House, R&B, Soul & Rap > Stax / Southern Soul House, R&B, Soul & Rap

Shaft for the millenium

Advantages: Some excellent tracks
Disadvantages: Not as good a sountrack as original

...miserably. In the case of Shaft this was made even more difficult due to the fact that not only the film had become a cult classic but also it's soundtrack had too as a standalone piece of work. The original shaft was made in the early 70's and was the best example of what was known as a blaxploitation movie. These were mainstream feature films that relied on a black audience and black characters, portrayed using all the current clichés in order ...
...Shaft getting soul legend Isaac Hayes to produce the soundtrack extenuated the effect. He produced a classic creating a cool hip brand of street soul that encapsulated the essence of the shaft character. The album is mostly music but one key song 'Theme from Shaft' was a huge hit. The problem that the makers of Shaft 2000 had was to try and recreate not only an updated version of the film but also to create a modern hip street sound to match the ...

Mauri 05.10.2000 · Read full review
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Review of Shaft (Original Soundtrack) - Original Soundtrack

Sophisticated soul from Stax songwriter.

Advantages: A high water mark for the great Stax label, and you can hear why.
Disadvantages: South Park fans may be dissapointed.

Hayes revolutionised soul music with this, his second outing. The first symphonically orchestrated concept soul LP (blimey, quite a mouthful). It only contained four tracks, but four is more than enough with the sheer power and intensity on show here. The eighteen minute extravaganza of By The Time I Get to Phoenix is a standout matched by his twelve minute take on Burt Bacharach and Hal David's Walk On By. To give an idea of the standard of this ...
...releases on the Stax label within three weeks of release and became the first gold release for the company, a big deal in 1969. Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquedalymistic (another mouthful) and One Woman keep the quality high and although the tracks are long, there is no sense of self-indulgence, helped by the shifting rhythms and tight arrangements. Hayes vocal, well before the self parody of the South park years, lends a sophisticated air to what is an ...

GKDurkin 13.09.2008 · Read full review
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Review of Hot Buttered Soul - Isaac Hayes

The Way It Should Be Done!

Advantages: Classic Soul. No Fillers
Disadvantages: None that I can think of!

...turntable! Side one includes Knock On Wood, Something You Got, JJ Jackson's "It's Alright", the mighty "I Stand Accused", and the joyful hurting of "I Don't Want To Cry". This soul party continues when you flip the disc over. "Raise Your Hand", "Got To Make A Comeback" and "634-5789" make you realise that this albums has absolutely no filler, and no slackening of the pace. The sublime "I've Just Been Feeling Bad" follows, lulling you into a melancholic ...
...the carpet, and launches into "Hi Heel Sneakers". Before the sweat has time to dry on his brow, he brings the album to a close with the Percy Sledge classic, "Warm and Tender Love". In my opinion, this rates up there with "Otis Blue" as one of the greatest Stax albums. Surely there must be space on your shelf for this one! ...

charliecroker63 07.02.2009 · Read full review
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Review of Knock On Wood - Eddie Floyd

A taste of Otis Redding at a great price!

Advantages: A laid-back album with consistent track quality.
Disadvantages: None

There are a lot of CDs of great music by The Man, but if you want an overview of the type of stuff he sang other than "Dock of the Bay" - then this CD is for you! This music was released in 1968 as an album and I later bought the CD for the little-known track "You Made a Man Out of Me", but found that I enjoyed the ten other tracks as well, including the laid back "I've Got Dreams to Remember" and "A Fool for You". The accompanying booklet says ...

prom22 04.08.2008 · Read full review
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Review of Immortal Otis Redding, The - Otis Redding

Otis blue

Advantages: The definitive voice of soul
Disadvantages: cant see any!

for me otis blue comfortabaly sits within the top ten albums of all time. most of the tracks on the cd are cover tunes, but with otis reddings trademark style and supreme talent they all sound like they could have been one of his! there are songs by a range of artists from sam Cooke numbers to the rolling stones! The three originals show Otis in top songwriting form with "Respect" "Ole Man Trouble," and the exceptional ballad "I've Been Loving You ...
...MG's, augmented by horn players from the Mar-Keys and Isaac Hayes on keyboards (who often played with the group whenever Booker T. was away at school). Without question, this is an essential Otis Redding CD, a classic Stax release, and a milestone of the soul genre in the 1960's. " ...

darren_john92 14.11.2005 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: somewhat helpful
Review of Otis Blue (Otis Redding Sings Soul) - Otis Redding