," Sampson said. "[Stax historian] Rob Bowman traveled from Canada to speak, and David Letterman's bandleader Paul Shaffer sent a personalized video message to him. The people who really knew about Stax always recognized his contributions and importance to the label and to his family.”

The eldest child of Rufus and Lorene Thomas, Marvell was born in 1941 and grew up in the shadow of Beale Street, where his father performed. "You could call it a second home," Thomas said in 2011. "It was just three blocks from our house. I was a little kid, 5 years old, running up and down Beale Street all the time, much to my parents' chagrin when they found out. Of course, I was there a lot legitimately too, when my father was hosting the talent show every Thursday night at the Palace Theatre."

Despite his early exposure to show business, it wasn't always guaranteed that Thomas would become a musician. "Actually, music was a long way from my mind as a potential career," he said. "I wanted to be a doctor. I was preparing to go to medical school; that's what I was going to do. But when Stax opened its doors, all that doctor stuff went out the window."

In summer 1960, Rufus Thomas — who had been shopping a demo tape of daughter Carla that he'd recorded at home — was tipped by local musician and family friend Robert Talley about Satellite Records, a fledgling label run by country fiddler and banker Jim Stewart and his sister Estelle Axton.

Satellite had been cutting country and pop songs unsuccessfully for almost three years. With his money and prospects dwindling, Stewart welcomed a chance to record a Rufus-and-Carla duet of an R&B number called "'Cause I Love You" — the first session cut in the newly renovated movie theater-cum-studio at 926 E. McLemore that would become the label's headquarters and creative hub. “‘Cause I Love' you was a family thing," recalled Marvell. "They were the artists; I was playing piano on the session. All three of us are right there from day one."

Within a few months of its release, "'Cause I Love You" became a regional hit, selling several thousand copies in Memphis, Nashville and Atlanta. Its success piqued the interest of Atlantic Records executive Jerry Wexler, beginning a distribution relationship that would eventually catapult the label to national prominence. Carla would soon break things wide open as a solo act with her self-penned "Gee Whiz (Look At His Eyes)" — which sold a half-million copies — while Rufus charted with "Walkin' the Dog." Stax, as it was renamed in 1961, was off and running.

Stax Records and the Soulsville community would become a cradle for the Thomas family: Rufus was an iconic presence at the company, and his sister Carla was the label's first big hit maker. Meanwhile, Marvell would become a key behind-the-scenes figure as a session player and producer, working with Wilson Pickett, Isaac Hayes, the Staple Singers and Johnnie Taylor, among others.

Following a two-year stint in the Army between 1965 and 1967, Thomas' career at Stax would resume and continue until the company was forced into bankruptcy in the mid-‘70s. He would also do session work at Muscle Shoals, and later served as music director for Peabo Bryson and toured with the Temptations. Thomas appeared in the films “WattStax” and “”Mystery Train” and contributed to the soundtrack of Craig Brewer’s “Hustle & Flow.” He continued to write and perform up until his final months.

Over the years, Marvell would become a staunch advocate for his father’s and family’s legacy. In 1995 he successfully lobbied to have a street off Beale named after Rufus. And in recent years both Rufus and Carla were inducted into the Memphis Music Hall of Fame.

Marvell was expected to be a major presence in a series of celebrations and programs sponsored by the Stax Museum this spring to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Rufus Thomas' birth. “We wanted to honor not only Rufus but to highlight the accomplishments of the entire family," said Stax's Sampson. "We will move ahead with those plans with a special focus on remembering the incredible life of Marvell Thomas.”

Thomas is survived by his wife, Naajee, daughter Leah, and sisters Carla and Vaneese. The family will be holding a private service, though plans are underway for a public celebration of Marvell Thomas' life at a later date. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that a donation be made to the Rufus Thomas Scholarship Fund c/o Soulsville Foundation, 926 McLemore Avenue, Memphis, TN 38106.