"Small Talk/High On You/Heard Ya Missed Me, Well I'm Back" by SLY & THE FAMILY STONE – US Albums from July 1974, November 1975 and December 1976 on Epic Records – guests featuring Eric Gale, Bobby Lyles and Peter Frampton (September 2017 UK Beat Goes On Reissue (BGO) – 3LPs Remastered onto 2CDs – Andrew Thompson Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

This Review Along With 289 Others Is Available In My

SOUNDS GOOD E-Book on all Amazon sites

HIGHER GROUND 
70ts Soul, R'n'B, Funk, Jazz Fusion
Exceptional CD Reissues and Remasters  

Just Click Below To Purchase for £6.95 (2021 Update)

Thousands of E-Pages - All Details and In-Depth Reviews From Discs 

(No Cut and Paste Crap)

<iframe style="width:120px;height:240px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" src="//ws-eu.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=GB&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=mabasreofcdbl-21&language=en_GB&marketplace=amazon&region=GB&placement=B00MTCDTWS&asins=B00MTCDTWS&linkId=f95dca2244c8856012cccc3c6c25fff6&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true"></iframe>

<iframe style="width:120px;height:240px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" src="//ws-eu.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=GB&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=mabasreofcdbl-21&language=en_GB&marketplace=amazon&region=GB&placement=B071SBBDNR&asins=B071SBBDNR&linkId=6d88dcf9f80c2f4e711c6979abc1125f&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true"></iframe>

"...Loose Booty..."

Time is a cruel mistress, especially in the music business. Sly & The Family Stone are a case in point. They had achieved what few could have managed outside of Isaac Hayes and his extraordinary LP run on Stax. 

"Greatest Hits" from November 1970, the huge November 1971 opus that was "There's A Riot Goin' On" and "Fresh" from June 1973 had all achieved Number 1 status on the US R&B LP charts for Sly & The Family Stone – three in a row - with "...Riot..." going to Number 1 on the Rock LP charts also. Very, very rare that any Soul acts outside of Isaac Hayes and James Brown ever got to do this. Even before the 1970 "Greatest Hits" set – their fourth album "Stand!" from April 1969 had peaked at No. 3 (material from it was featured at Woodstock) - high numbers and high praise all round. Impressive stuff. 

But by June 1974 when the "Small Talk" LP came out – he made No. 15 on the Rock charts (didn't register with R&B) - "High On You" from October 1975 made No. 45 (No. 11 R&B) and December 1976's "Heard Ya Missed Me... " seemed to have a ego-title too far because it didn't bother the Rock charts at all and scraped No. 33 on R&B (even with complimentary liner notes from top Philly Producer and admirer Kenneth Gamble). What had started out as Sly & The Family Stone mixed-race mixed-cultural world-changing stellar-music in the late 60ts - was by 1974, 1975 and 1976 – old hat and fizzling out fast. This was Sly on the downturn, lost in power and accolades, obscene amounts of money and schizoid drugs dependence despite the cosy holding a baby/we're all wholesome now album sleeve. This is Sylvester Stewart before unreliability destroyed any chance of gigs, shabby RVs and homelessness thirty ears later and no calls returned - newspapers preparing obituaries. 

So in some respects – these three albums have been ignored over the years (the second is credited to Sly Stone only, the other two to Sly & The Family Stone) – and that's where this superb twofer reappraisal from BGO of England comes a-boogieing in. It's not all primo Soul-Funk for sure, but there are enough nuggets across the three platters, great new Audio and quality presentation to soften the sub-Booty blow (guitarist Eric Gale and Peter Frampton guest alongside keyboard whizz Bobby Lyles too). I'm givin' and livin' y'all. To the Mother Beautiful...

UK released Friday, 1 September 2017 - "Small Talk/High On You/Heard Ya Missed Me, Well I'm Back" by SLY & THE FAMILY STONE on Beat Goes on BGOCD1294 (Barcode 5017261212948) offers 3LPs Remastered onto 2CDs and plays out as follows: 

CD1 (37:25 minutes):
1. Small Talk [Side 1]
2. Say You Will 
3. Mother Beautiful 
4. Time For Livin' 
5. Can't Strain My Brain 
6. Loose Booty [Side 2]
7. Holdin' On 
8. Wishful Thinkin' 
9. Better Thee Than Me
10. Livin' Where I'm Livin' 
11. This Is Love 
Tracks 1 to 11 are their seventh studio album "Small Talk" - released July 1974 in the USA on Epic PE 32930 and August 1974 in the UK on Epic S EPC 69070. Musicians included Freddie Stone on Vocals and Guitar, Rose Stone Banks on Vocals and Keyboards, Cynthia Robinson on Trumpet, Vet Stewart on Vocals and Keyboards, Jerry Martini on Saxophone, Pat Rizzo on Flute and Saxophone, Sid Page On Violin with Rusty Allen on Bass and Bill Lordon on Drums. Produced and Arranged by Sly Stone - he features on Lead Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards and Bass.  

CD2 (68:46 minutes):
1. I Get High On You [Side 1]
2. Crossword Puzzle 
3. That's Lovin' You 
4. Who Do You Love? 
5. Green Eyed Monster Girl 
6. Organize [Side 2] 
7. Le Lo Li
8. My World 
9. So Good To Me 
10. Greed 
Tracks 1 to 10 are the group's eight studio outing "High On You" and his first (technically) solo LP as SLY STONE - released October 1975 in the USA on Epic PE 33835 and December 1975 in the UK on Epic S EPC 69165. Musicians included Dawn Silva, Tiny Melton, Vet Stewart and Rudy Love on Vocals, Freddie Stone on Vocals and Guitar, Cousin Gale on Guitar, Bobby Lyles and Tricky Truman Governor on Keyboards (Little Moses plays Organ on "I Get High On You" only), Jerry Martini and Dennis Marcellino on Saxophones, Cynthia Robinson on Trumpet and Vocals, Bobby Vega on Bass (Rusty Allen plays Bass on "Organize" only), Michael Samuels and Jim Strassburg on Drums (Bill Lordon Drums on "That's Lovin' You" only and Willie Wild Sparks Drums on "Le Lo Li" only). Sly Stone plays multiple instruments – everything else. 

11. Heard Ya Missed Me, Well I'm Back [Side 1]
12. What Was I Thinkin' In My Head 
13. Nothing Less Than Happiness
14. Sexy Situation 
15. Blessing in Disguise 
16. Everything In You [Side 2]
17. Mother Is A Hippie
18. Let's Be Together 
19. The Thing
20. Family Again 
Tracks 11 to 20 are the group's ninth studio album "Heard Ya Missed Me, Well I'm Back" - released December 1976 in the USA on Epic PE 34348 and December 1976 in the UK on Epic EPC 81641. Musicians included  Cynthia Robinson on Trumpet, Joe Baker on Guitar and Vocals, John Colla and Steve Schuster on Horns, John Farey on Keyboards with Dwight Hogan and Anthony Warren on Bass and Drums (and others). Peter Frampton [ex The Herd and Humble Pie] plays Guitar on "Let's Be Together".

The seven players on "Small Talk" are pictured in the 24-page booklet, the Steve Lake of Melody Maker 1974 liner notes and other aspects of the gatefold sleeve (but not the lyrics). Same for the other two albums, but its CHARLES WARING (principal Soul and Jazz contributor to "Mojo" magazine) that provides the thoroughly even-handed liner notes. As fans will know, the press and reviewers have always given Sly's mid-70ts output a snoot - some good stuff sided with treading water and rehashes of old flames. And I guess some of that is unfortunately true. But hearing these albums again - and this time with 2017 High Def Remasters from BGO's long-standing Audio Engineer ANDREW THOMPSON – and I'm feeling a wee bit more generous. And the card slipcase always makes these BGO reissues feel that just that little bit classier than most. To the music...

I never could stand that baby crying throughout the title track no matter how good the funky backdrop (like he was deliberately trying to reflect the chaos in his brain), but things pick up with the chilli con carne sexiness of "Say You Will" – lovely brass and synth backdrops to the life worth living lyrics. For every season, Sly's best friend is "Mother Beautiful" – the kind of Family Stone Soul-Funk tune that wouldn't have been out of place on albums as far back as the "Everyday People" of "Stand!" in 1969. Hardly surprising that Epic chose the sheer clavinet commerciality of "Time For Livin'" as the lead-off 45-single for the album in June 1974 (Epic 5-11140 was b/w "Small Talk") - rewarded as they were with a No. 10 on the US R&B singles charts. Other faves on a 'good' Sly/Family album would be funky-bass chug of "Better Thee Than Me", the 'I might as well admit it' smoocher LP finisher "This Is Love" and the second single off the album "Loose Booty" that should have done better than No. 22. 

Bare-chested and grinning or not – I recall the "High On You" album arrived with a yawn. Which is a damn shame because there are tremendous grooves in the title track, while Funkadelic would have killed for the crossover AWB-underpinned saxophone swing in "Crossword Puzzle" – never loose a round – all you have to do is be you – everybody getting down. The terribly titled and slightly lame right on sister and right on brother of "Le Lo Li" was issued as a single in December 1975 (Epic 8-50175) – but the hard-hitting Funk of its flipside "Who Do You Love?" interested me more. Unfortunately the War and Peace words of "Greed" felt preachy and not enlightened in 1976. 

By the time he returned as Sly And The Family Stone for "Heard Ya Missed Me, Well I'm Back” album (surely a contender for top-twenty worst LP titles) - the world wasn't really interested anymore and that one-man-band artwork probably didn't help much either. Where once Sly seemed clued in - the Kenneth Gamble liner notes asking "...may almighty God give you the strength to control your emotions..." was somehow a sideways jab rather than a plea for understanding. "Blessing In Disguise" had a nice vibe to it (all those girly vocals) but apparently it only reached Promo-stages as a 45 - the album having no other 45 to plug it. Ex Humble Pie axeman Peter Frampton who had just become a global superstar with his "Frampton Comes Alive" double-LP) issued in April of 1976 guests on understated treated guitar for the busy "Let's Be Together". Better for me is swirling Brass and Bass Funk of "The Thing".  

Niggles – the four Previously Unreleased bonus tracks that appeared on the 2007 Expanded Edition CD of "Small Talk" is AWOL on CD1 when there was room. But I suppose as neither of the other two LPs has received such accolades over the years (excepting expensive and deleted Japanese Editions) – their proper Remasters here are something of an exclusive and a bonus of a different kind.  

For damn sure it's not all genius and by the time you get to "Heard..." - you may be hearing 'same old, same old' songs - but when he hits that groove and the stunning backing band he had backs him up - it is a 'high'. Nothing less than happiness? Well, it's close enough for moi...

"SOMETHING'S HAPPENING HERE Volume 4 - 1960s and 1970s MUSIC ON CD Exceptional Remasters" by MARK BARRY. Volume 4 of 7...Each Volume With Different Entries

             The SOUNDS GOOD MUSIC BOOKS Series...

<iframe style="width:120px;height:240px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" src="//ws-eu.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=GB&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=mabasreofcdbl-21&language=en_GB&marketplace=amazon&region=GB&placement=B00O7J6URW&asins=B00O7J6URW&linkId=75d1578984f232a5c17e88ab01839660&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true"></iframe>

SOMETHING'S HAPPENING HERE 
Volume 4 of 7

1960s and 1970s MUSIC ON CD

Exceptional Reissues and Remasters...

Including 1960s and 1970s ROCK and POP

PSYCH and UNDERGROUND

BLUES ROCK and PROG ROCK

* Over 1,460 E-pages of info, 205 in-depth reviews, CD reissues 1990 to 2024

* A huge 1,435 different reviews across the whole series of 7 Volumes

* Formats included - CD, SACD [Super Audio CD], HDCD [High Density Compatible Digital], Japan SHM-CD and Japan Platinum SHM-CD  [Super High Materials]

* Major Label Box Set Retrospectives from – EMI, Sony/Legacy, Universal and WEA

* Best Independent Reissue Labels highlighted...

– Ace, Audio Fidelity, Bear Family, Beat Goes On, Big Break Records (BBR), Craft Recordings, Edsel, Esoteric Recordings, Grapefruit, Hip-O Select, Light In The Attic, Mobile Fidelity, Music On CD, Raven, Repertoire, Rev-Ola, Rhino and Rhino Handmade, The Right Stuff, Salvo, Sundazed, Panegyric and more

* Technical data from the discs themselves (total playing times and more)

* Release Date, Catalogue No and Barcode to locate the correct issue

* Track lists and Details on Bonus material (if any)

* Vinyl Discographies referencing CD Box sets (track numbers to sequence singles and albums from the discs)

* UK and US catalogue numbers and release dates for original vinyl albums, 7" 45-singles and EPs within each review

* Remaster/Tape Transfer Engineers highlighted

* Packaging descriptions, size of booklets, what’s contained within, who wrote the liner notes, repro artwork explained

* Reference to the Audio Quality of the CD - analysis of songs

* Guest Musicians highlighted – Cover Versions noted

* Find Artists and Guest Musicians (who played on what)

* Find Original Album Producers and Engineers

* Find your favourite Remaster Engineers and Authors of Liner Notes

SIXTIES and SEVENTIES RECORD LABELS covered by the book include:

ABC, ABC/Dunhill, A&M, Apple, Ardent, Asylum, Atlantic/Atco, Bearsville, Blue Horizon, Brain, Capitol, Capricorn, CBS, Charisma, Chrysalis, Columbia, Dawn, Decca, Deram (Nova), DJM, Elektra, EMI, Epic, Fantasy, Fly, Fontana, Harvest, Immediate, Island, Liberty, London, Marmalade, MCA, Mercury, MGM, Monument, Mooncrest, Parlophone, Parrot, Polydor, Probe, Purple, Pye International, RAK, Rare Earth, RCA Victor, Reaction, Reprise, Rolling Stones, RSO, Shelter, Smash, Straight, Track, Uni, Vertigo, Verve, Virgin, United Artists and Warner Brothers

Having worked for RECKLESS RECORDS in London for over 20 years as one of their principal Vinyl and CD buyers (one of the best secondhand record shops in the West End) and having been an Amazon 'Hall Of Fame' Reviewer six times in the past - as you can imagine - I have come across a huge number of reissues - some far more worthy than others. 

To that end I've collated together these SOUNDS GOOD books as guides to Exceptional CD Remasters offering up in-depth reviews on a wide range of titles. And it no longer has to cost the earth to Sound Good either – you just need to know which CD is the right issue to buy. 

Many entries in this large and unique book cost less than £10 while others are under a fiver. And even if some Box Sets/Deletions have acquired a price tag - because they're the best I've included them along with artists/titles that deserve your attention…

Enjoy the reads – Mark Barry (2024) 

"The Complete Westbound Recordings 1973-76" by JUNIE [Walter "Junie" Morrison, ex Ohio Players, later Funkadelic] – Including Three Full Albums "When We Do" and "Freeze" (both 1975) and "Suzie Super Groupie" (1976) Plus Seven Bonus Tracks (May 2017 UK Ace Records/Westbound 2CD Anthology of Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

This Review Along With 289 Others Is Available In My

SOUNDS GOOD E-Book on all Amazon sites

HIGHER GROUND 
70ts Soul, R'n'B, Funk, Jazz Fusion
Exceptional CD Reissues and Remasters  

Just Click Below To Purchase for £6.95 (2021 Update)

Thousands of E-Pages - All Details and In-Depth Reviews From Discs 

(No Cut and Paste Crap)

<iframe style="width:120px;height:240px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" src="//ws-eu.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=GB&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=mabasreofcdbl-21&language=en_GB&marketplace=amazon&region=GB&placement=B00MTCDTWS&asins=B00MTCDTWS&linkId=f95dca2244c8856012cccc3c6c25fff6&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true"></iframe>

<iframe style="width:120px;height:240px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" src="//ws-eu.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=GB&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=mabasreofcdbl-21&language=en_GB&marketplace=amazon&region=GB&placement=B06Y5Q7C25&asins=B06Y5Q7C25&linkId=9ecc75b15e3b78bb1a0345eced9b642a&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true"></iframe>

"...Musical Son... "

Genius Musician, Arranger and all-round Funkmeister Walter "Junie" Morrison is looking rather pleased with himself on the outtake photo that adorns this fabulous 2CD set from England's Ace Records (and why wouldn't he be - pawed by an icon like that!). 

Model Pat Evans is captured in all her beguiling bald sexiness by Joel Brodsky - the photographer who brought us so many of those memorable Ohio Players saucy LP covers – albums Junie wrote tunes for and was instrumental in the origins of. His other period claim to fame is of course the future Funkadelic P-Funk sound – Junie having co-written the anthem "One Nation Under A Groove" with George Clinton and Garry Shider – a US R&B No. 1 in October 1978 for Clinton's Funkadelic.

Pat Evans had featured on the Ohio Players "Pain" LP cover (February 1972) and the not-so-subtly titled "Ecstasy" LP from September 1973 - two hugely popular albums Junie had been instrumental in (Morrison was gone from their orbit by 1974's "Skin Tight"). So come his debut Solo album "When We Do" (recorded in 1973 and 1974 but not released until mid 1975) - hardly surprising then that Pat returns to give our hero some more temperature-rising cover-art strokes. And that's where this rarities haul comes stomping-in. There's a lot of Granny in her Funky Rolls Royce to groove through, so let's have at the details...

UK released 26 May 2017 - "The Complete Westbound Recordings 1973-1976" by JUNIE on Ace Records/Westbound CDSEW2 157 (Barcode 029667083720) features Three Full Albums "When We Do" and "Freeze"  (both 1975) and "Suzie Super Groupie" (1976) Plus Seven Bonus Tracks Remastered onto 2CDs as follows:

CD1 (72:37 minutes):

1. Junie [Side 1]

2. Loving Arms 

3. Johnny Carson Samba 

4. The Place 

5. Anna 

6. Tight Rope [Side 2]

7. You And You 

8. When We Do 

9. Married Him 

10. Walt's Third Trip

Tracks 1 to 10 are his debut album "When We Do" - released June 1975 in the USA on 20th Century Records/Westbound Records W-200 

11. Freeze [Side 1]

12. Cookies Will Get You 

13. Not As Good As You Should 

14. Musical Son 

15. Super J. [Side 2] 

16. World Of Woe 

17. Granny's Funky Rolls Royce 

18. Junie II

Tracks 11 to 18 are his second solo album "Freeze" - released November 1975 in the USA on 20th Century Records/Westbound Records W-214 

CD2 (56:53 minutes):

1. Junie III [Side 1]

2. Suzie Thundertussy 

3. If You Love Him 

4. What Am I Gonna Do

5. Super Groupie

6. Surrender 

7. Suzie 

8. Stone Face Joe 

9. Spirit 

Tracks 1 to 9 are his third studio album "Suzie Super Groupie" - released October 1976 in the USA on 20th Century Records/Westbound Records W228. 

BONUS TRACKS:

10. Junie's Ultimate Departure (first appeared as a Previously Unreleased track on the April 1994 UK CD compilation "The Westbound Years" (by Junie) on Ace Records/Westbound CDSEWD 64 (Barcode 029667376426)

11. Walt's Second Trip 

12. Tightrope (Single Mix)

Tracks 12 and 11 (note sequence) are the A&B-sides of his first US solo 45 released December 1973 on Eastbound E 619 - both tracks are on the debut LP "When We Do" in different forms with "Tightrope" credited on the album as "Tight Rope"

13. Loving Arms (Mono Single Mix) - July 1975 US 45 A-side for Westbound WT-5007 

14. If You Love Him (Single Edit) - 1976 US 45 A-side for Westbound WT-5027

15. Super "J". (Single Edit)

16. Granny's Funky Rolls Royce (Mono Single Edit) 

Tracks 16 and 15 (note sequence) are the A&B-sides of an October 1975 US 45 on Westbound WT-5013

The knowledgeable and erudite DEAN RUDLAND heads up the praises in the 20-page booklet – not surprisingly first mentioning Kanye West and Solange Knowles (sister of Beyoncé) – Kanye with his prominent sampling of "Suzie Thundertussy" for his "No More Parties In L.A.” track on the February 2016 album “The Life Of Pablo" - while Solange actually name-checked the great Dayton, Ohio man upfront as "Junie" - a cut on her "A Seat At The Table" album from September 2016. Not before time either. With none of his three albums featured here having troubled the R&B charts in their days of release – Walter Morrison has been an underground name ever since. Nice to know then that Junie got to feel the love of his contemporaries 'before' his tragic passing in January 2017 - only months after Solange's album release. 

The booklet also features photos of the debut’s gatefold artwork, the second and third LPs and their rather plain and boring rear sleeves as well as those promo-only 45s that never seemed to make it to stock copies. Audio is care of Ace’s long-standing Engineer NICK ROBBINS and no stranger to Soul and Funk tapes – this twofer kicks in all the right places. 

Before the delayed debut LP "When We Do" appeared label co-shared by 20th Century and Westbound Records – Westbound tried "Tightrope" b/w the instrumental "Walt's Second Trip" in December 1973 on their imprint label Eastbound but to no joy (very cool to see both mixes in amongst the bonuses - the versions on the album are different). The very Disco-Funk opener "Junie" is predominantly an instrumental workout featuring The Detroit Symphony. Punctuating the trippy voices and space-feel of "Loving Arms" - soon after a wickedly great 'keep me in your arms' groove is set up - come the Horns and Hammond - the Remaster kicking it. At only 2:32 minutes, the Salsa meets Bass meets shaker Drum rhythms of "Johnny Carson Samba" feels like The Crusaders having a cocktail - a fab little piano groove a la Joe Sample. Back to hard-hitting midnight-hour Pump-Funk with "The Place" - his guitar passages going all heavy Isley Brothers while a fantastic combo of Brass and Strings brings up the rhythmic rear. And it's hard to think now in 2021 why something as bum-shakingly fun-key-fun-kay as the title track "When We Do" wasn't a hit - maybe too many instruments cluttering the mix - but surely that Stevie Wonder clavinet backbeat should have garnished better attention. The whole LP is great really and yet period sales never reflected that. 

Album two "Freeze" goes up a notch and is closest to Funkadelic – the opener is a fast-hammering synth workout where voices and instruments are given that fazed-feel. "Cookies Will Get You" continues in a hard-hitting Brothers Johnson vein – thumping rhythm section, voices, piano and a huge Remaster that threatens to do damage. You touch the height is what you do, Junie claims in "Not As Good As You Should" – another rapid Funk workout that feels like Part 3 on a Side 1 suite. The LP comes close to a voicebox hit with the wild synth playing of "Granny's Funky Rolls Royce" – a ferocious piece of keyboard Funk that has Granny giving it some old mama ad libs (I hear you baby) – and I can so hear why Funkadelic and Parliament aficionados dig the LP so much (despite that poor no-sales artwork). 

Highlights on album three "Suzie Super Groupie" feature the very Todd Rundgren soundscapes of the opener "Junie III" and of course that 'chance to be a star' "Suzie Thundertussy" chorus and backbeat. Junie needs the tenderness so desperately in "Surrender" where the clavinet and general rhythms feel so the "Contusion" instrumental on Stevie Wonder's 1976 double magnum opus "Songs In The Key Of Life". James Brown Funk fans will also dig the near five and half minutes of "Super Groupie" - a get on up moment on Side 2.

 

For sure the whole in-yer-face blasting-no-let-up Funkadelic Funk (truth be told) is an acquired taste and it's easy to see why Earth, Wind & Fire through to The Brothers Johnson and The Ohio Players were so commercially successful – they mixed in elements of P-Funk but just not so hard-hitting all the time. But that won't stop "The Complete Westbound Recordings 1973-76" by JUNIE from being a bit special to aficionados of P-Funk. 

A humdinger of a release and surely (yet again) one of the myriad reasons why Ace Records of the UK are the bizz-schnizz when it comes to Soul and Funk reissues. Musical man remembered well, and with real affection...

"SOMETHING'S HAPPENING HERE Volume 3 - 1960s and 1970s MUSIC ON CD Exceptional Remasters" by MARK BARRY. Volume 3 of 7...Each Volume With Different Entries

            The SOUNDS GOOD MUSIC BOOKS Series...

<iframe style="width:120px;height:240px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" src="//ws-eu.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=GB&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=mabasreofcdbl-21&language=en_GB&marketplace=amazon&region=GB&placement=B00O7J6URW&asins=B00O7J6URW&linkId=75d1578984f232a5c17e88ab01839660&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true"></iframe>

SOMETHING'S HAPPENING HERE 
Volume 3 of 7

1960s and 1970s MUSIC ON CD

Exceptional Reissues and Remasters...

Including 1960s and 1970s ROCK and POP

PSYCH and UNDERGROUND

BLUES ROCK and PROG ROCK

* Over 1,530 E-pages of information, 205 in-depth reviews, CD reissues 1990 to 2024

* A huge 1,435 different reviews across a series of 7 Volumes

* Formats included - CD, SACD [Super Audio CD], HDCD [High Density Compatible Digital], Japan SHM-CD and Japan Platinum SHM-CD  [Super High Materials]

* Major Label Box Set Retrospectives from – EMI, Sony/Legacy, Universal and WEA

* Best Independent Reissue Labels highlighted...

– Ace, Audio Fidelity, Bear Family, Beat Goes On, Big Break Records (BBR), Craft Recordings, Edsel, Esoteric Recordings, Grapefruit, Hip-O Select, Light In The Attic, Mobile Fidelity, Music On CD, Raven, Repertoire, Rev-Ola, Rhino and Rhino Handmade, The Right Stuff, Salvo, Sundazed, Panegyric and more

* Technical data from the discs themselves (total playing times and more)

* Release Date, Catalogue No and Barcode to locate the correct issue

* Track lists and Details on Bonus material (if any)

* Vinyl Discographies referencing CD Box sets (track numbers to sequence singles and albums from the discs)

* UK and US catalogue numbers and release dates for original vinyl albums, 7" 45-singles and EPs within each review

* Remaster/Tape Transfer Engineers highlighted

* Packaging descriptions, size of booklets, what's contained within, who wrote the liner notes, repro artwork explained

* Reference to the Audio Quality of the CD - analysis of songs

* Guest Musicians highlighted – Cover Versions noted

* Find Artists and Guest Musicians (who played on what)

* Find Original Album Producers and Engineers

* Find your favourite Remaster Engineers and Authors of Liner Notes

SIXTIES and SEVENTIES RECORD LABELS covered by the book include:

ABC, ABC/Dunhill, A&M, Apple, Ardent, Asylum, Atlantic/Atco, Bearsville, Blue Horizon, Brain, Capitol, Capricorn, CBS, Charisma, Chrysalis, Columbia, Dawn, Decca, Deram (Nova), DJM, Elektra, EMI, Epic, Fantasy, Fly, Fontana, Harvest, Immediate, Island, Liberty, London, Marmalade, MCA, Mercury, MGM, Monument, Mooncrest, Parlophone, Parrot, Polydor, Probe, Purple, Pye International, RAK, Rare Earth, RCA Victor, Reaction, Reprise, Rolling Stones, RSO, Shelter, Smash, Straight, Track, Uni, Vertigo, Verve, Virgin, United Artists and Warner Brothers

Having worked for RECKLESS RECORDS in London for over 20 years as one of their principal Vinyl and CD buyers (one of the best secondhand record shops in the West End) and having been an Amazon 'Hall Of Fame' Reviewer six times - as you can imagine - I have come across a huge number of reissues - some far more worthy than others. 

To that end I've collated together these SOUNDS GOOD books as guides to Exceptional CD Remasters offering up in-depth reviews on a wide range of titles. And it no longer has to cost the earth to Sound Good either – you just need to know which CD is the right issue to buy. 

Many entries in this large and unique book cost less than £10 while others are under a fiver. And even if some Box Sets/Deletions have acquired a price tag - because they're the best I've included them along with artists/titles that deserve your attention…

Enjoy the reads – Mark Barry (2024) 

"SOMETHING'S HAPPENING HERE Volume 2 - 1960s and 1970s MUSIC ON CD Exceptional Remasters" by MARK BARRY. Volume 2 of 7...Each Volume With Different Entries

 The SOUNDS GOOD MUSIC BOOKS Series...

<iframe style="width:120px;height:240px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" src="//ws-eu.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=GB&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=mabasreofcdbl-21&language=en_GB&marketplace=amazon&region=GB&placement=B00O7J6URW&asins=B00O7J6URW&linkId=75d1578984f232a5c17e88ab01839660&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true"></iframe>

SOMETHING'S HAPPENING HERE 
Volume 2 of 7

1960s and 1970s MUSIC ON CD

Exceptional Reissues and Remasters...

Including 1960s and 1970s ROCK and POP

PSYCH and UNDERGROUND

BLUES ROCK and PROG ROCK

* Over 1,500 E-pages of information, 205 in-depth reviews, CD reissues 1990 to 2024

* A huge 1,435 different reviews across all seven volumes

* Formats included - CD, SACD [Super Audio CD], HDCD [High Density Compatible Digital], Japan SHM-CD and Japan Platinum SHM-CD  [Super High Materials]

* Major Label Box Set Retrospectives from – EMI, Sony/Legacy, Universal and WEA

* Best Independent Reissue Labels highlighted...

– Ace, Audio Fidelity, Bear Family, Beat Goes On, Big Break Records (BBR), Crafty Recordings, Edsel, Esoteric Recordings, Grapefruit, Hip-O Select, Light In The Attic, Mobile Fidelity, Music On CD, Raven, Repertoire, Rev-Ola, Rhino and Rhino Handmade, The Right Stuff, Salvo, Sundazed, Panegyric and more

* Technical data from the discs themselves (total playing times and more)

* Release Date, Catalogue No and Barcode to locate the correct issue

* Track lists and Details on Bonus material (if any)

* Vinyl Discographies referencing CD Box sets (track numbers to sequence singles and albums from the discs)

* UK and US catalogue numbers and release dates for original vinyl albums, 7" 45-singles and EPs within each review

* Remaster/Tape Transfer Engineers highlighted

* Packaging descriptions, size of booklets, what’s contained within, who wrote the liner notes, repro artwork explained

* Reference to the Audio Quality of the CD - analysis of songs

* Guest Musicians highlighted – Cover Versions noted

* Find Artists and Guest Musicians (who played on what)

* Find Original Album Producers and Engineers

* Find your favourite Remaster Engineers and Authors of Liner Notes

SIXTIES and SEVENTIES RECORD LABELS covered by the book include:

ABC, ABC/Dunhill, A&M, Apple, Ardent, Asylum, Atlantic/Atco, Bearsville, Blue Horizon, Brain, Capitol, Capricorn, CBS, Charisma, Chrysalis, Columbia, Dawn, Decca, Deram (Nova), DJM, Elektra, EMI, Epic, Fantasy, Fly, Fontana, Harvest, Immediate, Island, Liberty, London, Marmalade, MCA, Mercury, MGM, Monument, Mooncrest, Parlophone, Parrot, Polydor, Probe, Purple, Pye International, RAK, Rare Earth, RCA Victor, Reaction, Reprise, Rolling Stones, RSO, Shelter, Smash, Straight, Track, Uni, Vertigo, Verve, Virgin, United Artists and Warner Brothers

Having worked for RECKLESS RECORDS in London for over 20 years as one of their principal Vinyl and CD buyers (one of the best secondhand record shops in the West End) and having been an Amazon 'Hall Of Fame' Reviewer six times in the past - as you can imagine - I have come across a huge number of reissues - some far more worthy than others. 

To that end I've collated together these SOUNDS GOOD books as guides to Exceptional CD Remasters offering up in-depth reviews on a wide range of titles. And it no longer has to cost the earth to Sound Good either – you just need to know which CD is the right issue to buy. 

Many entries in this large and unique book cost less than £10 while others are under a fiver. And even if some Box Sets/Deletions have acquired a price tag - because they're the best I've included them along with artists/titles that deserve your attention…

Enjoy the reads – Mark Barry (2024) 

"CTI Records: The Cool Revolution" by VARIOUS ARTISTS – featuring 1970 to 1976 Album Tracks by Stanley Turrentine, Hubert Laws, Ron Carter, Chet Baker, Freddie Hubbard, George Benson, Esther Phillips, Joe Farrell, Deodato, Johnny Hammond, Airto, Milton Jackson, Bob James, Astrid Gilberto, Randy Weston, Gerry Mulligan and more (May 2015 UK and EUROPE Sony Music/Masterworks Jazz 4CD 39-Track Hardback Digibook of Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

This Review Along With Over 289 Others Is Available In My

SOUNDS GOOD E-Book on all Amazon sites

HIGHER GROUND 
70ts Soul, R'n'B, Funk, Jazz Fusion
Exceptional CD Reissues and Remasters  

Just Click Below To Purchase for £6.95 (2021 Update)

Thousands of E-Pages - All Details and In-Depth Reviews From Discs 

(No Cut and Paste Crap)

<iframe style="width:120px;height:240px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" src="//ws-eu.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=GB&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=mabasreofcdbl-21&language=en_GB&marketplace=amazon&region=GB&placement=B00MTCDTWS&asins=B00MTCDTWS&linkId=f95dca2244c8856012cccc3c6c25fff6&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true"></iframe>

<iframe style="width:120px;height:240px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" src="//ws-eu.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=GB&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=mabasreofcdbl-21&language=en_GB&marketplace=amazon&region=GB&placement=B00TCAM9BW&asins=B00TCAM9BW&linkId=a4d07f640f2c89b3b601ab1d9d79f4c7&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true"></iframe>

"...We Got A Good Thing Going... "

Just the right side of Jazz Funk and Jazz Fusion for yours truly - Creed Taylor indeed knew how to capture cool. 

Much to discuss – so let's get to the painted faces, red and blue clay landscapes and those beautifully enigmatic glossy LP sleeves and CTI label bags... 

UK and EUROPE released May 2015 - "CTI Records: The Cool Revolution" by VARIOUS ARTISTS on Sony Music/Masterworks Jazz 88875079812 (Barcode 888750798121) is a 4CD 39-Track Hardback Digibook Set of Remasters covering 1970 to 1976. Part of CTI Records 40th Anniversary Celebrations; each CD is title-themed and plays out as follows:

CD1 "Straight Up" (75:38 minutes):

1. Sugar - STANLEY TURRENTINE (10:04 minutes) from the January 1971 US LP "Sugar" on CTI Records CTI 6005

2. Moment's Notice - HUBERT LAWS (6:56 minutes, John Coltrane cover) - from the May 1974 US LP "In The Beginning" on CTI Records CTX 3+3

3. So What - RON CARTER (11:17 minutes, Miles Davis cover) - from the February 1975 US LP "Spanish Blue" on CTI Records CTI 6051

4. Autumn Leaves - CHET BAKER (7:05 minutes) - from the February 1975 US LP "She Was Too Good To Me" on CTI Records CTI 6050

5. Speed Ball - STANLEY TURRENTINE (6:35 minutes, Lee Morgan cover) - from the July 1972 US LP "Cherry" on CTI Records CTI 6017

6. The Intrepid Fox - FREDDIE HUBBARD (10:43 minutes) - from the May 1970 US LP "Red Clay" on CTI Records CTI 6001

7. Ifrane - RANDY WESTON (5:12 minutes) - from the June 1972 US LP "Blue Moses" on CTI Records CTI 6016 - not issued on CD in the USA  

8. Free As A Bird - DON SEBESKY featuring FREDDIE HUBBARD and GROVER WASHINGTON, Jr. (8:09 minutes) - from the December 1973 US 2LP-set "Giant Box" on CTI Records CTX 6031/32 

9. So What - GEORGE BENSON (9:05 minutes, Miles Davis cover) - from the May 1973 US LP "Beyond The Blue Horizon" on CTI Records CTI 6009

CD2 "Deep Grooves/Big Hits" (76:53 minutes):

1. Red Clay - FREDDIE HUBBARD (12:09 minutes) - from the May 1970 US LP "Red Clay" on CTI Records CTI 6001

2. It's Too Late - JOHNNY HAMMOND (10:50 minutes, Carole King cover) - from the 1971 US LP "Breakout" on Kudu Records KU 01

3. Home Is Where The Hatred Is - ESTHER PHILLIPS (3:25 minutes, Gil Scott-Heron and Brian Jackson cover) - from the January 1972 US LP "A Whisper To A Scream" on Kudu KU 05

4. We Got A Good Thing Going - HANK CRAWFORD (5:55 minutes, The Corporation cover) - from the January 1973 US LP "We Got A Good Thing Going" on Kudu KU 08

5. White Rabbit - GEORGE BENSON (6:55 minutes, Grace Slick cover, Jefferson Airplane) - from the 1972 US LP "White Rabbit" on CTI Records CTI 6015

6. Fire And Rain - HUBERT LAWS (7:55 minutes, James Taylor cover) - from the 1971 US LP "Afro-Classic" on CTI Records CTI 6006

7. What A Difference A Day Makes - ESTHER PHILLIPS (4:28 minutes, Dinah Washington cover) - from the 1975 US LP "What A Difference A Day Makes" on Kudu KU 23

8. Follow Your Heart - JOE FARRELL (6:50 minutes, John McLaughlin cover) - from the 1970 US LP "Joe Farrell Quartet" on CTI Records CTI 6003  

9.Also Sprach Zarathustra (2001) (8:58 minutes, Strauss cover) - from the 1972 US LP "Prelude" on CTI Records CTI 6021

10. Mister Magic - GROVER WASHINGTON, JR. (9:02 minutes, Ralph McDonald cover) - from the 1975 US LP "Mister Magic" on Kudu KU 20

CD3 "The Brazilian Connection" (70:09 minutes):

1. Stone Flower - ANTONIO CARLOS JOBIM (3:19 minutes) - from the 1970 US LP "Stone Flower" on CTI Records CTI 6002

2. Ponteio - ASTRUD GILBERTO with STANLEY TURRENTINE (3:55 minutes) - from the 1971 US LP "Gilberto With Turrentine" on CTI Records CTI 6008 

3. First Light - FREDDIE HUBBARD (11:05 minutes) - from the 1971 US LP "First Light" on CTI Records CTI 6013

4. Salt Song - STANLEY TURRENTINE (7:14 minutes, Milton Nascimento cover) - from the 1971 US LP "Salt Song" on CTI Records CTI 6010

5. Pensativa - HUBERT LAWS (6:14 minutes, Claire Fischer cover) - from the 1975 US LP "The San Francisco Concert" on CTI Records CTI ZK 40819

6. Tombo In 7/4 - AIRTO (6:21 minutes) - from the 1973 US LP "Fingers" on CTI Records CTI 6028

7. Sunflower - MILT JACKSON (8:50 minutes, Freddie Hubbard) - from the 1973 US LP "Sunflower" on CTI Records CTI 6024

8. Return To Forever - AIRTO (10:13 minutes, Chick Corea cover) - from the 1972 US LP "Free" on CTI Records CTI 6020

9. Wave - PAUL DESMOND (6:21 minutes, Antonio Carlos Jobim cover) - from the 1974 US LP "Pure Desmond" on CTI Records ZK 40806

10. Carly & Carole - DEODATO (3:38 minutes) - from the 1972 US LP "Prelude" on CTI Records CTI 6021 

 

CD4 "Cool And Classic" (78:22 minutes):

1. My Funny Valentine - GERRY MULLIGAN and CHET BAKER (8:38 minutes, Rogers & Hart cover) - from the 1975 US LP "Carnegie Hall Concert Vol.1" on CTI Records CTI 6054

2. All Blues - RON CARTER (9:35 minutes, Miles Davis cover) - from the 1973 US LP "All Blues" on CTI Records CTI 6037 - not released on CD in the USA

3. Song To A Seagull - DON SEBESKY featuring PAUL DESMOND (5:44 minutes, Joni Mitchell cover) - from the 1974 US 2LP-set "Giant Box" on CTI Records CTX 6031

4. Pavane - HUBERT LAWS (7:40 minutes) - from the 1971 US LP "The Rite Of Spring" on CTI Records CTI 6012

5. What'll I Do - CHET BAKER (3:54 minutes) - from the 1975 US LP "She Was Too Good To Me" on CTI Records CTI 6050

6. Westchester Lady - BOB JAMES (7:23 minutes) - from the 1976 US LP "Three" on CTI Records CTI 6063)

7. A Child Is Born - KENNY BURRELL (9:22 minutes, Thad Jones cover) - from the 1971 US LP "God Bless The Child" on CTI Records CTI 6011

8. Take Five - GEORGE BENSON (7:07 minutes, Paul Desmond cover) - from the 1974 US LP "Bad Benson" on CTI Records CTI 6045

9. Concierto De Aranjuez - JIM HALL (19:18 minutes, Joaquin Rodrigo cover) - from the 1975 US LP "Concierto" on CTI Records CTI 6060

Housed in a colourfully put-together Hardback Digibook with Attached 20-Page Booklet inside (two discs clipped into the front and rear covers) – 4CDs and 39-Tracks have been Transferred and Remastered from original tapes at Battery Studios in New York by a team of quality Engineers – MARK WILDER, MARIA TRIANA and DONNA KLOEPFER. The Audio is lovely throughout even when the earlier recordings threaten to whig-out just once-too-soloing-often. What’s new? All of these famous Jazz, Jazz Fusion and Jazz Funk albums have been reissued on CD over the years, but Tracks 7 on CD1 and 2 on CD4 are not issued on CD in the USA before. 

Visually - littering the essay "CTI Records: The Cool Revolution" by DAN OUELLETTE on Pages 3 to 15 and beyond (he is a contributing writer to DownBeat magazine and author of a biography on the double-bass player Ron Carter) are classy black and white promo photos of the staggering array of Jazz talent Creed Taylor recorded. Primarily taped between 1970 and 1975 and issued on CTI Records and its sidekick Kudu – CTI was in fact originally an imprint of Herb Alpert's A&M Records in 1967 - when Taylor finally decided to take the label and its stellar cast/emerging sound to the public in 1970. 

Creed's manta was to make Jazz that was true to its artist's vision while at the same time reach into a curious mainstream too (art and commercialism combined) - and mostly, he ended up doing just that. Rock guys like me who we're loving Prog and the strange Jazz-Rock sounds of say Soft Machine, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Colosseum and even Jeff Beck LPs - were drawn to Jazzers doing say Carole King's gorgeous "It's Too Late" from her magical "Tapestry" album. I bought CTI albums simply because they were on CTI and I knew the quality would be in there - just maybe more accessible than straight-up Blue Note puritanism. The weird thing is that the great white man CREED TAYLOR himself isn't pictured anywhere in the text! 

The songs range from three minutes to nearly twenty with most being elongated Jazz workouts of six to eight minutes. Love that Miles Davis up-date that Ron Carter does to his "So What” (from the classic "A Kind of Blue" album) - Esther Phillips spotting the genius of Gil Scott-Heron and Brian Jackson for "Home Is Where The Hurt Is" and Don Sebesky with Paul Desmond as they rearrange some new girl from Canada who was making waves at the time – Joni Mitchell and her debut album's "Song To A Seagull" (I wonder what she thought of their version?). And on it goes like that, nice surprise after nice surprise.  

When I bought this 4CD Digibook Pack a good few years ago now, it was regularly on offer for under £20. But in January 2021, it has jumped back up to over £70. 

If you can nab one at the right price, "CTI Records: The Cool Revolution" will indeed do what it claims on the tin. As Mrs. Taylor once said, I feel the Creed in me. 

Nice one...