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=Assignment One=

Articles
Soul Music

Stax Records

Otis Redding

Articles
Soul Music

Stax Records

Otis Redding

Research Process
Deciding on a theme for my research was relatively easy; narrowing this theme to three topics was less so. Writing and researching music is a part of who I am, and something I take great pleasure in, and as such, the idea of even just the possibility of being able to write about one of my favourite genres of music was a delight. My first topic was chosen without hesitation -- soul music. From there, I faced internal questions like "Do I research obscure sub-genres?". There not being many resources chronicling the history of Northern soul, for example, this decision was made for me. Another question I had was "do I continue with the soul theme, or include other genres of music I enjoy?". Again, resources pertaining to rocksteady, ska, reggae, or blue beat are few and those that do exist tend to be sparse. Unless one is able to find a specialized encyclopedia (which may not exist in real life), or use less academic sources (which would be unacceptable), the research into this area would be incomplete. And then nostalgia tapped me on the shoulder and reminded me of my trip to Memphis is 2012. One of the most prolific, yet sometimes overlooked, record companies specializing in the soul genre is Stax, and while visiting Memphis, my friend and I toured the museum there. My second topic chosen, I decided to keep my third topic Stax themed, and looked to Otis Redding for a variety of reasons, the most important being a personal love for the music this man created in his tragically brief lifetime.

My initial thoughts on the articles begins with disappointment. The Wikipedia article on soul music, as of this writing, is broken down into decades, and then sub-genres, which seems a logical way to organize an article of this nature. However, it is one of Wikipedia's articles that "needs improvement", and although contains citations, it may contain unverified sources. By contrast, the Encyclopedia Britannica article is simple and more or less chronologically written, but misses any subtleties associated with the genre. A perhaps good, but definitely not great resource.

The Wikipedia article on Stax records, however is a rich resource chronicling the rise and fall of the little label that could. Once again, this article is more or less organized chronologically, and contains a lot of detailed information about this record label. The Britannica article is much less detailed, and while also organized chronologically, not broken down into eras or decades -- a feature of the Wikipedia article that appears logical.

Lastly, the Wikipedia article on Otis Redding is a well written, researched, and detailed article. It is initially organized chronologically, but contains information at the end pertaining to his legacy in the music industry, his musicianship, and awards and honours. The sourcing for this piece is varied and appears unbiased. Again, the Britannica article is simpler, and organized similarly.

Ultimately, while it appears that the Wikipedia articles contain more information, some of that information may be unverifiable and as such maybe even false. Although the Britannica articles are less detailed, they appear more factual. That being said, the way the information is presented in the Britannica articles can be construed as biased -- for example, Stax records is filed under "Black History", even though it is considered one of the most racially integrated record companies in history, enjoyed success with a variety of audiences (most notably European youths), and the two founders (Jim Stewart and Estelle Axton, their names creating the portmanteau STAX) were white. These are all problems I look forward to studying and researching in the future.