Old School Soul Party (2005)

Product Summary Label: Cbs/epic/wtg Records UPC: 00826663371727 Release Date: 3/1/2005 Buy.com Sku: 63949524 Item#: M242LS Format:  CD Song Listing Disc 1 Song Title Sample 1. Play That Funy Music - Wild Cherry ~ Various Artists 2. Will It Go Round In Circles - Billy Preston ~ Various Artists 3. She's A Bad Mama Jama (She's Built, She's Stacked) - Carl Carlton ~ Various Artists 4. Give Up The Funk (Tear The Roof Off The Sucker) - Parliament ~ Various Artists 5. I Feel For You - Chaka Khan ~ Various Artists 6. You And I - Rick James ~ Various Artists 7. Word Up - Cameo ~ Various Artists 8. You Dropped A Bomb On Me - The Gap Band ~ Various Artists 9. Payback, The (Parts I & II) - James Brown ~ Various Artists 10. Love Rollercoaster - Ohio Players ~ Various Artists 11. Papa Was A Rollin' Stone - The Temptations ~ Various Artists 12. Smiling Faces Sometimes Tell Lies - The Undisputed Truth ~ Various Artists 13. Slide - Slave ~ Various Artists 14. Strokin' (Part II) - Leon Haywood ~ Various Artists 15. Funky Nassau (Parts I & II) - Beginning Of The End ~ Various Artists 16. Dazz - Brick ~ Various Artists 17. Slippin' Into Darkness - War ~ Various Artists 18. Last Dance - Donna Summer ~ Various Artists 19. Sukiyaki - A Taste Of Honey ~ Various Artists Disc 2 Song Title Sample 1. Jack And Jill - Raydio ~ Various Artists 2. Could It Be I'm Falling In Love - The Spinners ~ Various Artists 3. Ain't No Woman (Like The One I've Got) - The Four Tops ~ Various Artists 4. That Lady (Parts I & II) - The Isley Brothers ~ Various Artists 5. I Want Your Love - Chic ~ Various Artists 6. Got To Be Real - Cheryl Lynn ~ Various Artists 7. Second Time Around, The - Shalamar ~ Various Artists 8. Ladies Night - Kool & The Gang ~ Various Artists 9. Bad Luck (Parts I & II) - Harold Melvin & The Bluenotes ~ Various Artists 10. Back Stabbers - The O'Jays ~ Various Artists 11. And The Beat Goes On - The Whispers ~ Various Artists 12. Use Me - Bill Withers ~ Various Artists 13. Groovy Situation - Gene Chandler ~ Various Artists 14. Love Me Or Let Me Be Lonely - The Friends Of Distinction ~ Various Artists 15. Street Life - Randy Crawford & The Crusaders ~ Various Artists 16. Strawberry Letter 23 - The Brothers Johnson ~ Various Artists 17. Solid - Ashford & Simpson ~ Various Artists 18. Sha-La-La (Make Me Happy) - Al Green ~ Various Artists 19. Let's Do It Again - The Staple Singers ~ Various Artists 20. Lead Me On - Maxine Nightingale ~ Various Artists Disc 3 Song Title Sample 1. Sexual Healing - Marvin Gaye ~ Various Artists 2. Shining Star - The Manhattans ~ Various Artists 3. With You I'm Born Again - Billy Preston & Syreeta ~ Various Artists 4. Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time) - The Delfonics ~ Various Artists 5. O-o-h Child - The Five Stairsteps ~ Various Artists 6. Hey There Lonely Girl - Eddie Holman ~ Various Artists 7. Three Times A Lady - The Commodores ~ Various Artists 8. Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me - Gladys Knight & The Pips ~ Various Artists 9. Have You Seen Her - The Chi-Lites ~ Various Artists 10. Slow Hand - The Pointer Sisters ~ Various Artists 11. I Do Love You - GQ ~ Various Artists 12. If Loving You Is Wrong, I Don't Want To Be Right - Luther Ingram ~ Various Artists 13. Baby, Come To Me - Patti Austin/James Ingram ~ Various Artists 14. Our Love - Natalie Cole ~ Various Artists 15. Always - Atlantic Starr ~ Various Artists 16. Tonight, I Celebrate My Love - Peabo Bryson & Roberta Flack ~ Various Artists 17. You Are Everything - The Stylistics ~ Various Artists 18. Natural High - Bloodstone ~ Various Artists 19. Lovin' You - Minnie Riperton ~ Various Artists   Album Notes and Credits Notes & Personnel Info Liner Note Author: Steven Chean. Another entry in Shout! Factory's ongoing series of triple-CD box compilations promoted on PBS, this one is more cohesively presented. Sequenced to flow like a typical party, the discs of this predominantly '70s-era 58-track R&B collection are divided into three connected parts. Starting with the high-energy sounds of Wild Cherry's one-hit wonder "Play That Funky Music," disc one (subtitled "Kickin' It Off") continues with tough funk hits from Cameo, Rick James, Parliament, and James Brown. Mercifully dodging the disco bullet save for Donna Summer's "Last Dance," this nonstop funkathon platter is alone worth the price of admission. Adding different sounds such as the Undisputed Truth's slightly trippy "Smiling Faces Sometimes" and the Beginning of the End's tropical "Funky Nassau" successfully serves to shift the style but not the mood. Disc two ("Getting' into the Groove") lightens the groove moderately as melody and pop become more emphasized on Cheryl Lynn's "Got to Be Real," the Friends of Distinction's "Love or Let Me Be Lonely," Gene Chandler's "Groovy Situation," and Ashford & Simpson's "Solid." These are all well-chosen selections that were substantial hits, but not as ubiquitous as the Isley Brothers' "That Lady, Pts. 1-2," a tune that always seems to find its way onto '70s soul collections such as this. Disc three ("Dimmin' the Lights") moves into slow and sensual post-party fare with 19 quiet storm smooth jams from artists such as the Five Stairsteps ("O-o-h Child"), Minnie Riperton ("Lovin' You"),the Chi-Lites ("Have You Seen Her"), and Marvin Gaye ("Sexual Healing"). The schlock factor is obviously higher here, but all the songs are Top Ten R&B and/or pop hits and will spark instant recognition from those this box is intended for. The remastered sound is crisp and sparkling throughout, bringing out these oldies' subtleties -- especially with percussion -- that you might not have heard before. While not definitive, the set accomplishes its mission of replaying the soundtrack to a colorful late-'70s urban shindig. More than a haphazard collection of oldies, this conceptual box boasts a well-defined focus, a unique programming flow, and of course lots of soul. ~ Hal Horowitz Producer: Richard Foos (Compilation); Garson Foos (Compilation); T.J. Lubinsky (Compilation)   Technical Info Release Date : 03/01/2005 Original Release Date : 2005 Catalog ID : 33717 Label : Shout! Factory Number of Discs : 3 Studio/Live : Studio Mono/Stereo : Stereo SPAR Code : n/a UPC : 00826663371727