James Brown – Bodyheat

James Brown's two-CD 40th Anniversary Collection gathered 40 of the soul-funk giant's biggest hits, and in keeping with its title, The 50th Anniversary Collection is just that little bit bigger and better, with (could you guess?) 50 of his most famous tracks. From 1956's "Please, Please, Please" to 1988's "Static, Pts. 1 & 2," it has almost all of his biggies, though the absence of the 1986 Top Five hit "Living in America" is puzzling indeed. But that's a minor quibble given the dozens of classics onboard, which taken as a whole not only represent the best Brown compilation on the market, but also make a plain case for the singer as one of the major talents of 20th century American music. It's not wholly redundant on the off-chance that you're willing to replace 40th Anniversary Collection, mopping up a few hits of note ("Bewildered," "Bring It Up," "Let Yourself Go," "I Can't Stand Myself [When You Touch Me], Pt. 1," "It's a New Day, Pt. 1," "The Popcorn") that didn't make the cut the previous time around. If you're keeping score, it does lose a couple minor goodies from 40th Anniversary Collection ("Money Won't Change You," "King Heroin"). Also, the '70s funk years might be given too much emphasis and his R&B-soul beginnings shortchanged, though there are plenty of other reissues of his '50s/'60s material out there if you want to investigate further.

James Brown - Bodyheat (1976) {2014 Japan Rare Groove Funk Best Collection 1000 UICY-76591}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 269 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 88 Mb | Artwork | 5% repair rar
© 1976, 2014 Polydor / Universal Music Japan | UICY-76591
Funk / R'n'B / Soul / Funky Jam

'BODYHEAT' was originally released in December 1976 as Polydor-1-6093 in a striking jacket illustrated by Virginia Team. The title cut's single release was his last highest charting single (#13 R&B) until "Living In America" in 1985 (#4 Pop, #10 R&B). A clavinet based funk-er, it features a steadier beat somewhere between his usual funk and straight disco. In fact the back cover of the album announced "James Brown - Brand New Sound." Surprisingly, the rest of the original album's Side One consisted of two ballads, the almost four years stale "It's A Man's, Man's World" retread "Woman," and the much better "Kiss In '77" which deserved more than it's #35 R&B showing. Brown seemed to favor the atypically restrained ballad, featuring it in his concerts for years after it's release.