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For a Good Time, "Dial:MACEO"
I want to turn you
on to a collection of tunes that will cause permanent grooves
through your gray matter. "Dial: MACEO" is the latest
release from a man who is cupped in the special pocket of American
music history that approaches legend. This man, named Maceo Parker,
has played saxophone for decades with funky soulmen like James
Brown, George Clinton, Bootsie Collins and Prince. Let me tell
you that this man is funky, and no less funky is his latest CD
from What Are Records?, Inc.
The album opens with a tune more reminiscent of his last album
entitled, "Funk Overload". "Rabbits in the Pea
Patch" lays out the standard funky groove that gets you
rolling right into the CD's overall mood of a light-hearted soul
jump. But don't expect the funky grooves in the subsequent songlist
to be anything resembling standard. The rhythms and moods of
the remaining songs are creative and stylisticly diverse. The
tunes bounce from the severely funky "Coin Toss", which
features Ani DiFranco laying down a sultry vocal slam dance,
to the bubbly, yet urgent groove in "My Baby Loves You",
with a vocal cameo from James Taylor. "Black Widow"
is a kick-ass combination of R&B, hip-hop, and funk. The
music floats into the smooth jazz atmosphere on a few tunes like
"I've Got Work To Do" and "Closer I Get to You",
but always remains tethered to the funk and soul bedrock of the
album.
Transcending even what you would expect from such a veteran,
Maceo's saxophone virtuosity is sublime and fresh, never falling
into a pigeon-holed form. His vocal performance lets you know
that he is comfortable and adept at honest, soulful singing.
Indeed, this album showcases the high-caliber musicianship of
the entire group. Just the complexity of the rhythms coupled
with the band's tightness is enough to make you sit up and listen
close. With the exception of Prince's "The Greatest Romance
Ever Sold" and "Baby Knows", the album was recorded
live in the studio with Maceo's touring band in an effort to
capture the energy and might of a live performance. That energy
and might has been bottled fresh on "Dial:MACEO", and
the album offers a very adequate taste of the experience of a
live Maceo Parker show.
For the past ten years, Maceo Parker has been
building a new funk empire that is fresh and stylistically diverse.
Though he spent many years with James Brown, then with George
Clinton, his music never bends entirely to those musicians' styles.
Instead, Maceo navigates deftly between Brown's 1960s soul music
and Clinton's 1970s freaky-funk, while exploring smooth jazz,
hip-hop and R&B, among others.
His live performances carry these stylings into the jam-band
arena by blowing the minds of his audiences and posting shows
that exceed three hours, leaving people entirely wiped out and
begging for mercy before he comes out for the encore. But Maceo
and his band manage to squeeze out a few more minutes of enthusiastic
dancing and cheering from a beleaguered crowd.
Whether you buy "Dial:MACEO", or buy a ticket to a
Maceo show, you will not be disappointed in either of them. In
fact, any experience with Maceo Parker will probably turn you
into a fan. The ultimate truth of the matter is that Mr. Parker
plays the kind of music that brings you back for more. It's the
kind of music that you feel, deep in you heart, is really good
music. His music makes you look into yourself and, very honestly,
acknowledge that this music is the important kind - the kind
that lasts through the onslaught of oblivious mainstream pop,
decades of changing musical tastes, and constant renovation.
It's the kind of music that you share with people because you
know they will like it. It's the kind of music that leaves deep
grooves in your gray matter, because, in the end, it is...people
music.
NOTES TO THE MASSES:To find out more about Maceo Parker and his
tour schedule, check out What Are Records?, Inc. at www.war.com. If you are having trouble locating
any of Maceo's albums in your local record store, just contact
the fine people at What Are Records?, and they'll be glad to
point you in the right direction. What Are Records? has been
busy, lately, with releases of new CD's from several fine musicians
like Primitive Radio Gods and Stuart Matthewman. I encourage
y'all to check out the tunes.
Look for more Maceo Parker
articles this spring when he launches his next American tour.
NOTES TO THE EUROPEAN MASSES: Maceo is currently touring in France.
If it is within your means, I suggest that you go to a show.
11/2k
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