Benny Spellman:

-00:10 - Singing solo parts in mass
-01:00 - background information - Father died when he was a baby, Mother had a large record collection and a hi-fi system, which influenced his musical tastes
-03:20 - Left Saint Josephs High School to play football. Had to get the bishop's permission to transfer to Booker T. Washington high school
-04:10- Received scholarships to play football at Southern University in Baton Rouge
-08:00 - Winning the freshman talent show and being given a job with the collegiate swing band with Alvin Baptiste
-10:15 - "white" music influences - orchestration, learned a lot from listening to music scores from old Western movies
-11:30 - Classical music - Visiting the Radio City Music Hall and Carnegie Hall as a child in New York City
-13:00 - Learning to play piano
-13:55 - Describing his voice - bass baritone
-15:30 - Was in the ROTC and drafted into the Army, served until 1961
-19:00 - Minit Records
-19:15 - mother's death in 1958, wrote "Life is too Short"
-21:45 - First recording of that song - Allen Toussaint wrote his first string orchestration for the studio session
-26:45 - Gigging at the Dew Drop, Biloxi, Thibodeaux
-27:55 - Backing musicians
-31:50 - Benny and Irma Thomas used many of the same studio musicians
-32:30 - Tommy Ridgely opening the door for Irma
-33:45 - Allen Toussaint - Was a catalyst for many of the New Orleans musicians of that era. Knew how to get the most out of them
-34:30 - Esquerita - Benny says he was a great entertainer, talks about how he influenced others
-37:00 - Percy Stovall
-37:40 - "Life is Too Short" on the Minit Label; Allan Toussant
-39:10 - Joe Baltimore
-40:20 - Allen Toussaint was in demand as a producer
-42:00 - Other releases