Back To Front (1992)
On his own and as part of the Commodores, by 1992 Lionel Richie amassed more than enough singles for a greatest-hits collection. Unfortunately, this is one of those compilations that, good intentions aside, falls so flat there’s not much point in buying it. By trying to cover his solo material, while touching base with his Commodores fans, and adding some new cuts, no part of his career is well represented. For the record, Back to Front lacks “Oh No,” “Lady You Bring Me Up,” “Ballerina Girl,” “You Are,” “My Love,” “Stuck on You,” “Love Will Conquer All,” “Se La,” and “Dancing on the Ceiling,”more… all Top 40 hits. If Motown had concentrated solely on solo Richie, with another collection of Commodores hits, this could have been a solid, career-topping CD. As it is, it’s strong, but hearing such gems as “Still,” “Truly,” “Say You, Say Me,” and “Running With the Night” makes you long to hear the cuts that aren’t here. Of the three new songs, “Do It to Me” and “My Destiny” are classic, smooth Richie, but “Love, Oh Love” is very schmaltzy. If you’re a casual Lionel Richie fan, this might suffice, but for anyone who truly enjoys pop music, this collection is not worth your money.
Tracks:
1. Do It To Me
2. My Destiny
3. Love, Oh Love
4. All Night Long
5. Easy
6. Still
7. Endless Love
8. Running With The Night
9. Dancin’ On The Ceiling
10. Sail On
11. Hello
12. Truly
13. Penny Lover
14. Stuck On You
15. Say You, Say Me
16. Three Times A Lady
Listen: **1** **2**
Lionel Richie – Back To Front (1992)
Diciembre 20, 2008 a 6:53 pm (Modern Soul, Pop)
Cameo – Greatest Hits (1998)
Diciembre 20, 2008 a 6:17 pm (Funk, Pop)
Greatest Hits [1998]
Greatest Hits covers much of the same ground as Mercury’s 1993 release The Best of Cameo, reprising eight of its 15 tracks, then adding two cuts from its 1996 sequel, The Best of Cameo, Vol. 2. That means only one song (“You Make Me Work”) on this collection isn’t on either of the previous compilations, which means that it isn’t necessary for anyone who already owns the two-part chronicle. However, casual fans looking for a succinct overview of the group’s biggest hits will be satisfied with Greatest Hits, since it contains “Word Up,” “Single Life,” “Candy,” “She’s Strange,” “Freaky Dancin’” and “Back and Forth,” among several other successful singles. It should suffice for most listener.
Tracks:
1. Word Up!
2. Single Life
3. Candy
4. She’s Strange
5. Attack Me With Your Love
6. Back and Forth
7. You Make Me Work
8. I Just Want to Be
9. Sparkle
10. Skin I’m In
11. Freaky Dancin’
12. Keep It Hot
**Listen**
Herbie Hancock – Future Shock (1983)
Diciembre 20, 2008 a 2:55 pm (Electronic, Funk Jazz)
Future Shock (1983)
Herbie Hancock completely overhauled his sound and conquered MTV with his most radical step forward since the sextet days. He brought in Bill Laswell of Material as producer, along with Grand Mixer D.ST on turntables — and the immediate result was “Rockit,” which makes quite a post-industrial metallic racket. Frankly, the whole record is an enigma; for all of its dehumanized, mechanized textures and rigid rhythms, it has a vitality and sense of humor that make it difficult to turn off. Moreover, Herbie can’t help but inject a subversive funk element when he comps along to the techno beat — and yes, some real, honest-to-goodness jazz licks on a grand piano show up in the middle of “Auto Drive. (AMG)
Tracks:
1. Rockit
2. Future Shock
3. TFS
4. Earth Beat
5. Autodrive
6. Rough
7. Rockit (mega mix)
**Listen**
Lee Oskar – Before The Rain (1978)
Diciembre 20, 2008 a 12:35 am (Jazz, Pop)
Before The Rain (1978)
Here’s why all serious music lovers still need a turntable: there are so many worthwhile LPs from the ’60s and ’70s that will probably never be reissued on CD. Before Avenue Records came into the picture, it seemed unlikely that Lee Oskar’s solo albums of 1976-1980 would ever be reissued on CD — labels usually reissue titles they think there is a heavy demand for, and Oskar’s solo efforts weren’t the mega-blockbusters that War’s albums were. But Avenue pleasantly surprised listeners in the ’90s by making Oskar’s solo output available on CD, including 1978’s Before the Rain. Did this album outsell War classics like Why Can’t We Be Friends? and All Day Music? Hardly. Reissued in 1995, this mostly instrumental album deserved to come back into print simply because it is good. From a commercial standpoint, the problem with Before the Rain is that it’s difficult to categorize — is it funk, pop-jazz, quiet storm, or fusion? Arguably, Before the Rain is all of those things, and Oskar’s harmonica playing is expressive whether he is getting mildly funky on “Steppin’” or being mellow and laid-back on “More Than Words Can Say” and the title track. “Steppin’” certainly isn’t typical of funk instrumentals; the tune opens with bagpipes — not exactly an instrument that one ordinarily associates with funk. But then, Oskar is no stranger to multiculturalism; how many harmonica players who were born in Copenhagen, Denmark, went on to play with one of the top soul/funk bands of the ’70s? Before the Rain may not have set the world on fire when it was first released in 1978, but it was certainly nice to see the album making its CD debut in 1995. (AMG)
Tracks:
1. Before the Rain
2. Steppin’
3. San Francisco Bay
4. Feelin’ Happy
5. More Than Word Can Say
6. Sing Song
7. Haunted House
**Listen**
