lit a candle 3h ago76. The Sweeter He Is was always on in my dad's shop.
Their story
Anita Louis was a Memphis soprano and a founding member of The Soul Children, the Stax Records vocal group that Isaac Hayes and David Porter assembled in 1968. Her voice was part of a run of gospel-rooted soul records that included "The Sweeter He Is," "Hearsay" and "I'll Be the…
Anita Louis was a Memphis soprano and a founding member of The Soul Children, the Stax Records vocal group that Isaac Hayes and David Porter assembled in 1968. Her voice was part of a run of gospel-rooted soul records that included "The Sweeter He Is," "Hearsay" and "I'll Be the Other Woman," and she stayed with the group from its first single to its final album in 1978.
Anita Marie Louis was born on November 24, 1949, in Memphis, Tennessee, to James and Marie Louis. She began singing as one of the WDIA Teen Town Singers, the youth ensemble run by the Memphis radio station that also launched Carla Thomas and counted Isaac Hayes among its rotating members. According to the Stax Records biography of the group, WDIA disc jockey and contest coordinator A.C. Williams introduced her to Porter and Hayes, and she began singing background vocals for the Stax roster. The same biography says she was the original solo singer with the Bar-Kays and worked with them for some time. She later recalled the thrill of meeting Carla Thomas, Rufus Thomas, Johnnie Taylor and the rest of the Stax family when she was "just getting started."
She had planned a different path. She said she had registered for college and paid her fees when the call came from David Porter, and she was "snatched out of college." Around 1968, after Sam & Dave were forced to return to Atlantic Records when the Stax and Atlantic partnership ended, Hayes and Porter set out to build a new act around two men and two women. The Soul Children brought together John "J. Blackfoot" Colbert, Norman West, Shelbra Bennett and Anita Louis. Bear Family Records notes she was only 17 when the group was formed. Each member was given a couple of days to think it over. As Louis put it, it did not take a couple of days to decide.
The group's first single, "Give 'Em Love," was released in late 1968 and reached the R&B chart. "I'll Understand" and "Tighten Up My Thang" followed, and "The Sweeter He Is" became their first major hit in 1969, reaching No. 7 on the Billboard R&B chart and crossing over to the Hot 100. Their debut album, Soul Children, featured Booker T. Jones, Steve Cropper, Donald "Duck" Dunn and Al Jackson Jr. of Booker T. & the M.G.'s among the musicians. Louis later said that first album set the pace for everything the group did, and gave the credit to Porter, whom she described as a father figure and "one hell of a producer."
After Hayes moved on to his solo career, the group recorded Best of Two Worlds at Muscle Shoals Sound Studios and then Genesis (1972), produced by Jim Stewart and Al Jackson Jr. Genesis yielded "Hearsay," which reached No. 5 R&B. In August 1972 The Soul Children performed at the Wattstax concert at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, and two of their songs appeared on the Wattstax soundtrack. In 1973 the Homer Banks and Carl Hampton ballad "I'll Be the Other Woman," sung by Bennett, became the group's biggest hit at No. 3 R&B, and the Friction album followed.
When Stax collapsed in 1975, Bennett left for a solo career and The Soul Children continued as a trio, with Louis as the sole female voice. The group signed with Epic and recorded Finders Keepers (1976) with producer Don Davis in Detroit, where Louis took the lead on the ballad "One Broken Home for Sale," and Where Is Your Woman Tonight (1977), reunited with Porter, on which she led "If You Want a Woman Like This." When Fantasy Records revived the Stax label, Porter signed the trio again and co-produced Open Door Policy (1978), which gave them the R&B hit "Can't Give Up a Good Thing." The group disbanded in 1979.
Louis then left the music business. She built a second career at FedEx, where bandmate J. Blackfoot said she became "a pretty big wheel" before retiring, then worked for Time Warner and as a professional business trainer and coach. She did not take part in the 2007 reunion of The Soul Children, which Norman West and J. Blackfoot formed with new singers Ann Hines and Cassandra Graham. J. Blackfoot died in 2011 and Shelbra Bennett in 2013.
Anita Louis died on October 20, 2026, in Memphis, at the age of 76. Her cause of death has not been made public. The Stax Museum of American Soul Music announced her passing on October 23, writing that it was saddened to learn of the death of "a member of the legendary Stax group Soul Children." She is survived by her brother, Kevin Patterson, and was preceded in death by her parents. A visitation is scheduled for October 30, 2026, at Mt. Nebo Baptist Church in Memphis, and a graveside service will be held on October 31, 2026, at New Park Cemetery, with arrangements by R.S. Lewis & Sons Funeral Home.
Although she spent most of her later life away from the spotlight, her voice remains on some of the most loved records of the Memphis soul era.
Biography adapted from SoulTracks (2026-10-23); EntertainmentNow (2026-10-24); R.S. Lewis & Sons obituary via Legacy.com; Stax Records artist biography; Soul Express; Bear Family Records; Wikipedia (The Soul Children).
In their own words
“When I met Carla Thomas, Rufus, Johnnie Taylor, and all the rest of the Stax people, I was so impressed and so honored. It was the thrill of a lifetime, and I was just getting started!”
On joining Stax as a background singer, Stax Records biography of The Soul Children
“You see, I fully intended to go to college. In fact, I registered and paid my fees. Then I got that call from David, and I was just snatched out of college.”
On being recruited by David Porter, Stax Records biography
“If you listen to that first album, you'll find it was a pacesetter for where we are now. You'll hear the same heartfelt performance, and the same style of production. We've got to give it all to David. He is miraculous.”
On the group's 1969 debut album, Stax Records biography
“David might come in with a song and say, 'Now Anita, I know you can't sing this. It's too hard.' That just gets me going, and the result is that I sing it and sing it better just because David said I couldn't do it!”
On producer David Porter's methods, Stax Records biography
“I may never use it, but at least I'll have it. I'll know I earned it.”
On returning to college to earn her degree, Stax Records biography
“Each of us was asked to join the group, and Mr. Porter and Mr. Hayes were very careful to give us a couple of days to think it over. Well, it didn't take a couple of days to decide!”
On the formation of The Soul Children, as quoted by EntertainmentNow from the Stax Records biography
“Anita became a pretty big wheel at Federal Express. She's retired from there and went to Time-Warner. She doesn't want this any more, and I can understand that.”
Bandmate J. Blackfoot to Soul Express, on why she did not rejoin the group
“We are saddened to learn of the passing of Anita Louis, a member of the legendary Stax group Soul Children.”
Stax Museum of American Soul Music, October 23, 2026
Photos
2Anita Louis, publicity portrait from her Soul Children years
by People Forever
The Soul Children, with Anita Louis, in a Stax Records publicity photo
by People Forever
same, my mom too