Rating:
Genre:
R&B
Release Date: 08/20/2002
Recorded live at D.C.'s
9:30 club, this energetic double-disc celebration of
go-go music features plenty of funky vamping, call-and-response chants, and party atmosphere. It starts, appropriately enough, with
EU 's
"Let the Party Begin." EU continues its bass-heavy workout with a cover of
"I Want You Back" featuring guest vocalist
Maleisha Rashad and several other songs, including their hit
"Da Butt," that seamlessly maintain the band's
funk-shaking groove.
Back Yard and
911 keeps things moving for the rest of the first disc, and the latter band even contributes a five-and-a-half-minute
ballad,
"Ready for Love." Chuck Brown takes over on the second disc. It's evident from his first track,
"Mister Magic," that his sound is somewhat different from the three preceding groups; the inclusion of a trumpeter (
Brad Clements), saxophonist (
Bryan Mills), and trumbonist (
Jim McFalls) in his band gives it more of a
jazz-funk feel. Nonetheless, his music fits quite comfortably with the first disc of this album; even his rendition of
"Family Stone" fits right into the
go-go groove. Granted, this cover version illustrates the limitations of
Brown's approach -- it completely lacks the original's sense of tension of drama and tension, which were sacrificed to maintain the
go-go grooves -- but it still sounds good. This track is followed by a few more, including
"Back Up Against the Wall" featuring
Andre "Whiteboy" Johnson, a cover of
Missy Elliott's
"Get Ur Freak On" featuring
Little Benny, and a concluding 11-and-a-half-minute medley. This double album provides a good overview of
go-go music; it should appeal to fans of the genre, who are probably already familiar with some of the names here, and to newcomers who won't to learn more about it. However, it is a rather long album (the two discs run for a combined total of nearly two hours) and not recommended to people with limited tolerance for repetition, since that it one of the characteristics of the genre.
~Todd Kristel, All Music Guide
;)
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