Deodato - Prelude (1972)

Eumir Deodato started out as an arranger using bossa nova material from his native Brazil. After the military dictatorship took power there, Deodato moved to New York and eventually became known to Creed Taylor through mutual acquaintances. Prelude is most known for the opening track "Also Sprach Zarathustra," an crossover jazz adaptation of the classical piece penned by Richard Strauss and famous at the time of Prelude for its incorporation in Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. This track has a lengthy Rhodes introduction that leads to almost transcription of the orchestral piece over a funk groove. Once the orchestral namesake has been covered, the tune goes into a funk breakdown full of solos until the tune comes back to the classical material to close to tune. "Spirit of Summer" is a fairly laidback tune dominated by strings characteristic of the 1970s. Deodato takes a solo on the Fender Rhodes and guitarist Jay Berliner takes a memorable flamenco-tinged solo, which leads into an orchestral outplay. "Carly & Carole" is actually my favorite on the album, probably because it's the most similar to latin jazz music in the same vein. "Carly & Carole" has a lot of influences of bossa nova with the funky Rhodes groove and the melody in the flute. This track also has an extended Rhodes solo by Deodato which really shows off his Latin roots; something not as clear on the other tracks. "Baubles, Bangles and Beads" is an arrangement of a tune from the 1953 music Kismet which is itself borrowed from the second movement of Borodin's String Quartet in D. It is essentially a riff tune with extended solo breaks for guitarist John Tropea, a musician noted for his studio work. "Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun" is an adaptation of Debussy's symphonic tone poem of the same name. As far as the classical adaptations go on this album, this is probably the strongest and most developed arrangement (CTI must have thought so to, as it is the track to give its title to the album). This track has marvelous transitions and features trumpeter Marvin Stamm and flutist Hubert Laws during various sections. As far as incorporation of all the musicians, this track is probably the finest because it has the most expansive scope. The album closes with "September 13," another riff based tune which opens up to feature John Tropea. The end tune opens up to include the trumpet and flute sections repeating the groove that underlays the whole tune. This is one of the most successful albums CTI ever had, and it shows the key to CTI's success and demise. While some of the original material and classical adaptations are fine spectacles of musicianship and musical conception, some fall short or are just based on simple riff tunes that don't really develop. 

Kool & the Gang - Kool & the Gang (1969)

Kool & the Gang's debut sounds nothing like much of the material the general public know by them. Formed in Jersey City, NJ in 1964, the band was originally called the Jazziacs until they were mis-billed as Kool & the Gang during a gig and just stuck with the name. Despite, their penchant for funk tunes later in their career, Kool & the Gang is much jazzier on this album. Call it soul jazz. Call it jazz-funk, but whatever genre you label it under, it's much more jazz than anything. The title track of the album opens the album to a great start; a funky guitar riff and a tambourine build to introduce the horn line of saxes and trumpet. This track, "Kool & the Gang," was a surprise hit and reached #59 on the Billboard Top 100. This track is a great indication of what the album will be like; there are lots of funky grooves that create a great vehicle for the three horns. "Breeze & Soul" is a personal favorite of mine and opens with a relaxed electric piano solo that transitions into a harmonized melody carried by the horns. This track is different than most Kool & the Gang material in that the piano is the primary source of harmony rather than the guitar; the guitar typically ornaments what the piano is doing for most of the track. "Chocolate Buttermilk" is another highlight to a great album. This track some really great unison horn writing with great transitions. Towards the end of the track the alto plays extensions of the chord that makes for a harmonically close to the track. "Sea of Tranquility" moves to a laidback feel and adds vibes to create "moon sounds." I call them "moon sounds" because the Sea of Tranquility is on the moon. "Give it Up" is an medium tempo funk marked by tremolos on a bluesy-sound piano and horn lines that build up to a solo by tenor sax player Khalis Bayyan. "Kool's Back Again" recalls the first track as the opening guitar shares close similarities to the one that opens the first track albeit much slower. "Let the Music Take Your Mind" is a great close to the album, and is the only track that has extended vocals. The lack of vocals on the majority of this album is really what sets it apart from the rest of the Kool & the Gang discography and aligns the album much more definitively in the realm of jazz. There's not much variation in how the horns are orchestrated, but that's not really what funk music is about. It's about the groove, and this album experiments with a variety of them. "Breeze & Soul" and "Sea of Tranqulity" incorporate instruments like the electronic piano and vibes that are uncommon in funk, but the majority of these tunes are straight-ahead funk with a jazz sensibility.

Bread - Manna (1971)

Bread's third album Manna unknowingly highlights what eventually would drive the band to fall apart. Despite having a rock songwriter in James Griffin and having a talented pop rock songwriter with a tendency to write ballads in David Gates, it was David Gates' songs that gained the most popularity and consequently drove the band's financial success. This rift in the acceptance of their music grew into the lives of the two men, eventually causing the band to split in early 1973. Bread is a fundamental part of the genre of soft rock that flowered in the early 70s with bands like America. The first song "Let Your Love Go" is a Gates penned tune which is unusual given its driving rock feeling. The opening track showcases the vocal harmony which is very typical of Bread. In fact, Bread was inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2006. "Take Comfort" is an interesting for the juxtaposition of the driving rock sections against the halftime ballad sections. Don't let my introduction mislead you, Griffin could write a good song, his songs were just financially outshone by Gates' material. "Too Much Love" is a great song that blends the sounds of electric and acoustic guitars and shows Bread's partial roots in country music. "Too Much Love" has a bass line that sounds like it is right out of a country song, but it is the bluesy guitar and the rhythm of the hi-hat on the drums that makes this song sound much more than a country song. "If" is the highlight of the album and personally one of my favorite Bread songs of all time. Harmonically, "If" is a very interesting pop tune. While "If" is primarily based on A(I), D(IV) and E(V) chords, Gates frequently uses borrowed chords (mostly the minor iv) from the parallel minor to create a fantastic ballad. When all of the elements of the wah-wah effect on electric guitar, the arpeggios on the acoustic guitar, and Gates' falsetto are mixed together "If" becomes a terrific example of great songcraft. "He's a Good Lad" is another personal favorite and stylistically very similar to much singer/songwriter material of its time. The layering effect created as instruments slowly enter the song, orchestrated strings, and the piano maintaining the pulse are all pretty common in music of the time. "I Say It Again" highlights many of the elements that made Bread famous; its mixing of electric/acoustic, vocal harmony, and Gates' falsetto are all at the fore of this song.  "Come Again" combine a lot of influences into an interesting track. The track starts in a ballad feel with the piano playing in unison with Gates. The track then moves into a semi-jazz feel with brushes on the drums. This juxtaposition continues with the ballad progressively becoming more orchestrated and the "response" section becoming stylistically varied. "Come Again" reiterates a lot of the elements that make Bread an interesting band. Harmonized vocals, a mixture of electric/acoustic, orchestrated strings, and an embrace of other genres are the primary elements of Bread's music and why I continue to listen to their music year after year.

Badfinger - Straight Up (1971)

Furthering the exploration of a singer/songwriter "kick," Straight Up is notable when compared to previous posts as it was produced by Todd Rundgren. Released in December 1971, Straight Up is one of the finest albums by Badfinger, one of those groups you didn't know you knew. Developing out of a group The Iveys, Badfinger got its name from the working title of Lennon-McCartney's "With a Little Help from My Friends" and is known for such hits as "Baby Blue," "Day After Day," and "No Matter What." Unfortunately, as is the case with many bands, the tragedy of the suicides in the band often overshadow a serious look at the music. Music critics will refer to Badfinger as "power pop," but as was the case in my review of Egg and Canterbury scene I'm hesitant to embrace the term as the musicians themselves didn't use it. (The term originated from an interview with Pete Townshend of The Who, but in its context it's unclear if he is actually labeling himself as such). Straight Up opens with the medium-tempo ballad "Take It All" penned by Pete Ham. This track is a fantastic opener because of the gradual entrances in the beginning of the track; the track starts with piano, voice, and harmonics on the guitar and builds to include organ, drums, and bass. "Baby Blue" is the next track on the album and one of my personal favorites. "Baby Blue" is a good example of why Badfinger is considered "power pop" because of the liberal use of power chords in the guitar. Yet, it seems senseless to base a genre around the frequent use of one type of chord. "Baby Blue" is an interesting track because despite tending toward the major key (the exception being the bridge) the words of the song are very melancholy. This creates a great tension in the listener which is resolved in the minor bridge and the outro. "Flying" is a quaint piece because of the word-painting it uses along the concept of flying. The long notes in the verse and especially the suspended held notes later in the track give a sense of gliding. "I'd Die Babe" is a great track with a notable driving bass line, and syncopated comping in the keyboard synced with the crash cymbals. This track is also testament to the tasteful use of vocal harmony that is key to a number of Badfinger songs. "Name of the Game" is a great ballad noteworthy for the sporadic harmonized vocal backgrounds and Ham's work on piano. The bass primarily outlines the roots of the chords and isn't very busy until the choruses. Despite making some good solo vehicles on guitar, the piano seems to be just as integral to the Badfinger sound. "Day After Day" is indefinitely one of Badfinger's most well-known singles and one of my favorites. "Day After Day" uses a lot of the elements of its other songs such as prominent piano, vocal harmony, and driving bass lines in an excellent execution. This track is also noteworthy for George Harrison's slide guitar solo, who was the record's producer until he left to produce The Concert for Bangladesh. The closing track "It's Over" seems to be a bit tongue-in-cheek when its subject matter is compared to its place on the album. "It's Over" is a great feature for the vocals of the group as well as one more taste of Ham's piano and Molland's guitar.

The Brothers Johnson - Right on Time (1977)

The second release for the duo of George "Lightnin' Licks" and Louis "Thunder Thumbs" Johnson more commonly referred to as The Brothers Johnson. Louis Johnson is primarily credited along with Larry Graham for developing the "slapping" technique for the electric bass. Both would go on to work on a variety of studio albums for such well-known acts as Michael Jackson due to their connection with producer Quincy Jones. The album opens up with "Runnin' for Your Lovin'," a track that is a great introduction to the style of the band; laidback funk tunes with driving bass lines, harmonized and background vocals, and ample use of horns in the backgrounds. What sets the style of the band apart from other funk outfits is that the vocals have a songlike quality rather than the shout-like style of James Brown or Parliament and the band uses a synthesizer in their background accompaniment on nearly every track. "Be Yourself, Free Yourself" is the kind of tune you would expect to come out of 1977; there's the octave jumps in the bass that exemplifies disco and the builds brought on by layered horns that build to a climax in the tune. The next track, the instrumental tune "Q," indefinitely named after producer Quincy Jones, won a Grammy in 1978 for best R&B Instrumental Performance and is a feature for the guitar of George Johnson and the synthesizer work of Dave Grusin, who consequently is more famous for his work as a jazz pianist and a film scorer. The title track "Right on Time" is in a moderate tempo which features the synthesizer predominately in the chorus when the synthesizer "trades twos" with the repeated vocal. The big highlight of this tune is the breakdown with the alternated horn entrances which go to the end of the tune. "Strawberry Letter 23," a Shuggie Otis tune, is probably one of the most well-known tracks by the group. The prime differences from the original are that the bass line is more driving and funky, the vocals of George Johnson are smoother and more rubato, and most importantly the prominence of the drums. However, most of the song even down to the guitar lines and the chimes are verbatim from the original by Otis. "Brother Man" is another instrumental jam tune, but funkier than "Q." Overall, it's a lot less interesting than "Q" because of the musical form. There are really only two sections to the tune, the synth melody and the funk response. These two ideas combine at the end with the synth (and later the guitar) soloing over the funk jam. "Never Leave You Lonely" starts out as a laidback vocal tune dominated by the texture of synth, triangle, and a relaxed bass line which is juxtaposed to a funk section with a double time feel where the bass and the guitar pull out all the stops. The final track, "Love Is," is in a drastically different style in that it features acoustic guitar and vocals. It's a pretty cheesy track in my own opinion, but the album as a whole shouldn't be judged by the shortcomings of one track.

Woody Herman - Big New Herd at the Monterey Jazz Festival (1960)

This album, recorded at the 1959 Monterey Jazz Festival, features Herman's standard band studded with alumni such as trumpeters Conte Candoli and Al Porcino, tenor saxophonist Zoot Sims, guitarist Charlie Byrd, trombonist Urbie Green, and vibraphonist Vic Feldman. It is also important to note that this album is one of the first Herman albums to feature a young Bill Chase on lead trumpet; a player that would have quite a history with the band through the 1960s. The set opens with the famous Jimmy Giuffe sax section feature "Four Brothers" which really put Herman on the map in 1947. It's important to note that when this tune came out, big bands weren't really playing bop influenced material. The exceptions to this were the bands of Billy Eckstine, Claude Thorhill, and Woody Herman. Eckstine was notable for having Dizzy and Bird in his band for a time and Thornhill's arranger Gil Evans arranged tunes such as "Donna Lee" and "Anthropology" for the band. Herman's band, however, endured the financial hardships of the late 1940s and was the last remaining figure of these early big band voyeurs into the bop style. The second track "Like Some Blues Man" is one of my personal favorites on the album and features solos by Vic Feldman, Conte Candoli, and Charlie Byrd. The real energy in this tune comes from the star-studded trumpet section which really gets to shine in between the solos and at the very end of the chart. "Skoobeedoobee" is a great tour-de-force by the whole band alternating sax and brass section soli and featuring solos by Zoot Sims, Urbie Green, and Woody Herman. The band shows a real tightness of rhythm throughout the whole track; the sort of thing that only happens when its a mature ensemble with great lead players. "Monterey Apple Tree" is a reworked version of Herman's "Apple Honey" and is quite a treat for the extended solos by a large number of players throughout the entire band. The next track "Skylark" is a wonderful for trombonist Urbie Green (a personal favorite of mine) and an earlier example of a chart that he would record on The Persuasive Trombone of Urbie Green, Vol. 2 in 1961. "Skylark" shows the ensemble's variety of dynamics from the soft backgrounds of the saxes and muted brass to the boisterous runs and "pops" where the brass takes out all the stops. Urbie's warm, dark tone makes "Skylark" a great break on an album that has mostly uptempo charts. The album closes with "Magpie" a great swinging chart with solo breaks and a magnificent close with the clarinet of the leader. This album is a real harbinger to the success that the 1960s Thundering Herd would experience.

Carole King - Tapestry (1971)

Tapestry was a critical and popular success that catapulted Carole King into the spotlight. This album is the next subject of the singer/songwriter trend in popular music I started with Laura Nyro's Eli and the Thirteenth Confession. This album could be viewed as one of the peaks in the commercial success of singer/songwriter music which is why is it the next installment. Many people are familiar with the tracks "I Feel the Earth Move," "It's Too Late," or "You've Got a Friend" which is not really true with the singer/songwriter material I covered earlier. Stylistically, King does many of the same things that both Nyro and Rundgren did before her such as embracing a variety of styles and overdubbing her own voice to create lush harmonizations. The early 1970s, specifically 1970-1972, seem to be the real golden age for singer/songwriter music as the style began to enjoy a lot of critical and financial success. The album opens with the classic track " I Feel the Earth Move" which is most interesting for the rhythmic transition in the bridge from a very uptempo song to a more laidback feel. This is one track where you can really see King's influence of jazz music such as the solo exchange between the piano and the guitar which seem to have a jazz feel. The rest of the album is really in strict stylistic contrast to the first track as the majority of the album is ballads. One of my personal favorites is "So Far Away" because it has such a marvelous development. The track begins with little instrumentation (piano, voice) and slowly builds to have a wide instrumentation including even congas and flute. Yet, in the same way that it builds, it fades with only flute, guitar, and drums. I also enjoy how the piano outlines the beat allowing the bass to act like a countermelody. "It's Too Late" shows again how King is the master of the transition. The song starts out in such a laidback feel, that's it is a bit of surprise when the chorus approaches and the tone of the track changes entirely. The transition is carried out by the piano and the guitar that syncopates the accompaniment rhythm right before the chorus. Part of the success of this album is not only the melodies, but the lyrics provided by King's songwriting partner Gerry Goffin. It's lyrics like these that give the empowering quality to a song like "Beautiful." After listening to "You've Got a Friend," you may question why the James Taylor cover has become the quintessential version of this tune. The vocal tones of King combined with the orchestrated strings provide an infinitely more complex emotional delivery than the very under-orchestrated version by Taylor. The piano is definitely the driving force behind this album. It is the key to nearly every transition and the perfect compliment to Goffin's lyrics sang by King. I only highlighted the well-known songs or personal favorites on the album, but there really isn't a bad track on the album.

Chick Corea & Return to Forever - Light as a Feather (1972)

Chick Corea & Return to Forever's second album is a fine example of fusion with a variety of Latin influences. The album starts out with the track "You're Everything" which Corea has noted is his favorite vocal track that he has ever released. The track begins with Corea ornamenting the head chart in a slow tempo utilizing mostly block chords with vocalist Flora Purim coming in with the words. What's great about this opening section, is the sensitivity by with Corea and Purim present the original theme. The rest of the band then enters when Corea moves into double-time and takes on a very syncopated Latin feel throughout the rest of the track. When analyzing the form of the piece, it is relatively simplistic, but it is the transitions engineered by Corea and the backgrounds on the flute by Joe Farrell that really make for a great track. The second track "Light as a Feather" starts out with vocals, but it is much more of a display of the instrumental soloists when considering the entirety of the track. Corea's work on the Fender Rhodes on this track is quite remarkable; his improvisational interpretations against the rhythmic pulse of the track show a very mature soloist when you consider how well he develops the motives and transitions to new ideas. Joe Farrell and bassist Stanley Clarke get to showcase their ability on their respective instruments and Farrell also displays his ability in the altissimo range of his horn. "Captain Marvel" is definitely the most uptempo chart on the album and primarily showcases Chick Corea's technical ability whether it be his fast runs or his ability to comp Farrell's flute with syncopated chords. The real masterpiece of the album is Corea's chart "Spain," which along with "La Fiesta" on Return to Forever make up his most well-known compositions. The beginning of "Spain" is a direct quotation from the Adagio (second) movement Joaquin Rodrigo's Concierto de Aranjuez a guitar concerto famously performed by such guitarists as Paco de Lucia. Interestingly enough, "Spain" comes twelve years after Miles Davis released Gil Evans' rendition on Sketches of Spain in 1960. "Spain" is an upbeat chart that melded jazz fusion with flamenco elements. Not only is Spain groundbreaking in its use of flamenco harmony, it is also groundbreaking in its use of syncopated rhythmic material. Light as a Feather is one of the finest records released by Return to Forever and is a perfect showcase of Corea's playing after he "went electric."

Egg - Egg (1970)

Before digging into Egg's eponymous debut, it's important to discuss the journalistic sub-genre known as Canterbury scene. Canterbury scene is one of those genres that journalists have created in order to have a shorthand for a particular sound. Really Canterbury scene seems to be an attempt to classify those bands that follow in the musical or historical traditions forged by the Canterbury band Soft Machine. Egg has the whimsical nature that many progressive rock bands around the Canterbury area had at the same time, so they are often incorporated into this sub-genre. However, this was not a term used by musicians at the time and due to the fact that the London-based Egg had no real geographical connection to Canterbury, it could be very difficult to substantiate this claim that Egg is indefinitely a Canterbury scene band. In saying that, I will review it as a progressive rock album while making allusions to the "Canterbury scene bands." My personal favorite and the track that screams high progressive rock is a treatment of Bach's Fugue in D Minor. "Fugue in D Minor" is executed magnificently by keyboardist Dave Stewart, whose playing is consequently the highlight of the album in general. "Fugue in D Minor" is a perfect example of Stewart's classical training, as you can hear that he is indefinitely using the correct fingering. Interpretations of classical pieces were not uncommon in the 1970s in general, but "Fugue in D Minor" is an excellent example of a modern interpretation that does not take too much artistic liberty with the original. The drums are simply outlining the beat without complicating or making the rhythm sounds muddy. The bass is also simply outlining a sort of figured bass albeit incorporating modern elements. "They Laughed When I Sat Down at the Piano" starts out with long, sweeping piano runs that can't help but make the listener think of Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive." Yes, this track predates that one, but it's true and quite funny. Along with "Bulb" and "Boilk," these tracks make up the atonal "noise rock" part of the album. It's for tracks like "I Will Be Absorbed," "The Song of McGillicudie the Pusillanimous," and "Seven Is a Jolly Good Time" that Egg gets the Canterbury scene moniker. The strange lyrical subjects combined with unexpected musical transitions combine to create the whimsical nature that is known as Canterbury scene. For instance, "Seven Is a Jolly Good Time" uses the lyrics to anticipate the rhythmic changes to come up. However, in general they are in strange time signatures. "I Will Be Absorbed" begins in 9/4 with a transitional section in 7/4 grouped in two bar phrases. "The Song of McGillicudie the Pusillanimous" is primarily in 5/8 while "Seven Is a Jolly Good Time" begins in 4/4, progresses to 5/4 with the chorus arriving in 7/4. Later in the track there is also a section in 11/4. A good portion of the album is Symphony No. 2 making good use of classical themes from such material as Grieg's Peer Gynt (specifically "In the Hall of the Mountain King"). In fact, the Third Movement was not originally included due to copyright issues with the Stravinsky estate. Overall, this album has a lot of overlying trends in progressive rock throughout it, and while I'm hesitant to call it Canterbury scene, that term can be helpful in explicating the album. Typically in music history when we use a term such as Canterbury scene or the Viennese school, we are talking about a particular group of musicians confined to a geographic location. However, Canterbury scene does not fit this fold and rather tries to use the term despite geography. This can be quite problematic as it is possible that similar trends develop independently. Perhaps Egg's sound is derived from the sound of Canterbury band Soft Machine, but doing more than speculating is problematic.

Rick James - Come Get It! (1978)

Rick James is known colloquially for his appearance on Chapelle's Show and musically for his single "Super Freak," and James's auspicious debut in the late 1970s comes on strong with all of that. With tracks entitled "Sexy Lady," "Dream Maker," and "Mary Jane" it's easy to see that the whole sex and drugs routine was there from the very beginning. Musically Come Get It! is a great album which opens and closes with live footage of James and the Stone City Band. In the studio, the band is really just James on most of the instruments and in fact it wasn't until later in his career that the band existed in any other form other than live.  The two big singles from the album are "You and I" and "Mary Jane" which really started his career off. "Mary Jane," an obvious ode to marijuana is great for its laidback guitar accompaniment and especially the effect on James's voice in the chorus on the words "Do You." One of the great things about this album in general is James's willingness to embrace a variety of electronic effects and instruments without them compromising the integrity of the intimate feel of his music. My favorite tune on the album is probably "Be My Lady" because it uses layered vocal harmony well in addition to having interesting horn parts and breakdowns. "Be My Lady" also has James paying homage to his origins in Buffalo. In conjunction with "Hollywood," James seems to be coming to terms with being a musician in the spotlight Rick James once famously declared himself the "King of Punk Funk" at the Stanley Theatre in Pittsburgh, but surprisingly it is hard not to notice the influence of disco on the album. The vocal parts, the guitar parts in "You and I" and "Sexy Lady,"and the open hi-hat are all very characteristic of disco throughout the album. The album showcases James's signature bass lines, which really made James the figure he was. However, tunes like "Hollywood" show how well James had control of the tenor range of his voice. James was really a fantastic writer and arranger, it's just a shame that he had personal and legal problems in his later career that really inhibited musical growth in his later career.