Stax Records – the greatest of all southern soul labels is rightly treasured by any soul fan. Hell, it’s respected by any semi-conscious fool with ears; with a roster of talent including Isaac Hayes, Wilson Pickett, Rufus Thomas and Eddie Floyd, who could disagree?

Tragically, so many of soul music’s originators and innovators were gone well before their time – Otis Redding at 26, Sam Cooke at 33, Marvin Gaye at 44 – and with each year more of the ‘60s and ‘70s stars leave the live stage.

So the chance to see Eddie Floyd isn’t just an opportunity to hear a soul master at work, but also to pay tribute to Stax records and the classic sounds of the genre they championed. While the spirit of this music still burns in the brilliance of modern favourites such as Sharon Jones and her Dap-Kings, it’s rare to see a Stax original live on stage. In fact Floyd has only managed one previous tour – in 1983 with the Blues Brothers band – and is playing just one gig on this trek to Australia. Luckily for Melbourne’s soul fans, Mohair Slim had the good fortune to be in a Memphis club and ask a familiar face, “Did anyone ever tell you look like Eddie Floyd?”

Melbourne’s resident soul masters the Bamboos were Floyd’s backing band for the night, and though they haven’t had much time to work with Floyd for this one-off gig, they met the challenge with ease. It may seem slightly unfair that Floyd was playing with the Bamboos, while Guy Sebastian has recently toured with the original Stax house band the MGs. Regardless, the Bamboos are no slouches and it’s a treat to hear them play a set of classic soul for a buzzing and appreciative audience. (Unlike their NFA marred show at Golden Plains or early afternoon slot at Good Vibrations.)

They kicked off their brief warm-up with Tighten Up before PBS radio’s Mohair Slim lurched to centre stage to introduce our headliner: “From Montgomery, Georgia; via Memphis, Tennessee; to Melbourne… all the Ms! From the legendary Stax records…Mr Eddie Floyd.”

Hitting the stage at 11:15 with a punctuality to rival the sharpness of the Bamboos’ suits and tightness of their brass section, Floyd was resplendent in his white satin jacket, offset with a black shirt and pocket handkerchief. Looking every bit the star, he burst into Raise Your Hand with far more energy than may be expected from a 70-year-old veteran.

While he left the chorus work on 634 5789 – a song he wrote for Wilson Pickett – to the eager punters in the front rows, Floyd’s voice is still as strong as his roaming eye and enthusiasm. Only a few songs into his hour long set he’d latched onto a few punters of the female variety who were invited (or corralled) into joining him on stage for some sly flirtation and dancing. Clearly loving every minute of his performance, Floyd beamed as he took the time to sign album covers and mirror Lance Ferguson’s lead guitar work as the Bamboos took their solos.

His bluesiest track On a Saturday Night was suitably re-titled to match the day and is quickly followed by Big Bird, the tune he wrote in tribute after hearing of the plane crash that took Otis Redding’s life. As well as his own songs Floyd celebrates the work of his peers with superb versions of Sam Cooke’s Bring it on Home, Otis Redding’s Dock of the Bay and a powerful take on Sam and Dave’s Soul Man. The finale was inevitably his signature tune – and title track of his first record way back in 1966 – Knock on Wood. Floyd has a collection of 143 cover versions of this classic in his collection, but few would come close to his own take, which he belted out to close the show.

It’ll be a near impossible task to trump Sharon Jones’ run of Melbourne shows for soul gig of the year, but while Floyd lacks the parade of dance moves that highlights Jones’ shows, he delivered a masterful performance worthy of the Stax name.