Agosto 31, 2008 a 9:39 pm (Uncategorized)
Skin Tight (1975)
Skin Tight was a major turning point for the Ohio Players, who had enjoyed several hits on black radio (including “Pain,” “Funky Worm,” “Varee Is Love,” and “I Wanna Hear From You”) but hadn’t been huge. Switching from Westbound to Mercury, the Dayton funksters became exactly that — huge — and went from enjoying a cult following to being one of the most celebrated funk bands of the 1970s. With Skin Tight, the band’s erotic album covers went from employing bizarre S&M/bondage imagery to being more Playboy-ish, and its music became less abstract (but remained quite risk-taking and unpredictable). The title song and “Jive Turkey” are down and dirty funk classics, and the jazz-influenced “Heaven Must Be Like This” illustrates the fact that the Players could also be captivatingly romantic.
Tracks:
1. Skin Tight
2. Streakin’ Cheek to Cheek
3. It’s Your Night/Words of Love
4. Jive Turkey
5. Heaven Must Be Like This
6. Is Anybody Gonna Be Saved?
**Listen**
2 comentarios
Agosto 31, 2008 a 8:44 pm (Uncategorized)
Fire (1974)
After greatly increasing their visibility with Skin Tight, the Ohio Players became even more visible with Fire — an unpredictable masterpiece that boasted such explosive horn-driven funk jewels as “Smoke” and the wildly addictive title song. The Players were always best known for their hard-edged funk, but in fact, there was much more to their legacy. “I Want to Be Free,” the almost innocent “Together,” and the remorseful “It’s All Over” demonstrate that their ballads and slower material could be first-rate soul treasures. The influence of gospel imagery and the black church experience had asserted itself on Skin Tight’s “Is Anybody Gonna Be Saved,” and does so once again on the intense “What the Hell” and the hit “Runnin’ From the Devil.” Without question, Fire was one of the Ohio Players’ greatest triumphs.
Tracks:
1. Fire
2. Together
3. Runnin’ from the Devil
4. I Want to Be Free
5. Smoke
6. It’s All Over
7. What the Hell
8. Together/Feelings
**Listen**
2 comentarios
Agosto 30, 2008 a 5:27 pm (Uncategorized)
M3000 (1979)
Mandre was a fictitious persona played out by instrumentalist Andre Lewis. Concealing his identity with a helmet, he released three supercharged space-funk LPs. Mandre was such a great group early on, as Maxayn, and later with the first Mandre album. This was the groups final album, M3000.
Tracks:
1. M3000 (Opus V1)
2. L’Oasis
3. Final Funk
4. Spirit Groove
5. Freakin’s Fine
6. Do Whatcha Gotta Do
7. Swang
**Listen**
3 comentarios
Agosto 30, 2008 a 4:28 pm (Uncategorized)
Soul Syndrome (1980).
By 1980 James Brown was slightly adrift. His 1979 album, The Original Disco Man, failed to light a commercial fire, and its follow-up, People, seemed to fly into the cut-out bins. Brown cut his losses and left Polydor — his home for over a decade — for one album for Henry Stone’s T.K. While this doesn’t have Brown bubbling over with innovation, he still provided a more substantial alternative to disco. The first track, “Rapp Payback (Where Iz Moses?),” at first is a clumsy attempt at trying to get praise from the burgeoning rap scene as he sings, “I know you heard of Master Gee / But you didn’t hear nothing / About J.B.” It then merges into a sped-up version of “The Payback,” which would be blasphemous if it didn’t rock like nobody’s business. The off-the-cuff remake of “Mashed Potatoes” has Brown reuniting with Bobby Byrd as he calls out “taters.” Shortly afterward they both go through a travelogue of cities and states like it’s “Night Train” all over again. Soul Syndrome has Brown at least a little more chipper, but he was still bereft of ideas. The inane “Funky Men” would be garbage if it weren’t for a reggae/funk guitar riff and a Latin horn arrangement. The cautionary “Smokin’ and Drinkin’” only perks up when Brown begins to cough for close to a minute on the fade. The last track, like most of Soul Syndrome, wasn’t overly concerned with the future as he closes with an instrumental of “Honky Tonk.” Although this isn’t essential, Soul Syndrome finds Brown engaged and that always makes for a potent product.(AMG).
Tracks:
1. Rapp Payback (Where Iz Moses?)
2. (Do The) Mashed Potatoes
3. Funky Men
4. Smokin’ & Drinkin’
5. Stay With
6. Honky Tonk
7. Rapp Payback (Where Iz Moses?), Pt. 1 [12 Single Version]
8. Rapp Payback (Where Iz Moses?), Pt. 2 [12 Single Version]
4 comentarios
Agosto 30, 2008 a 6:39 am (Uncategorized)
Get Up And Dance (1977).
When R&B went totally high-tech around 1983-1984, horns became the exception instead of the rule for many urban contemporary artists. In the ’80s and ’90s, it wasn’t uncommon for an R&B producer to act as a one-man (or one-woman) band; instead of using a lot of studio musicians, the producer could program all the synthesizers and drum machines himself/herself. But before that, horns were a big part of many R&B recordings, and no horn section was in greater demand in the ’60s and ’70s than the Memphis Horns. As busy as session work kept them in the ’70s, the Memphis Horns managed to record some noteworthy albums for RCA during that decade. One of them was 1977’s Get Up and Dance, which isn’t a masterpiece but is generally decent. On this diverse collection of funk, soul, and disco, the Horns employ several guest vocalists, including Deniece Williams, D.J. Rogers, Jim Gilstrap, and Lani Groves. The LP’s highlights range from the hit “Just for Your Love” (a pleasant ballad) to the Parliament-influenced “What the Funk” to the sleek disco instrumental “Memphis Nights.” Parts of the album are mellow, and parts of it are quite funky. Get up and Dance has been out of print for a long time, but it’s worth acquiring if you happen to come across a copy somewhere.(AMG).
Tracks:
1. Get up and Dance
2. Just for Your Love
3. Waiting for the Flood
4. Love Is Happiness
5. Memphis Nights
6. What the
7. Country Soul
8. No Go Betweens
9. Don’t Abuse It
10. Keep on Smilin’
1 comentario
Agosto 30, 2008 a 5:06 am (Uncategorized)
Various Artists (2007).
Tracks:
1. Another Man (Barbara Mason)
2. She Can’t Love You (Chemise)
3. Your Personal Touch (Evelyn “Champagne” King)
4. Wild Girls (Klymaxx)
5. Are You Free Tonight (September)
6. Can’t Get Away (From Your Love) (Carol Williams)
7. Share The Night (World Premiere)
8. Funkin’ In Your Mind
9. Am I Gonna Be The One (Colors(Sumy))
10. Ooh, I Like The Way It Feels (Toni Smith)
11. Don’t Turn Your Back On Love (Freddie James)
12. S & M (Sexy Music) (De De)
Listen:
**One** and **Two**
3 comentarios
Agosto 29, 2008 a 11:51 pm (Uncategorized)
The Game Of Life (1983)
Tracks:
1. The Game Of Life
2. Love Odyssey (Love Shines Forever)
3. Superstar
4. Is It Real
5. Closer To Home
6. Tonight’s The Night
7. I’ve Got News For You
8. Time Is Short
9. Say That You Love Me
**listen**
8 comentarios
Agosto 29, 2008 a 3:02 am (Uncategorized)
Like L.T.D., the Gap Band didn’t enjoy a major commercial breakthrough until its third album. Some R&B lovers think that 1979’s self-titled The Gap Band (which contained the hit “Shake”) was the combo’s first album but, in fact, the Wilson Brothers had recorded two little-known LPs before that. First, they provided Magician’s Holiday for Shelter in 1974, and in 1977 they recorded this self-titled sophomore LP for Tattoo. This record (which shouldn’t be confused with the self-titled album they recorded for Mercury in 1979) wasn’t a huge seller; in fact, most of the people who know the Gap Band for “Outstanding” or “Burn Rubber on Me” have never heard it. Nonetheless, it’s a competent effort even though it is uneven and falls short of the excellence of the group’s subsequent work. In 1977, the Gap Band wasn’t as Parliament-minded as it would become a few years later — the funk that dominates this album is actually closer to Sly & the Family Stone, Tower of Power, or Stevie Wonder (who was a major influence on lead singer Charles Wilson). This LP isn’t a masterpiece, although its best songs (which include “Knuckle Head Funkin’” and “God Is Watching You”) indicated that the Gap Band had a lot of potential and in 1979, the Wilson Brothers started living up to that potential. The Gap Band is far from essential, but from an historic perspective, it’s interesting to hear what the group sounded like before Lonnie Simmons came into the picture.
Tracks:
1. Out of the Blue (Can You Feel It)
2. Stand up and Dance With Me
3. Not Guilty
4. God Is Watching You
5. Little Bit of Love
6. Hang on (To Yourself)
7. Knuckle Head Funkin’
8. Thinking of You
9. Silly Grin
**Listen**
1 comentario
Agosto 26, 2008 a 12:57 am (Uncategorized)
Look So Fine (1982).
On their fourth Salsoul album, Looks So Fine, Instant Funk showcases their precise, step-lock rhythm on the first single, “Why Don’t You Think About Me,” remixed by top talent François Kevorkian. The Philly soul band backs a number of guest singers. The sister trio Direct Current sings soaring vocals on the seriously funky title track. Other standouts are the skaters favorite “Gotta Like That”; the O’Jays-like ballad “Smack Dab in the Middle,” which is duet between producer Bunny Sigler and the band’s lead singer James Carmichael; and the NBA tribute “Slam Dunk the Funk.” (AMG).
Tracks:
1. Looks So Fine
2. Why Don’t You Think About Me
3. Slam Dunk the Funk
4. Gotta Like That
5. Jumpin’ to Conclusions
6. Give It to You Baby
7. Punk Rockin’
1 comentario
Agosto 25, 2008 a 2:18 am (Uncategorized)
Let The Music Play (LP-1981).
Having already released two albums to little fanfare on 20th Century, under their original name Kinsman Dazz, 1980-1981 saw the band shorten their name, sign to R&B powerhouse Motown, and come back with the near-total reinvention of Let the Music Play. Bucking the early-’80s trend of synthesizing absolutely everything, the Dazz Band kept their music flowing around the more traditional funk trappings of exquisitely elastic basslines and brightly crafted horns. Keys were introduced only to make a sonic point — they work to their best advantage on the rambunctiously quirky “Freaky Lovin’,” and the mid-tempo moves on the title track. “Don’t Stop,” meanwhile, only adds to the upbeat energy with its snappy bass-driven danceability. The rest of the set, however, is dedicated to a softer, smoother, vocally focused R&B style that is spread liberally across “What Will I Do Without You,” “This Time It’s Forever,” and “I Believe in You.” “Knock Knock,” the best of the bunch, emerged as Let the Music Play’s sole charting single, reaching the Top 50 in August. Patchy in places, and leaning more heavily on a bland, soft style than the band needed, it’s obvious that the Dazz Band were stretching their wings and finding the groove that would keep them in heavy chart rotation through the entire decade (AMG).
Tracks:
1. Let The Music Play
2. Freaky Lovin’
3. Knock! Knock!
4. What Will I Do Without You
5. Don’t Stop
6. This Time It’s Forever
7. Satisfying Love
8. Everyday Love
9. I Believe In You
3 comentarios
Agosto 24, 2008 a 5:06 am (Uncategorized)
Deuce (1981) Mercury (Lp).
Things cooled quickly for Kurtis Blow following the success of “The Breaks” in 1980. He was unable to get any single from this record on the charts, even though “Rockin’” and “It’s Gettin’ Hot” were well produced and competently delivered. But rap was still far from being a mainstream phenomenon, and this album did very poorly commercially.
Tracks:
1. The Deuce
2. It’s Gettin’ Hot
3. Getaway
4. Starlite
5. Do The Do
6. Rockin’
8 comentarios
Agosto 24, 2008 a 4:54 am (Uncategorized)
Energy (1979) MCA LP.
Tracks:
1. Disco Fever
2. Energy
3. Party
4. Blessed With Love
5. I Love You
6. Just Friends
**Listen**
7 comentarios
Agosto 24, 2008 a 2:13 am (Uncategorized)
Skyy (1979)
This was the debut album for this self-contained octet. Their first release was the dance number “First Time Around.” It was a mixture of funk and disco. A very lengthy musical track with some vocals added here and there; ideal for a party. It sealed the top 20 inside 14 weeks. It was followed by “Let’s Turn It Out.” Funk was the focus here for the Brooklyn based band. Chanting party vocals, improvising solos and Solomon Roberts master of ceremonies wail keep this groove on the move. However, it was only on the charts for nine weeks peaking at 65. A bonafide party song, as are most of these selections and solid ones they are. “Stand By Me” is the only ballad; it’s trimmed in a pop texture. Though disco was on its last leg, its popularity still warranted groups including it in their repertoire and Skyy has its share.
Tracks:
1. This Groove Is Bad
2. First Time Around
3. Let’s Turn It Out
4. Fallin’ in Love Again
5. Stand by Me
6. Disco Dancin’
7. Let’s Get Up
8. First Time Around (Remix)
9. First Time Around (Disco Mix)
10.First Time Around (Special Remix)
Listen: **1** – **2**
2 comentarios
Agosto 24, 2008 a 12:25 am (Uncategorized)
Fire It Up (1979)
Rick James’s third album in 18 months may have spread the funk a little thin (or saturated the market), since Fire It Up was not as effective as his first two efforts. The usual mix of rock and R&B had some disco added, which dulled the music’s edge and made it more formulaic. At the same time, James’s single-entendre come ons, notably the album’s biggest single, “Love Gun,” were beginning to sound less provocative than just smutty. James had all the weapons for success in his arsenal, but he hadn’t yet figured out a unified plan of attack, and Fire It Up was a holding action.
Tracks:
1. Fire It Up
2. Love Gun
3. Lovin’ You Is a Pleasure
4. Love in the Night
5. Come into My Life
6. Stormy Love
7. When Love Is Gone
**Listen**
1 comentario
Agosto 20, 2008 a 11:15 pm (Uncategorized)
Good High (1976)The debut album from the Atlanta-based funk aggregate spawned three singles and a host of soul numbers. The first single from the album was “Music Matic,” a smooth yet funky composition in which the group expresses the lyric in unison, augmented by Jimmy Brown’s commendable flute and sax solos. The second single was “Dazz,” which was defined by the group in the chorus as “disco jazz.” With Regis Hargis’ twanging guitar and Brown’s long-winded sax riffs, the catchy hook line caught on across the nation and the song claimed the number one spot on the R&B charts for four consecutive weeks (it reached number three on the pop side). “Can’t Wait” is set in a looping sci-fi rhythm through the verses before seguéing to a hopping groove. Brown’s refreshing saxophone work can be heard on the instrumental cuts “Southern Sunset,” whose title provides a good setting, and “Sister Twister.” Having a fetish for jazz, the self-contained quintet glimmer on this extended jazz composition, which includes funky basslines. The third single, “That’s What It’s All About,” the only ballad featured on the album, has an soft melody and encouraging lyric delivered by Brown’s husky baritone. Every song is complemented by Brown’s impressive horn exhibition and the group’s overall musical ability.
Tracks:1. Here We Come
2. Music Matic
3. Dazz
4. Can’t Wait
5. Southern Sunset
6. Good High
7. Brick City
8. Sister Twister
9. That’s What It’s All About
10. Dazz (Repeated Version)
Listen:
1 comentario
Agosto 20, 2008 a 1:21 am (Uncategorized)
Sex Machine Today (1975)
The Godfather of Soul appointed himself the Minister Of New New Super Heavy Funk for this 1975 release, and it was subtitled “Disco Soul”. This disc catches the hardest working man in show business in a transitional phase, as he slides his patented funk into a brand new, sequin-encrusted, spandex bag. Brown was in one of the most prolific phases of his recording career when this album was recorded, as he released seven albums in 1975-76. Always keenly aware of changing public taste, JB embraced the new dance movement eagerly, even to the point of putting out a disc called Everybody’s Doin’ The Hustle & Dead On The Double Bump, which they were, if only for just about as long as it took to play that album. The album resonated more keenly in the urban community than it did in mainstream pop culture; it managed to get to number 10 on the Black Album chart, while it didn’t quite break the upper half of the Pop Album chart, topping out at 103. In fact, this was Brown’s last top ten charting album to date. Remarkably, he notched three top 25 albums in 1975, despite critics claims that he was beginning to repeat himself.
Tracks:
1. Sex Machine, Pts. 1-2
2. I Feel Good
3. Problems
4. Dead on It
5. Get Up Off of Me
6. Deep in It
Listen : **1** – **2**
1 comentario
Agosto 19, 2008 a 6:31 am (Uncategorized)
Brass Construction 5 (1979).
When Brass Construction 5 came out in 1979, one greeted the LP with skepticism. 1977’s Brass Construction III was very uneven, and 1978’s disappointing, uninspired Brass Construction IV was the funk-disco outfit’s weakest album ever. So people didn’t have very high hopes for Brass Construction’s fifth album. But Randy Muller and his associates pleasantly surprised their fans with this enjoyable LP, which finds them sounding revitalized. A definite improvement over Brass Construction IV, this 1979 release boasts some of the combo’s most infectious grooves since Brass Construction II. If Brass Construction’s decline in 1977 and 1978 had caused you to lose faith in the band, confident jams like “Get Up to Get Down,” “It’s Alright,” and “Music Makes You Feel Like Dancing” made it clear that it wasn’t time to give up on Muller and company just yet. As enjoyable as Brass Construction 5 is, the album falls short of essential and isn’t quite in a class with Brass Construction or Brass Construction II. Nonetheless, it’s a likable record that restored many listeners’ faith in Brass Construction (AMG).
Tracks:
1. Music Makes You Feel Like Dancing
2. Right Place
3. Get up to Get Down
4. Watch Out
5. It’s Alright
6. Shakit
7. I Want Some Action
1 comentario
Agosto 19, 2008 a 12:41 am (Uncategorized)
Ecstasy (1973)Throughout the 1970s, the Ohio Players were famous (or infamous) for their erotic album covers. But there are major differences between the covers of Mercury albums like Skin Tight, Fire, Honey, and Contradiction and the covers of such Westbound releases as Pleasure and Pain. At Mercury, the Players’ album covers favored softcore erotica à la Playboy or Penthouse, whereas the covers of their Westbound LPs were more bizarre and offered kinky bondage/S&M imagery. Those covers came under attack from different parts of the political spectrum; some of the more radical feminists accused the Players of objectifying women, while Republicans and Christian fundamentalists accused them of promoting moral decline. And the Players were laughing all the way to the bank — at least from 1974 on. When their third Westbound album, Ecstasy, came out in 1973, they were still a year away from signing with Mercury and becoming really huge. But they did have a small cult following, which found that Ecstasy fell short of the excellence of Pain and Pleasure. Nonetheless, the material is respectable and generally decent. Serious Players fans will find sweaty funk items like “Spinning,” “Black Cat,” and the title song to be enjoyable even though they aren’t among the band’s essential recordings.
Tracks:
1. Ecstasy
2. You And Me
3. Not So Sad And lonely
4. (I wanna Know) Do You Feel It?
5. Black Cat
6. Food Stamps Y’All
7. Spinning
8. Sleep Walk
9. Silly Billy
10. Short Change
Bonus tracks:
11. Rattlesnake
12. Hustle Bird
13. Hollywood Hump
14. She Locked It
15. Trans-maximus
Listen: **1** **2**
1 comentario
Agosto 18, 2008 a 3:26 am (Uncategorized)
Straight From The Heart (1988).
The group’s final album for the Total Experience label wasn’t among their most memorable. The vocals were lifeless, the production and arrangements stagnant, and there was little energy or inspiration in the musical backdrops. It had the sound and feel of something churned out to satisfy contractual obligations, and the Band moved on to Arista and then to Capitol. (AMG).
Tracks:
1. Come And Dance
2. Sweeter Than
3. All the Way
4. I’m So
5. Straight from the
6. That’s It, I
7. You Told Me
8. I Will Never Leave You
**Listen**
1 comentario
Agosto 17, 2008 a 8:46 pm (Uncategorized)
Honey (1975)
Honey may have had the most controversial LP cover of 1975. Its erotic cover, which depicted a nude model covered in honey, was protested by feminists when it was alleged that the model had become stuck to the floor during the photo shoot. Some retailers, in fact, refused to carry it. All the controversy certainly didn’t hurt the album commercially. In 1975, the Ohio Players were one of R&B’s most successful acts, and were inescapable for anyone who listened to black radio at the time. The album kept the band’s commercial momentum going thanks to such hard-driving funk as “Love Rollercoaster” (a song that was sampled to death by rappers in the 1980s and ’90s and covered by the Red Hot Chili Peppers in 1996), “Fopp,” and the playfully jazz-influenced hit “Sweet Sticky Thing.” While the Players’ outstanding contributions to funk would continue to have an enormous impact long after the band’s popularity faded, it’s important to stress that only about half of Honey falls into the funk category. In fact, lead singer Sugarfoot’s moving performance on the remorseful “Alone” makes one wish that the Players’ ballads were discussed more often.
Tracks:
1. Honey
2. Fopp
3. Let’s Do It
4. Ain’t Givin’ up No Ground
5. Sweet Sticky Thing
6. Love Rollercoaster
7. Alone
**Listen**
4 comentarios
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Skin Tight (1975)
