SOULS OF MISCHIEF - THERE IS ONLY NOW
A great
pairing of Bay Area hip hop legends Souls Of Mischief and producer-composer
Adrian Younge – akin to the cinematic hip hop funk productions by Younge for
Ghostface Killah and others – but it's also the tightest, most focused work
we've heard from the Souls in a while! It finds the right balance of delivering
on the character-driven song cycle/concept album front – held together by
interludes featuring fellow blueprint era hip hop veteran Ali Shaheed Muhammed
as a radio DJ whose brief news readings move the story along – but concept aside,
it's a timeless, funky jazz-fueled gem that'll stand the test of time. Includes
"Time Stopped", "Womack's Lament" with Busta Rhymes,
"Panic Struck", "Another Part Of You" feat William Hart of
The Delfonics, "All You Got Is Your Word", "There Is Only Now"
with Snoop Dogg, "Meeting Of The Minds", "Miriam Got A
Mickey", "Stone Cold" feat Scarub, "The Synopsis" plus
intro, outro and interludes with Ali Shaheed Muhammed, "Narrow
Escape", "Finally Back" and "The Last Act". ~ Dusty Groove
WITCH - KUOMBOKA
A surprisingly
great later set from Witch – one that still has some of their funky styles of a
few years before, but which also seems to bring in some stronger African
elements as well – in the kind of sweet fusion that was showing up in some of
the hipper South African acts of the period. The sound is more late 70s,
especially in the keyboards, than some of the clunkier pop that you might
expect from the 1984 date – and a few really great numbers have cool moogy
touches that really make the record stand out. Titles include "Erotic
Delight", "Come Together", "More Sweat Than Sweet",
"I Wanna See The Light", and "Kuomboka". ~ Dusty Groove
DUKE ELLINGTON - MY PEOPLE
A great
high-concept composition from Duke Ellington – one that rivals the earlier
brilliance of his Liberian Suite! Like that one, vocals are a key part of this
long-form work – a special performance done for the Century Of Negro Progress
Exposition in Chicago in 1963 – with an all-star cast that includes Jimmy Jones
both at the piano and conductor's stand; Joya Sherrill on vocals with the
Irving Bunton Singers, Jimmy Grissom, Jimmy McPhail, and Lil Greenwood; Billy
Strayhorn on celeste, Juan Amalbert on conga, and other familiar Ellingtonians
in the larger group! The tunes have a mix of gospel and folk roots, turned
towards more modern Ellington compositional modes – and almost all numbers
feature vocals, including one with narration by Ellington himself. Titles
include "Will You Be There", "Come Sunday", "David
Danced", "Montage", "My Mother My Father", "My
People", "The Blues Ain't", and "What Color Is
Virtue". ~ Dusty Groove
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