I wanted to start 2011 off with a stone solid Funk Friday track. I’ll admit I didn’t dig to the dusty section of my closet or reach to the ends of the Earth to find this one. However, despite it not being the rarest selection out there, this track will take you on an amazing funk odyssey to the edge of the galaxy and back again. As always here’s a little knowledge on the artists themselves.
Slave was an Ohio based funk group lead by Steve Washington. Who’s Steve Washington you ask? Well he’s the nephew of Ralph Middlebrook of the Ohio Players. Slave preformed some very gritty and hard edged funk and it’s no secret once you listen to this track how the tracks father “Slide” topped the singles charts in 1977 which helped bring their self titled album to number 6 on the U.S. R&B chart.
“Son of Slide” can almost be considered an instrumental version of “Slide.” However, after listening to both tracks one can hear that the bass line in “Son of Slide” is more prominent and chunky. “Son” also features a hypnotic chant at the end softly alerting and assuring that dancers can, “Slide with me till morning.” It’s a shame that part of the song is only a few seconds long. I’m sure any DJ can play that part at least three minutes and get away with it. (Thank you looping function in Serato!) The guitar solo in the middle of the track is set to power any funk mothership throughout hyperspace and cruising speeds are brought to you by the horn section. No wonder why Tribe Called Quest sampled the hell out of this on their People’s Instinctive Travels “Go Ahead in the Rain.” All in all, this track embodies what Funk Friday is all about. Don’t sleep on this track.
I decided to keep the spirit of the holiday season by bringing you a nice change from the commercial holiday music that has been bombarding your eardrums lately. (Is it just me or is everywhere really overdoing it this year for the holidays?) The good folks at Strut Records dug up some rare Christmas Grooves and put them into a funky compilation titled, “In the Christmas Groove.” I mean to recreate James Brown’s legendary “In the Jungle Groove” album cover, you know they had to deliver the heat with this one.
One particular gem on this album was from a little known funk artist named J.D. McDonald. In fact, Google searching his name will yield bathroom and hygiene products. I really wish that there was some liner notes or something that can trace the history of this guy. So, I can’t give you much history of the track.
If you need something to spice up your dulling Christmas party or just need something to shake up your daily commercial Christmas songs sung by Mariah Carey or Miley Cyrus, then this is the perfect track! The drums are like just cooked stove top Jiffy Pop. The bass line adds a buttery smoothness (almost feeling a little overpowering at times.), and the yelling vocals definitely conjure up a funky dancing, boogaloo breakin Santa Claus. Santa apparently even stops boogalooing to do the funky chicken. Hit the jump for the track.
If this song was real, how much cooler would department store Santas would be if the requirement was to boogaloo like Boogaloo Sam.
Bobby Byrd will probably be best known for his association with James Brown. However, Byrd had many successful years as a solo artist and with other groups. “If You Don’t Work” is one of Byrd’s early tracks that I feel didn’t get the same fame as “Hot Pants.” (After all, “Hot Pants” was sampled by nearly every rap artist in the late 80’s and 90’s.)
“If You Don’t Work” is a superb funk track with a pretty straight forward message. The lyrics aren’t complicated but they hold true even for today. The simple guitar riff throughout the song really keeps your attention and carries the track. The horns give it that classic James Brown/Bobby Byrd flavor. The drums keep your feet moving. Perfect track for Funk Friday.
I did not have the opportunity to finish this last night, due to spending an extended period of time at a local Japanese steak house. But if it were still Friday, then this gem is what I would publish. Usually, I just like to review one song, but this album is a must for any crate digger, funk head, or any person just starting to dive into vinyl. This compilation features funk and soul during the 70’s from the sun-drenched ghettos of Rio de Janeiro. This music shares some of the same qualities and struggles as their soul brothers in Harlem. You can hear the distinct sounds that influenced the Black Rio movement from labels such as Motown, Stax, and even the Godfather himself, James Brown helped shaped this blend of “soul brasileiro.” The drum rhythms have that distinct Brazilian flavor and Manito’s “Na Baixa do Sapateiro” the opening break left goosebumps and the hairs on my arms standing. I had to actually rewind the track to make sure I actually heard what I heard. Take a listen to the opening break:
Pretty damn nice wasn’t it? Anyway here is the complete tracklisting of the album. And yes there is a version of Rapper’s Delight on this album.
Tracklisting:
1 Gang Do Tagarela - Melo da Tagarela (Rapper´s Delight) (4:10)
2 Copa 7 - Copa 7 No Samba (2:53)
3 Grupo Arembepe - Iaia (3:04)
4 Uniao Black - Black Rio (2:46)
5 Miguel de Deus - Cinco Anos (4:56)
6 Jorge Ben - Comanche (2:58)
7 Trio Mocotó - Nago (3:40)
8 Banda Black Rio - Gafiera Universal (3:06)
9 Toni Tornado - Podes Crer, Amizade (2:30)
10 Eklipse Soul - Psicose (2:11)
11 Manito - Na Baixa Da Sapateiro (3:28)
12 Orlandivo - Onde Anda O Meu Amor (3:46)
13 Dom Salvador e Aboliçao - Som, Sangue E Raca (2:46)
14 Antonio Carlos E Jocafi - Kabaluere (2:22)
15 Orquestra E Coro - Kriola (2:27)
16 Gerson King Combo - Uma Chance (5:25)
This is a super funk, hype track that gets the crowd moving every time. Tried and true. You also heard this in the recent Busta Rhymes club banger, Don’t Touch Me. Listen and compare. Enjoy your Friday people
The Diplomats - I Can Give You Love
Busta Rhymes - Don’t Touch Me
I’m glad that there are still artists out there that are sampling the classics!
Keeping in line with the last Funk Friday post. I decided to drop some more Electro Funk for ya. This time showcasing one of my favorite all time late 70’s, early 80’s funk groups, Midnight Star. Midnight Star was one of those groups that were a little ahead of their time, but not too far where no one could get on their level. If you take a listen to them, nearly all tracks from them contained the vocoded, auto-tuned voice, that well T-Pain is wrongfully credited for starting. Anyway, here’s Midnight Star’s - Operator. It’s an awesome track plain and simple. Great vocal melodies, and of course vocoded voices.
