The Rotary Connection - 1971 - Hey Love
Posted by nikos1109
Some of the trippiest soul music ever recorded — an amazing collection of work by the legendary Rotary Connection — early home to vocalist Minnie Riperton and arranger Charles Stepney!
Some of the most godlike soul music to be recorded on this planet, and one of the best-ever album by this amazing Chicago collective that included the late Minnie Riperton, and who were arranged and produced by the great Charles Stepney! album feature swirling complex arrangements, filled with strange time changes, chord passages, and nice jazzy bits. Inside it all, the group’s cool male/female vocal sound rings out — with Minnie singing on some cuts along, and in duet on others. Includes the band’s classic “I Am The Blackgold Of The Sun”
The Band
Minnie Riperton, soprano (voice)
Kitty Haywood, soprano & alto (voice)
Shirley Wahls, contralto (voice)
Dave Scott, tenor (voice)
Charles Stepney, piano, harpsichord, organ, electric piano
Sydney Simms, bass
Donny Simmons, drums
Phil Upchurch, Pat Ferreri, guitar
Master Henry Gibson, congas
Produced by Charles Stepney
Tracks
A1 If I Sing My Song (2:53)
A2 The Sea & She (3:30)
A3 I Am The Blackgold Of The Sun (5:20)
A4 Hanging ‘Round The Bee Tree (3:32)
A5 Hey, Love (4:00)
B1 Love Has Fallen On Me (4:10)
B2 Song For Everyman (5:32)
B3 Love Is (4:42)
B4 Vine Of Happiness (4:36
The Reviews
A massively beautiful piece of work by “the new Rotary Connection” — a version of this groundbreaking Chicago soul ensemble which featured Phil Upchurch, Henry Gibson, and Charles Stepney — the cream of the Chicago production scene! Minnie Riperton’s still in the band on vocals, and her work on the LP is similar to that on the legendary Come To My Garden LP. The album features the incredible track “I Am the Blackgold of the Sun” — a haunting soul anthem that has been a favorite of groovers for years, and which was later made into a house track by NuYorican Soul. A great album all the way through, and filled with loads of excellent cuts! Other tracks include “If I Sing My Song”, “Hey, Love”, “Love Has Fallen On Me”, and a cover of Terry Callier’s “Song For Everyman
The Rotary Connection’s final album, “Hey, Love” is, in my opinion, their very best. The light Brazilian “If I Sing My Song” will put a smile on the face of the most critical listener. Our heart strings are gently pulled by “The Sea & She” and we remember sweetly. The jazzy-funky “I Am The Black Gold Of The Sun” takes us back to a time of self realization and acknowledgment of human spirit. We are then intellectually reminded of the paradox and complexity of “Hangin Round The Bee Tree”. The title track, “Hey, Love” is a bountiful and jazzy tune that is enjoyed just as much in 1999 as in 1971. “Love Has Fallen On Me” (covered by Chaka Khan in 1978) is an upbeat blues/gospel tune. And if all of this brilliance wasn’t enough, Rotary Connection sweetly and lovingly covers the Dell’s classic “Love Is”. “Vine of Happiness” is the perfect final track as is “Hey Love” the perfect final group effort.
The Charles Stepney headed psychedelic soul band that introduced the world to the voice of Minnie Riperton.The Rotary Connection were Chess/Cadet records answer to the late sixties and early seventies flower power movement.Now this could well have been a total disaster as the label went looking to cash in on the hippy market.Well with Stepney at the helm writing,producing and arranging as well as playing keys we get a soul gem on an orchestral scale that has four singers,some incredible Stepney production and one of the greatest songs ever written namely I Am The Black Gold Of The Sun. Just wonderful music that lifts the spirit.
Definitely one of my 20 Soul favorite LP’s of all time.
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The Chambers Brothers - 1967 - The Time Has Come
Posted by nikos1109
“Time has come today” is an all time classic anthem.
Tracks :
2 People Get Ready (3:52)
3 I Can’t Stand It (2:42)
4 Romeo and Juliet (4:32)
5 In the Midnight Hour (5:32)
6 So Tired (4:05)
7 Uptown (2:56)
8 Please Don’t Leave Me (3:00)
9 What the World Needs Now Is Love (3:20)
10 Time Has Come Today (11:06)
Edwin Starr - 1970 - War & Peace
Posted by nikos1109
In 1970, Motown producer Norman Whitfield was producing The Temptations’ LP ” Psychedelic Shack”. When the LP was released, it contained the song ” War”. College students all over the country began to write to Motown about releasing the song as a single. This is during the time when young college students began to protest about the war in Vietnam. Motown decided not release the song on the Temps because of other plans they had for the group at that time.
So Norman Whitfield asked Edwin Starr would he like to record the song. Edwin agreed because he hadn’t recorded anything in over six months and was ready to get back into the studio. The song was released in the summer of 1970 and became an instant million seller. Edwin would go on to win a Grammy in 1971 for ” War” for best R&B Male Vocal Performance.
War & Peace’ is by no means a psychedelic soul album but a mixture of classic Motown uptempo songs in the same vein as his two sixties classic albums ‘Soul Master’ and ‘25 Miles’.
The music itself speaks volumes and ‘War & Peace’ whilst featuring the ‘new’ sound of Motown at the end of the sixties still managers to capture the excitement of his output during the sixties. ‘War’ became an anthem in 1970 and whilst many believe the song was an anti Vietnam song, Edwin is on record as saying that the song was about the war in the university campus within the USA at the time, yet that said, the follow up to that ferocious call and reply plea ‘Stop The War’ DID have all the ingredients of an anti Vietnam plea, yet who could argue wit the man himself.
Uptempo goodies are a plenty as he takes on the Johnny Bristol song ‘I Can’t Escape Your Memory’ which he talks about on the aforementioned audio interview, but for many it will be his classic northern soul outing ‘Time/Running Back and Forth’ that many will rate as his best ever recordings and both are featured here. Cover versions of other Motown classics are included especially ‘California Soul’ and ‘At (Last) I Found A Love’ (also covered by Marvin Gaye) and his rendition of the BJ Thomas hit ‘Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head’ is actually soulful and a pleasure to listen too.
Funkadelic - 1971 - Maggot Brain
Posted by nikos1109
It contains one of the best guitar’s solo ever made!
In March 2005, Q magazine placed “Maggot Brain” at number 71 in its list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Tracks, which I personal think is not fair as it should be at least at top 20!
Maggot Brain is a 1971 album by the American funk band Funkadelic. It was released on Westbound Records. The music swings through psychedelia, hard rock, gospel and soul music, with tremendous variation between each track.In 2003, the album was ranked number 486 on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the 500 greatest albums of all time
Track listing
1. “Maggot Brain” (George Clinton, Eddie Hazel) – 10:20
2. “Can You Get To That” (Clinton, Ernie Harris) – 2:50
3. “Hit It And Quit It” (Clinton, Billy Bass Nelson, Garry Shider) – 3:50
4. “You And Your Folks, Me And My Folks” (Clinton, Judie Jones, B. Worrell) 3.36
5. “Super Stupid” (Clinton, Hazel, Nelson, Tawl Ross) – 3:57
6. “Back In Our Minds” (Fuzzy Haskins) – 2:38
7. “Wars Of Armageddon” (Clinton, Tiki Fulwood, Ross, Worrell) – 9:42
Line up
Lead Guitar: Eddie Hazel
Rhythm Guitar: Tawl Ross
Keyboards: Bernie Worrell
Bass: Billy Nelson
Drums: Tiki Fulwood
Vocals: Parliament, Gary Shider, Bernie Worrell, Tawl Ross
What can I say, everyone should own this album. “Maggot Brain” may be Eddie’s finest moment ever. The lyrics are particulary poignant and clever, especially “Can You Get To That” and “You And Your Folks…”. Bernie really becomes a dominant force on this album, with his organ adding texture to the acid/R&B guitar stew. Did I mention the beautiful singing? No Funkadelic album would be complete without a freakout song, and “Wars of Armageddon” fits the bill here. It sounds like they pulled out a sound effects album and got funky with it. “Maggot Brain” was written when George asked Eddie to think of the saddest thing he could, to imagine his mother dying. George faded out the rest of the band when Eddie played this, because they weren’t playing as well as Eddie, and the result was excellent. The album is Funkadelic at its best in that it’s impossible to predict. It starts with a psychedelic solo guitar piece, moves on to a gospel-inflected soul-stirrer, continues with a hard-rock organ-driven tune, swings toward a politically charged soul-gospel piece, soars with one of the first heavy metal tunes in history, moves back into the political realm with a touch of taste and a horn influence, and concludes with a freakout as bizarre as anything ever recorded. This kind of heavy eclecticism would be seen on several of the next Funkadelic albums, but this one is my favorite.
“Maggot Brain” is the greatest instrumental the band ever recorded, owing everything to the genius of Eddie Hazel, who makes listening to the piece an exhausting, terryifying and exhilarating experience. “Can You Get To That”, yet another rewrite of a Parliaments song, starts off with acoustic guitars, giving more of an emphasis to Bernie and his organ, with some of the best singing and lyrics on the album. “Hit It & Quit It” is a Worrell showpiece, featuring his vocals and dominated by that heavy organ sound. Hazel’s solo at the end is excellent. “You And Your Folks…” is a sequel of sorts to “I Got A Thing…”, with impassioned lyrics about the poor and the irresistable ‘yeah, yeah, yeah’ chant. “Super Stupid” is a high-powered Hazel metal tune, with a still-tasteful if over-the-edge swooping solo. “Back In Our Minds” settles the whole angry stew down, with Environmedian J.W. Jackson playing jew’s harp. He would open for Funkadelic on many occasions, doing a stand-up routine. Just when everything has settled down, they finish it with the utterly bizarre “Wars of…”, a song that has a great Hazel jam, a ton of sound effects, commentary on urban society, lyrics that include ‘more power to the peter, more power to the pussy, more pussy to the peter’, and much, much more. Buy this album now if you don’t own it!
The Temptations - 1970 - Psychedelic Shack
Posted by nikos1109
Side one
“Psychedelic Shack” – 3:51
“You Make Your Own Heaven and Hell Right Here on Earth” – 2:46
“Hum Along and Dance” – 3:53
“Take a Stroll Thru Your Mind” – 8:37
“It’s Summer” – 2:36
“War” – 3:11
“You Need Love Like I Do (Don’t You)” – 3:58
“Friendship Train” – 7:49
Psychedelic Shack was the final album completed before the third incarnation of The Temptations (Dennis Edwards, Paul Williams, Eddie Kendricks, Melvin Franklin, and Otis Williams) broke apart.
Psychedelic Shack U.S. Billboard Pop Albums 24
Psychedelic Shack U.S. Top R&B Albums 1
Psychedelic Shack U.S. Billlboard Pop Singles 7
Psychedelic Shack U.S. Billboard R&B Singles 2
Cane and Able - 1972 - Cane and Able
Posted by nikos1109
Fisrt album of those funky legends. The music shifts between psyche rock flavors, trippy guitar arrangements, hot brass arrangements and strong funky grooves.
1) Girl You Move Me 8.30
4) Don’t Knock My Love 7.42
Media : LP
Label : akt - epic
Press : EPC 64797
Year : 1972
Country : France
Staff : french thompson (lead vocals,arrangements), blinky bostic (conga,timbale), garland edwards (guitar), norris ridguard (trumpet,valve,trombone), pee wee carter (drums), george alford (trumpet,vocal), doc brown (bass), billy ellis (alto & tenor sax), tony lytle & hasan tayratira (help)
The Undisputed Truth - 1972 - Face to Face With The Truth
Posted by nikos1109
You asked for more of this great psych - soul group and here’s their second album.
2. What It Is? (4:58)
3.Ungena Za Ulimwengu (Unite the World) Friendship Train (8:54)
4. Superstar (Remember How You Got Where You Are) (3:10)
5. Take Me in Your Arms and Love Me (4:04)
7. What’s Going On (9:24)
Released in 1972, the spirit of the age is very evident on this record. The conscious lyrics, the psychedelic riffs and dark and brooding funk rhythms- it’s a world away from the assembly line pop of Motown’s golden era. Joe Harris’s heavy baritone is rich and clear, making “You Make Your Own Heaven And Hell Right Here On Earth” a compelling lesson in the era’s political realities.
Like Rotary Connection they may have been a little ahead of their time, and perhaps a little way out for many. That said, most of the tracks have stood up well to the passing of the decades. (Apart from the baffling inclusion of a funk-light cover of “Take Me In Your Arms & Love Me.”) There’s even an introspective and mellow version of Marvin Gaye’s “Whats Going On” that, despite the risks, works well.
The Undisputed Truth offered Norman a space to experiment in, exploring ideas he would later refine with his more mainstream projects. And, although theres nothing quite as good here as the bands earlier hit “Smiling Faces Sometimes”, this album offers a fascinating insight into the mind of one of soul’s most adventurous producers.
