JUNIE - THE WESTBOUND YEARS
Walter "Junie" Morrison had the great honor of
being a member of both of Westbound's biggest collectives (although not
necessarily at the same time) – the hard funky Ohio Players, and the cosmic
brotherhood of Funkadelic/Parliament. During the mid-70s, though, Junie
embarked upon a solo career, and cut a few wild LPs for the label which mixed
funk, soul, and even some strange rock-oriented leanings. The resulting
recordings were some of the more messed-up that Westbound ever issued, with
moments that are delightfully funky, and others that are downright silly. This
sweet 20 track compilation brings together most of the best moments of Junie's
Westbound Years, and includes cuts like "Johnny Carson Samba",
"Walt's Third Trip", "Tight Rope", "Cookies Will Get
You", "Super J", "Super Groupie", and the great
"Granny's Funky Rolls Royce", featuring the Funky Granny from
"Funky Worm"! ~ Dusty Groove.
AKI TAKASE / DAVID MURRAY – CHERRY SAKURA
As much as we love reedman David Murray in a group, we
almost love him even more in a spare setting – especially a duet album like
this, where he can both stretch out on his horn, but also soulfully interact
with another player! Pianist Aki Takase provides lines that are sometimes sharp
and angular, sometimes long and flowing – and Murray balances the sound out
with beautiful work on both tenor and bass clarinet – sometimes with an
approach that's almost traditional tenor ballad, sometimes a bit more
freewheeling. The sound is great, and takes us back to David Murray projects like
this from years back – on titles that include "Cherry Sakura",
"A Very Long Letter", "Stressology", "A Long March To
Freedom", "Blues For David", and "To AP Kern". ~ Dusty Groove
IZO FITZROY - SKYLINE
Izo Fitzroy may look like a languid country singer on the
cover (we're not sure why – maybe it's the old American car) – but she comes
across with a deeply soulful sound on the album, and a strong raspy edge in her
vocals that comes as a mighty nice surprise! The set's definitely going for a
late 60s/early 70s funky soul vibe – but Izo's approach is maybe a bit
different than some of the younger "funk girls with band" albums out
there – nicely lean, with sharp instrumentation that never tries to hard to
push any sort of agenda – which leaves the strength of Fitzroy's singing to
really bring most of the power to the tunes. Given her voice, we're sure that
the lady could sparkle in whatever style she chooses – and titles include
"Break The Levee", "Shadowlands", "Reckoning",
"Here I Come", "Hope You Can Wait", "Day By Day",
"Say Something", "Heads Held High", and "I Keep You
Guessing". ~ Dusty Groove
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