Slinky fusion from 1977 (the year of my birth)
As with a lot of the best “jazzy” funk or r&b, this one has a real jazzman behind it
Wayne Henderson, trombonist of the Jazz Crusaders, put this group and album together for his own At-Home Productions
Like the rest of the Crusaders, Henderson was from Houston
They put out plenty of great hard bop in the 60s, and then dropped the “Jazz” from their name and produced fine soul jazz in the 70s
Joe Sample is probably better known for his post-Crusaders work, a rhodes and fusion pioneer
But Henderson left the group in 1975 and made his own mark in production as well
This tune, coincidentally, features some gorgeous rhodes itself, interlaced with funky bass and strong horns
It shifts tempos between laid-back and frenetic, with piercing vocals from Minnie Riperton sound-alike (and look-alike) Deborah Shotlow
She appeared on a few different Henderson-produced sides in the late 70s, sometimes under the nickname “Punkin”
No relation to the legendary Belmont Ave donut shop ?
The tight backing is courtesy of Marlon “The Magician” McClain, on guitar (and backup vocals) and Bruce Smith, percussion (and backup vocals), both of whom also formed part of the funk group Pleasure
Familiar to hip-hop and beat heads
Also a Henderson production
By the end, the vocals become ludic laughter and erotic moans
A mixup of playful, romantic, and sensual
Interpret how you will the relation between that and the lyrics of love “slipping away”
This was actually released as a single in 77
Their only one, and the group didn’t last beyond this album
But it has a ton of bangers
To wit:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9474bGAntE
And slow jams like
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ekw582Ks9FQ
The YouTube commenter who was actually looking for a recipe featuring all-spice but found this sweet number instead…
Bon Appetit
p.s. was gonna include this in the dose as well
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGCtdKB7Ld0
But could not for the life of me remember who sampled the bass/synth intro
Internet is no help
Maybe someone recognizes who looped it up? I can hear the drums underneath in my head, but not far enough to make out the lyrics/rest of the song!
Will have to do an overdose if it ever comes to me
