Ghetto Wc

For many people, the word "Florida" conjures up images of sunshine, white-hot sands, and white-hot nightlife. That's not the Florida JJ Grey inhabits. Sounding forth from his ancestral home 40 miles outside of Jacksonville, Grey's Florida is inhabited by water moccasins, gators, and characters whose murky, besotted Southern Gothic pasts match the dreary, desolate landscape. On Country Ghetto, his third album and debut for Alligator Records (of course), Grey and his bandmates revisit the hallowed but largely forsaken musical environs of swamp rock. Taking their cues from early Creedence Clearwater Revival and Tony Joe White, Mofro play a slinky, sinuous brand of Louisiana soul-funk-blues, while Grey himself alternates between the good ol' boy debauchery of Ronnie Van Zant and Lynyrd Skynyrd and the classic soul entreaties of Otis Redding and Clarence Carter.

If you're talking about packaging, the flaws of this disc are considerable. Comprised of 14 songs from 1960-1990 (most from 1960-71), the unifying theme is that all of them are taking from Houston recording sessions. But while recording dates and some personnel are noted, the original labels and dates of release are not. Furthermore, although the liner notes give a reasonable overview of Copeland's career, the tracks on this specific compilation are not discussed. And, putting the boot in, the cuts are not sequenced chronologically, but arranged almost as if someone had pressed the random button on a CD remote……..

One of our favorite all-time records, and a real lost album on Blue Note! Eddie Gale leads this group of righteous singers and musicians through five fantastic tracks of soulful chanting and hard jazz playing that never goes too far out, but always threatens to break free of its own chains – soaring to the skies on wings of freedom and spirituality! Gale's trumpet rings hard and loud, and the vocal arrangements never verge on sentimentality, but manage to convey a ton of soul with an incredibly righteous approach that's never been duplicated again! Imagine Donald Byrd's vocal group albums recorded for Strata East – or a hipper version of Billy Harper's Capra Black – and you've only got part of the picture! Titles include "The Rain", "Fulton Street", "The Coming Of Gwilu", and "A Walk With Thee".

The Crusaders really came into their own in the 70's with their own blend of jazz, funk and pop, culminating with their smash hit 'Street Life' in '79. The opening "Dead End",a fine funk jazz romp through everything this band does best! And Leon Ndugu Chancler's choice to leave George Duke's band for the Crusaders added alot of excitment to the mix so how could this. This album is highly recommended for the electro-funk fans.

Following the success of his other albums on Naim Label, Antonio Forcione has teamed up with the world famous rhythm section of Trilok Gurtu on percussion, and Kai Eckhardt on bass to produce an album that will certainly elevate his international standing further still. Trilok and Kai have previously worked with a host of celebrated musicians including Neneh Cherry, Martin Taylor, Pat Metheny, and John McLaughlin. All tracks on this recording were written and arranged by Antonio, providing a glowing testimonial to his abilities as a composer, and demonstrating that his considerable musical talent continues to develop.

Willie James Lyons (1938-1980) was born in a family of musicians in Alabama but came very young to Chicago, started playing guitar at the age of 7 and played professional at 14! This album is the first that he has recorded. He was very personal musiscian, an exceptional creator with inventive ideas, with phrases full of lyrism and feeling. His beautiful warm and pure tone allows one to identify him from the first notes. Great soloist and accompanist….