1995 sophomore release from the zany Los Angeles hip hop collective who were a breath of fresh air during the early 90s G-Funk craze. At the time, the album was met with mixed reactions due their more refined, mature approach. Gone were the hyper-comical, adolescent posse raps in favor of more introspective themes about death and drug addiction. Today the album is touted as a cult favorite thanks to the early contributions from legendary rap producer Jay Dee Aka Jay Dilla. Dilla has his thumbprints all over the album especially on the lead off single "Runnin'", the dreamy opener "Bullshit", "Somethin' That Means Somethin'", and arguably the best track "Drop". Labcabincalifornia was hardly a commercial success and stalled any momentum the band had moving forward. They released two albums in the early 00s to little fanfare.
Bonafied hip hop classic that was a polarizing subject here on Soul Strut. Some believed it was too polished and subjected to the Rolling Stone / MTV hype machine before it had time to gain proper street cred. Regardless, Ready To Die is a comprehensive concept album that authentically guides the listener through the trials and tribulation of Bed-Stuy thug life. It's all anchored by some of the best 90s boom bap and R&B.
"Ultimately Ready To Die is the second greatest Hip Hop Album ever made."
- Kool Moe Dee
During Soul Strut's "Good Old Days" (2002-2004), there was a hot debate over what was "better", UK Hammond Funk or US Hammond Funk. I tried to locate the thread to no avail. Unfortunately it is buried in the pre-2005 Soul Strut Wayback Machine archives. Anyway, while the US had greats like Jimmy McGriff and Groove Holmes, the UK had that Alan Hawkshaw fire! It's apples and oranges if you ask me. In the late 60s, Hawkshaw assembled a studio band called the Mohawks to deliver organ-laden instrumental mod-soul with tight, funky horns. The single "The Champ" was their take on the heavily covered Lowell Fulsom tune "Tramp." The track and subsequent LP failed to make any noise until the hip hop sampling revolution in the late 80s. The rest of the album has the same vibe as the coveted title track; tight punchy organ grooves delivered in a slightly sterile way that became what we grew to love about the UK KPM library LPs in the early 70s. Check out the track "Beat Me 'Til I'm Blue" for more sips of the juice.
The FAVORITE MELLOTRON SONGS forum thread on here sparked my interest in pulling this one off the expedite. I was fortunate enough to get an original copy of this a few years back for a great price and it's safe to say this record is going NOWHERE.
I must say, years and years ago, before the days of widespread reissues and mp3 blogs, I had longed to hear this. I thought it was some funk / soul / break masterpiece with one of the coolest cover art displays ever. My buddy finally paid an arm and a leg for an original copy and shared the .wav files. It was nothing like I had envisioned.
The music of the first two tunes were airy, emotional, spiritual, hardly the organ funk that I expected. In fact, the album moved me and took me to another place. This is a Detroit record from ex-Denis Coffey bandmate, organist Lyman Woodard. A who's who from the Detroit scene helped him record this on Strata records and the result is nothing short of amazing. It's gorgeous jazz music, but still gritty and raw enough to still remain hip and cool. The rest of the record falls under the early-70s Blue Note, Prestige sound of the day. But still, like I said, recorded in an organic way.
Highlights include the title cut, my favorite "Joy Road," and the guitar jazz funk of Ron English on "On Your Mind."
The Chicago based all female soul trio The Lovelites had significant success with their independently released 45 about teen pregnancy and abortion "How Can I Tell My Mom And Dad". The surprising success of the single prompted an album deal with UNI records. 1971's With Love From The Lovelites is a gorgeous, sweet soul journey spiced with punchy R&B production, angelic harmonies, and the wavering, pained vocal performance of Patti Hamilton. Highlights include the low rider anthems "This Love is Real," "Oh My Love," and "You've Hurt Me Now". Unfortunately, the album was not well received and after a few more follow up singles on various labels, the band called it quits in the mid 70s. By the 90s, the album was rediscovered and coined a Windy City soul masterpiece prompting a frenzy of bootleggers and rabid soul collectors trying to get their mitts on an original pressing. By the mid 00s, this album appeared to be on everyone's wants list on Soul Strut. Making it that more desirable.
Grabbed this at an antique mall in New Jersey not too long a go. It was unpriced next to a $50 Sun Ra joint and just south of an $80 copy of Silver Apples. Homeboy quoted me at 7 bucks. Insert eight ball rush and proceed to roll eyeballs into back of skull snaps! This piece, while a fantastic voyage into free thinking progressive late 60s Euro jazz, is all about the last track "Troublemaker." It's a funky blues number guaranteed to put you up in a Craftmatic Adjustable Bed ® for a few Fridays. Harold McNair's flute solo on here is as gangsta as it gets. IMHO worth the dough it fetches. Be quick!
We all know about the king, Jimi Hendrix. His albums have been reviewed and analyzed to death so I will not expand on this album much. Although the consensus here is that Axis: Bold as Love is his best offering, Electric Ladyland has that mystical "x" factor and a very collectable UK pressing (see attached cover art) that makes it worth of the Soul Strut 100. An expansive, experimental album of many genres from Curtis Mayfield like soul ("... And The Gods Made Love") to funk rock ("Crosstown Traffic") to the psychedelic opus "1983....(A Merman I Should Turn To Be)", Electric Ladyland gets points for ambition and for pushing the boundaries of pop and for having a very flossable UK pressing 😉
Essential funk instrumental debut from James Brown's backup band. Upon initial investigation, there is not much information surrounding this recording. It's been rumored that many songs on this album aren't even the J.B.'s, but Fred Wesley solo session efforts (prime examples are "Blessed Blackness", "King Heroin", "To my brother" and 'Wine Spot". etc.) with very little or zero James Brown input. In fact, they were recorded with session musicians hired by Wesley in NY, among them prominent jazz artists like the Brecker Brothers. The songs on this album were recorded at a time when Brown wasn't very interested in recording. The only true original J.B.'s group session tunes are the radio hit "Pass The Peas", the often sampled "The Grunt", and the James Brown live staple "Escape-ism." With that being said, the aforementioned tunes were the framework for a gazillion independently released funk 45s in the early 70s than ultimately hip hop production and the new funk movement of the 2000s (Desco, Daptone, etc.). James Brown would go on to be much more involved with the recording of their next album, Doing it to Death, which would go on to be a colossal hit.
One of two essential funk instrumental LPs from James Brown's backing band The J.B.'s (the other being Food For Thought). Brown produced and arranged the album and put his own stamp on it by grunting, directing, and chanting like only James Brown can do (heh!). The tile track was an R&B smash hit and catapulted the album into platinum status (Foreigner albums were platinum too. How come I don't see this!?) Not much more can be said other than it delivers end to end butt wiggling grooves that embodies an uptown party circa the early 70s. It also features some of Maceo Parker's best work, especially on the track "More Peas". Cop and file.
Renowned San Diego DJ and producer Greyboy kept his short-lived Greyboy Records imprint around long enough to put out several albums from his All-stars, who are some of the baddest soul-jazz musicians on the current scene. Evidently, after sampling numerous soul and jazz albums, Greyboy wanted to give back to the scene by overseeing the production of quality live music inspired by his favorite records. On this, the GBA's debut full-length, the whole crew does that in spades, fusing the new-school acid jazz sound with a soundly old-school soul jazz/boogaloo sensibility. A lot of these cats have gone solo, but here we had in one studio absolutely brilliant cats like keyboardist Robert Walters, reedist Harold Todd (arguably the most talented flutist of the acid jazz generation), the incredibly versatile guitarist Elgin Park (nee Mike Andrews) and the indefatigable sax man Karl Denson, one of the most underrated funk/jazz players alive right now.
They floss their old-school knowledge with dope versions of Rusty Bryant's classic "Fire Eater," Sonny Stitt''s "Miss Riverside," and Kool & The Gang's "Let The Music Take Your Mind," inspired by Grant Green's cover of the same cut. They are no slouches with the pen, as the orginals are as dope, if not doper, than the covers. Standouts are the soulful acid-jazzy "Soul Dream," the brisk, Tower of Power-esque "Fried Grease," and the angular groover "Gravee" all featuring guest shots from the legendary Fred Wesley. Their three-hour show in Chicago in 1997 was easily the greatest live show I've ever witnessed. We'll probably never see them on one stage again, but at least we still have this album in the vaults. Plus, in 15 years, fools will be pulling this out to the sample the drum breaks.
Up there with Ernie Hines for one track wonders. I have a feeling that this wasn't pressed in Teddy Pendergrass-type numbers for Philly International because I never see it. I had to break down and buy it from the Subway man. "Ain't No Time Fa Nothing," makes me feel 12 feet tall in a pyramid-like fantasy, third eye gazing in Earth, Wind, and Fire b-boy stance, arms folded. I'm about to loop the outro instrumental for 30 minutes just as a soundtrack to my daily life. The vocal harmonies are a la Dramatics while some dude named "Sugarbear" plods along on the bass. Hot to death disco banger all around and the Africa pennant and pins adorned by members of the group on the front cover are fresh as hayle too.
The Fatback Band's career started in the early 70s and lasted well into the late 80s. While they enjoyed a modicum of success, it was never on the same level as similar party funk bands like Kool and the Gang. Their first four albums are touted by funk lovers as essential classics including this one from 1974. It gets an honorable mention over the others thanks to the ultimate dance floor butt wiggler "Wicky Wacky". There's other heat on here as well including the opener "Mister Bass Man", the block party jam "New York Style", and the soulful ballad "Love." The Fatback Band would venture into disco territory and then 80s electro funk where they would enjoy a few charting singles.
Late 60s horn funk album in the vein of early Kool and the Gang and The Meters. The Fabulous Counts later dropped the "Fabulous" and recorded as the Counts on the Westbound and Aware labels (check the album What's Up Front That Counts). This is highly regarded as an essential Detroit funk LP anchored by the massive title cut.
Let me initially defer to rock critic legend Bob Christgau, who wrote of this album back in 1970:
"For all of side one this walks the tightrope between soul music and cocktail jazz, a diverting performance. Side two topples into the martinis, but something of a sleeper anyway. B[Later: C+ ]"
Well, Christgau wasn't exactly taken by the LP but it took diggers to redeem this one and only effort by the Tabac (which I believe means "tobacconist"). The album is hard to describe though Christgau comes close to nailing this - it's a little bit jazzy, soulful and definitely rock influenced. Jazzman's Gerald helped to blow up interest in the LP by comping the B-side's "I Can't Keep From Cryin' Sometimes" - a fantastic, swinging jazz vocal number. Jazzman also comped their cover of "Get Back" which is a funked up, jazzy (not to mention campy) version of the Beatles' classic. "The Other Side of Life" is an original composition by Tabac drummer Sonny Castella which is a slow, bluesy jam that sounds like Fleetwood Mac with a funk upgrade - nice. "Magic One" is another jazz slinger, giving guitarist Chuck Anderson a chance to let loose. Last but not least is the album's final song, "I Got To You", a pop stepper that sounds somewhere between Nancy Sinatra and Diana Ross. The beauty in this album is how versatile the sound is - no two songs really sound alike.
Essential release from "punk" darlings The Clash. Yes, 1980's London Calling is another one of those Rolling Stone 500 staples that have crept into the countdown, but it is another masterpiece that appealed across the spectrum here on Soul Strut from hip hop crate diggers to reggae fanatics. This is where the Clash went from rude, straight ahead politicized pop punk to stretching out into all kinds of genres (rockabilly, lounge jazz, no wave, and most importantly, reggae.) It's an ambitious 20 song double album that works on all levels from song writing to timeliness. Sadly, their follow-up Sandinista! was even more ambitious and completely missed the mark. The band redeemed themselves with the highly successful 80s pop album Combat Rock that yielded hits "Rock the Casbah" and "Should I Stay or Should I Go." Sadly, that would be the last real album released under the Clash brand with Joe Strummer and Mick Jones at the helm.
The Budos Band is a gang of multi-instrumentalists hailing from Staten Island that made a splash in the mid 2000s thanks to deep funk revivalists Daptone Records. Like label mates and fellow NYC brethren Antibalas, Budos Band offer their own spin on 70s Fela. In all fairness, it's not even afro-beat per se. They set up like Africa 70, but musically it's straight up American r+b/funk horn arrangements with latin and african rhythms. Their 2005 self-titled debut put them on the map as a force to be reckoned with, anchored by the ubiquitous heavy funk instrumental "Up from the South" (b-boys rejoice.). The whole album is along those lines and a solid listen. Budos Band still play out to this day and have released 4 albums altogether including 2014's Burnt Offering.
This is a record I found years a go at Big Dog Records in Wayne, PA for $10 casually sitting on top of a stack of wack easy listening records. I bought it on the cover art alone. I got home and slapped it on the turntable and was blown away. Dream Queen's music was as gorgeous as the lady who adorned the front panel . The LP is buttery smooth funky spiritual jazz with plenty of Rhodes decorated with a tight horn section and bubbly percussion. At the time (early 2000s) nothing could be found out about the group other than they were from Utica, NY. Band leader and keyboardist Bobby Hamilton was tracked down in 2012 and a limited reissue of this album was released by French rare groove authority Superfly Records. As of writing this, original copies fetch upwards to $500. I think my $10 investment has done very well, thank you.
Before he was penning American anthems used to peddle Chevy flat beds, Bob Seger was "against the wind" trying to make it as a hard-edged devout Detroit blues rocker that flirted with psychedelic musical elements. His 1968 debut (as The Bob Seger System) is a surprisingly solid opus featuring a modestly successful radio hit with Glen Frye on background vocals and a stew of Hammond organ dominated fuzz rock tracks and folky tangents. Oddly enough some of these tunes have elements of of funk ("White Wall") and weird beat-filled psych freak outs ("Doctor Fine") that made this piece hip with the Soul Strut crowd.
Debut from Donald Byrd's cast of Howard University understudies. The Blackbyrds came on to the scene in the mid 70s meshing sleazy funk grooves with the slickness of smooth jazz, a sound that can be credited to super producer Larry Mizell. 1974's The Blackbyrds stands out as a gold mine for golden era hip hop samples with cuts like "Runaway" , "Reggins", and the party starter "Do It, Fluid." The band would later refine their sound for the radio enjoying considerable commercial success with tracks like "Walking in Rhythm" and "Happy Music".
Soul / funk band from the Bahamas that ventured into high powered horn rock territory while keeping their campy Caribbean edge. The title track was a massive hit in the early 70s and was immortalized by a few notable cover versions (see Ray Munnings' disco version). The 45 is an easy find, but their LP is a lot more elusive and worth seaking out. 1971's Funky Nassau, while short, is an enjoyable, rhythmic experience and holds weight for being an essential part of the Pete Rock puzzle (reference the impressive jam band track "When She Made Me Promise"). For whatever reason, the band failed to cash in on a follow-up until the mid 70s. Their 1976 self-titled release sunk like a stone and became a subject of crate digger's lore in the 90s and 00s.
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