Dan Penn

Singer, songwriter, guitar player, Dan Penn. Penn has written soul music classics like Do Right Woman, Cry Like a Baby, Sweet Inspiration, and I'm Your Puppet. His compositions have been made famous by the likes of Aretha Franklin, James Carr, Percy Sledge, Solomon Burke and Otis Redding. Penn left his tiny hometown of Vernon, Alabama when he was sixteen as a white kid, singing like Ray Charles and in love with black music.

INT. 2: An on stage performance with Rufus Thomas, the self-proclaimed “world’s oldest teenager.” He was recorded at the 1997 Chicago Blues Festival. He played an integral role in the success of major record labels in the nineteen-fifties, Sun Records and Stax Records. Rebroadcast from 7/3/97. Musicians Dan Penn, Spooner Oldham, and Marvell Thomas also play.

Also performing, Rufus Thomas, the self-proclaimed world’s oldest teenager. He played an integral role in the success of major record labels in the nineteen-fifties, Sun Records and Stax Records. He celebrated his 80th birthday at the festival by playing with his son, Marvell. (REBROADCAST from 7/3/97)