Johnny "Guitar" Watson - A Real Mother For Ya (1977)

"A Real Mother For Ya" followed up the massive "Ain't That A Bitch," and showcased Johnny "Guitar" Watson at the top of his game. Confident, ever humourous, grooving, slinky and sexy, the album mixes funk, blues and soul, with some deft jazzy touches. The album featured three singles: the title track, "Lover Jones" and "The Real Deal." After this album, Watson continued recording into the 90's, with a brief hiatus in the 80's after the shooting death of his good friend Larry Williams. He died on stage in Yokohama in 1996 while on a tour of Japan. After collapsing mid guitar solo, his last words were, "Ain't that a bitch!" Watson influenced legions of guitarists and musicians, including Frank Zappa, Steve Miller, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Sly Stone and George Clinton. Bobby Womack called him "the most dangerous gunslinger out there," while Etta James said of him, "They call Elvis the King, but the sure-enough King was Johnny 'Guitar' Watson."

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Johnny "Guitar" Watson - Ain't That A Bitch (1976)

John Watson, Jr. was born in Houston, Texas in 1935. As a child he learned piano from his father, but was fixated on the electric guitar as played by T-Bone Walker and Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown. When he was 11, his grandfather, a preacher, gave him a guitar on the condition that he not play the "devil's music" (blues), but play blues was the first thing he did. At 15, Watson moved to L.A. with his mother after his parents divorced. In the early 50's he won numerous local talent contests, and made a name for himself on the West Coast, playing under the name "Young John Watson." In 1954 he saw the Joan Crawford movie "Johnny Guitar," and his new stage name was born. Watson was active through the 50's, 60's and 70's, both as an artist in his own right, and as an accompanist - he toured and recorded with Larry Williams, Little Richard, Johnny Otis, David Axelrod, and Sam Cooke, amongst others. As the popularity of blues music waned in the 60's, Watson transitioned to soul and then funk. "Ain't That A Bitch," released in 1976, and "A Real Mother For Ya," which followed a year later, were landmarks of 70's funk. "Ain't That A Bitch" went gold, selling over 500,000 copies. The album featured two highly successful singles, "Superman Lover" (later sampled by Redman, Ice Cube, Ghostface Killah, and others), and "I Need It." Although intensely musical, Watson's often humourous lyrics were typically spoken as opposed to sung, and as such he is seen by many as one of the forefathers of rap.

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Ain't That A Bitch

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Daniel Salinas - Atlantis (1974)

Daniel Salinas, from Sao Paolo, released only two albums. "Paz Amor E Samba," from 1972, was a collection of samba and other Brazilian styles. In 1974, "Atlantis" - a jazz-funk masterpiece in a Blaxploitation soundtrack style - was released. The ambitious album is a mix of electric grooves, Baroque instrumentations, horns, conga, flute, and Fender Rhodes, sometimes dance-funky and other times classical-mellow. The album features a killer funk version of Richard Strauss' "Also Sprach Zarathustra," here named "Straussmania" (a song made popular as the theme to Stanley Kubrick's 1968 movie, "2001: A Space Odyssey," and recorded two years earlier by another Brazilian, keyboard maestro Deodato).

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Atlantis

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Junior Parker - Love Ain't Nothin' But A Business Goin' On (1971)

Bluesman Junior Parker was born in Mississippi in 1932. As a teen he worked with and learned from some of the early greats of Blues music, from Sonny Boy Williamson to Howlin' Wolf to Bobby "Blue" Bland to B.B. King. Parker released a string of singles through the 50's and 60's, with many scoring well on the R&B charts. He died from a brain tumour in 1971, the same year that "Love Ain't Nothin'..." was released. The album - a real gem from start to finish - combines soul, funk and blues in a hip pot-pourri that avoids many of the clichés of other blues albums of the time. Parker's velvet-smooth, honeyed vocals shine through on the title track, along with "Outside Man" and "River's Invitation," while three Beatles covers - "Taxman," "Lady Madonna" and "Tomorrow Never Knows" - are pure quality. Al Green, on his 1974 album "...Explores Your Mind," dedicated the song "Take Me To The River" to Parker, describing him as "a cousin of mine who's gone on, and we'd kinda like to carry on in his name." Strong tribute indeed!

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Love Ain't Nothin' But A Business Goin' On

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Exit 9 - Straight Up (1975)

"Straight Up" was the only album released by Exit 9, a nine-piece funk band out of New York. The group was a young one, with all members aged between of 16 and 20 when "Straight Up" was recorded. Originally called "Qualified Funk", the group built a reputation as a solid soul/rock outfit. A few months before this album was recorded, the group signed on with new managers, John Jenkins and Modeste Clark, changed their name to Exit 9, and shifted to a more dance music approach, with funky rhythms, strong melodies, tight brass, and guitars adding a raw edge to many of the songs. "Miss Funky Fox," an upbeat dancefloor favourite, is probably the best known track, but the entire album is strong, with highlights including the title track and "Jive Man," both infectious, up tempo groovers, and the mellow "Thoughts Of You." Exit 9's sound has been compared to pre-disco Bohannon and early Kool And The Gang - heady company to say the least! No wonder "Straight Up" is so popular with crate diggers and groove junkies!

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Straight Up

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Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson - Winter In America (1974)

For all that Brian Jackson played a large part in his first 3 albums, Gil Scott Heron's 4th album, "Winter In America," was the first to be released with both musicians' names on the cover. Like "Pieces Of A Man," this is a solid, cohesive effort, with not a weak track to be found. The two standout tracks are "H2Ogate Blues," a stinging commentary on Tricky Dick Nixon's second term as president, and the stellar "The Bottle," a grooving, lyrical and powerful anti-alcohol warning. This is another highlight of Heron's ouvre, and together with "Pieces Of A Man," a great place to start a collection of his works.

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Winter In America

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Gil Scott-Heron - Free Will (1972)

Gil Scott-Heron's third album is something of a mishmash of the first two - part confrontational, spoken word, rhythmic poetry, and part soul-jazz-funk-blues musical genius. On Side 1 - the music side - Gil, backed by many of the same musicians as on "Pieces Of A Man," excels. The title track, "The Get Out Of The Ghetto Blues," "Speed Kills" and "Did You Hear What They Said?" are all classics. Side 2 is a mixed bag, ranging from the blunt, paranoid conspiracy theory of "The King Alfred Plan" to the simple and subtle "Billy Green Is Dead" to the tongue-in-cheek flippancy of "Sex Education: Ghetto Style." Overall a bit of a mixed bag, but still a strong effort with typical Scott-Heron inventiveness and insight.

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Free Will

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Gil Scott-Heron - Pieces Of A Man (1971)

Gil Scott-Heron's second album, "Pieces Of A Man," was far more musical than his minimalist, poetic debut. Backed up by a bevy of talented musicians, including Ron Carter, Bernard "Pretty" Purdie, Hubert Laws, and soon-to-be main collaborator Brian Jackson, the album was quite possibly his most cohesive and accessible. Of Scott-Heron's voice, Carter would later say, "He wasn't a great singer, but with that voice, if he whispered it would have been dynamic. It was a voice like you would have for Shakespeare." Dynamic and full of feeling certainly applies to this collection, with not a weak piece to be heard. My fave's include the reworked "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised," the biting, honest "Home Is Where The Hatred Is," and the haunting "Pieces Of A Man." If you're a fan of Gil Scott-Heron, you probably have this already; if not, this is as good a place to start appreciating his genius!

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Pieces Of A Man

Gil Scott-Heron - Small Talk At 125th And Lenox (1970)

Gil Scott-Heron died just over a week ago, on May 27th, 2011. One of THE black musical pioneers of the 70's, his death passed almost as a footnote; I didn't learn of his passing until several days later when "R.I.P." posts of his better known albums suddenly started appearing on other blogs. Out of the limelight since the early 80's, it's hardly surprising that his end went almost unnoticed; at the same time, the loss of the man many consider the father of Rap and Hip Hop (a title Scott-Heron actively avoided) should probably have received greater coverage. As a high school and college student in the 60's, Scott-Heron studied writing and poetry, and it was through these media that he first garnered attention. He first gave serious consideration to music as a medium for expression in 1969, after the Last Poets played a concert at his university, and in 1970, his debut album, "Small Talk..." was released. Mostly spoken-word, in a live setting and with minimal accompaniment, the album took on varied themes, from the hypocrisy of many black "revolutionaries," to the superficiality of TV and mass consumerism, to the ignorance of the white middle classes regarding difficulties faced in inner-city ghettos. Highlights included "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised," possibly his best known song, along with the title track, "Enough" and "Everyday". This album is hard to find on CD - hopefully his passing brings Scott-Heron's music renewed attention, and a re-issue of his catalogue.

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Small Talk At 125th And Lenox