Reviews (page 9 of 12)
Not bad. Never really listened to any War before other than the radio hits. Funky & soulful. Felt like these songs could have been in a Shaft flick or even background music from one of the first two Rockys.
Not bad, was hoping for more groove. City, Country, City knocks it out!
Good funk, but a little slow for my pacing
amei
👍
Liked this one a lot, but like many other early 70s albums it does meander a bit in the middle.
Not listened before Favourite tracks: title track, City Country City
Cisco Kid was good but wasn't a fan of the 13 min long songs
Funk is my jam, but this one was a bit underwhelming.
I like the long jams, but overall a bit uneven. 3.5 stars
I think this is a cool, funky album. My favorites are "The Cisco Kid", "Where Was You At", and "Beetles in the Bog". The longer jams in the middle wear out their welcome a little bit, but still a good album. 3.5 stars.
3.5
War’s most famous song is probably Low Rider aka the music for the Marmite ad. Instead of loving or hating this I simply found this pretty fine and ok for the most part. It turns out War are good for absolutely everything because this is a nice jittering mix of funk, pop, rock, jazz, reggae and afrobeat plus with a slight political edge. Cisco Kid is a good sassy opener and Four Cornered Room provides something a bit darker and moodier. There are a couple of jams that spiral on for too long though. Overall, nothing here to match their Marmite opus but still pretty good. 3.5 stars.
custom_rating: 6
Muito legal de ouvir. Jazz/soul/funky. Anos 70.
This felt like one long song. I enjoyed that song, though.
I'm not a big fan of soul music but it was an enjoyable experience
Smooth album. Great jams and good vibes. 3.5/5
Nice 70s reggae pop
Good, especially as background music. Funky.
Was hoping for more.
A reasonable listen - no major complaints except for the mega long tracks, but they didn't drag too badly so overall a decent spin
Like it. It’s really short though. Title track lost me.
Nice sound by songs are a little too long and jammy for my taste.
Solid album. Not my style but I can see whats going on here. Short but sweet, some funky goodness.
Funky, never really got into them but I can dig it.
Interesting album some nice tones
This is a good album! I like the first track better than the rest. Solid 3/5.
Nothing spectacular, but solid.
Good listen, nothing mindblowing though
First track is a barnstormer. The rest is good but I wanted more of the first
Funky and fun. Surprisingly good
2/21/25
it do be funky.
Enjoyable. Not enough to actively seek out again but definitely decent
I never heard it before, I really enjoyed it.
The songs that are a standard length really slap. The long ones just don't do it for me. I guess I'm anti long-song. This is a jam, but I prefer when it's a focused jam.
Kinda fun. Not really my jam, but an interesting listen. 3.1
The original War on Drugs
Decent. Some lovely era defining protest music, a well-rounded sound, sits nicely in the background.
So pleased to discover this.. the soul side of the moon indeed!
I’ve known of War’s famous songs like Low Rider and Why Can’t we be Friends, and in this collection of songs they held a similar style which was very groovy. I was surprised that it actually was mostly jazz instrumental, although I wasn’t unhappy about it.
Dzika okladka.
I liked the end half of the album
Cool album. Funky, but oddly enough, not nearly as funky as I thought it would be. Solid. Fav tracks: The Cisco Kid, City Country City, Four Cornered Room, Beetles in the Bog
At its core I do like their style - something about the ten minute tracks of what feels like loops continuously layered on doesn't really appeal to me. There isn't enough variety when they go on these benders of songs and by the end, like any bender, I didn't really remember most of it other than the general notion that things felt a little silly.
I don't remember, I think it was fine?
Well made smooth funky jazz with an edge. Still just background music for me but I didn't hate it.
City, Country, City is chefs kiss. Wish I was listening on vinyl. Dang this is just a cool album.
I can see the historical importance of this release, but it was not a very enjoyable listening session.
“City, Country, City” was definitely my favorite track. Jazz & funk doing their thing, idk if I’m always in a jam band mood though.
Man, that title track is something else.
Fantastic opening and closing with some high points in between. Not a “must have” as an album because it’s a bit overindulgent in places. It actually feels like the soundtrack to an interesting stage-play. Great, but not as funky as WAR can get.
Loved the funky vibe. Absolutely fire bass throughout. Thought it told a beautiful story too. Thoroughly enjoyed.
It’s good, but not War’s best. The title track is a banger.
3*
Cool, funky sound. First half was upbeat, second half was more instrumental
I was familiar with Eric Bourdon from The Animals and "Spill the Wine", but haven't listened to much War. I enjoyed the album. I wish I could give it a 3.5. Favorite songs: "Beetles In the Bog" (partly because I love the name), "The Cisco Kid"
Had no idea what to expect here. Generally all OK, but without really hooking me like Mothership Connection, for example, did.
Mostly laid back sometimes meandering funky jams. It's good but it lacks tension, gets hippy-esque.
Interesting, but kind of disappointed
i still hates soul. no war, please. i'd rather give peace a chance. 3/5
Love the vibe of this album. Cisco Kid is a great song.
Always been intrigued by WAR and truly love some of their hit songs. Cisco Kid has always been the rotation but had never done the full listen through. Really enjoyed it but nothing jumped out at me. Would not have guessed this was a #1 album just based on the genre but they must have blended funk and soul with pop pretty effectively. Borderline but i think i need more stand outs for a 4. Good album, no complaints. Boring review.
Strong first two songs but then the rest of these jams feel somewhat shapeless. Love the unconventional rhythm section and the varied percussion, but wish these components were employed in the service of more memorable songs.
Some cool rhythms and fun chanty lyrics, but nothing really stuck with me here. The album itself was fine. Cisco kid is clearly the hit of the album. City, country, city and Found Cornered Room were good as well
Liked this more than I expected to. Some nice funky grooves in here. Not likely to come back to it, but enjoyed it
Enjoyed the title track, but felt like the jams in the other songs didn’t really go anywhere - super groove-based like Fela at times. Happy to hear the album, but not something that stands out amongst what we’ve heard so far.
444 Rolling Stone top 500
3.5
MID!
I wasn't really sure what to expect from the group that brought us "Low Rider". Ultimately, I don't think I was suspecting this. It was funky, but in a low-key way (which I guess is what Wikipedia is calling 'psychedelic soul'). I was not particularly wowed by this, but it did keep my attention and I certainly found it to be unique among a lot of other soul and funk type things on this project.
3*
Queria poder dar um 3,5. Mas não como não é possível... músicas excelentes para um ambiente de personalidade.
Pretty fire. 3 1/2 stars.
Pretty good for what it is, just not my thing…
Not my kinda music, but like this!
Favourite songs: the world is a ghetto, the Cisco kid Felt a little drawn out at certain points, e.g. city country city, which I know is intentional but wasn't to my liking Otherwise, Beautiful music paired with beautiful lyrics and you can't go wrong
Not my jam
This was alright. don't think i'd relisten
I thought the main album was just okay. I apparently listened to the deluxe version which had some blues versions of a couple of songs that I liked better. It was fine.
Interesting music, but nothing saved.
A classic 'glad this on the list' album and three stars for all its prog soul noodling, but feel my life is complete enough without listening again.
the sax is dope liked it but wouldn't buy it for myself
Gott analogt sväng. Lyssna mer! 3+
Got “too jammy” as my friend Lou would say by tracks 2 & 3, but the 2nd half really won me over with its soulful sincerity and camaraderie of sounds.
I was really only familiar with their work like "Low Rider." But this was much more enjoyable. I like it.
December 4, 2024 HL: title track, “Four Cornered Room”, “The Cisco Kid” 3.5 Didn’t love as much as I thought I would. Maybe the political title and album cover belied the lackadaisical grooves within. Or maybe I’m just burnt out of long, jammy songs. I will not say, however, that I don’t like long jammies in general. Isaac Hayes, Pink Floyd, even Kendrick have imposingly long songs that are often their album’s highlights.
Un festival de instrumentos que forman canciones super interesantes y te mantienen pegado esperando el siguiente instrumento o melodia que estos formen
I didn’t hate it but probably wouldn’t listen to again. It’s groovy with soul and rock undertones. City, country, city was fun. Album art very good
What a strange ride. A very interesting album, a bit too out to left field for me .
The World Is a Ghetto—that’s why.
Lots of moving parts with the instrumentation, but it all felt very cohesive and focused. Different grooves for every track, with clear progressions
Funky but not for me
First two songs were strong but unfortunately don’t think the rest of the album held up
Would I listen again: no Best track: Title Track. Worst track: where was you at Surprise awesome track: Four cornered room. Weirdest track: city, Country, City Lyrics: lyrics about something it seems but very repetitive. No skips?: no Cover art cool?: yeah. Notes: I literally know about this band except for low rider. I mean it’s fine so far. Nothing objectionable but nothing really memorable for me. So city country city definitely got my attention. Awesome Jam evolving over the course of the track. Production on this is great. Recoding sounds great. Feel immersed during this song. Four cornered room super trippy and groovy. Production on this is amazing. Overall though. If it came in again I’d listen but I would not be like seeking this album out. It’s fine. It’s a solid album but nothing that will require to listen again or go out of my way to hear. There are a few tracks I’d like to hear again, but def don’t need to listen to this all the way through as a whole again.
Can't pin down this genre. Something of a mix between soul/blues/funk. It was okay
This album was made at a specific point in time, for a very particular group of people. Whether it translates in modernity is a whole other question, but perhaps this album is best judged looking back, rather then what's infront of you currently.
É um reggae bem legal, e acho que ouviria mais vezes. Dessa vez eu queria dar um 3.5 mesmo. Mas acho que 3 é melhor. Gostei de The Cisco Kid, 'City, Contry, City' e The World is a Ghetto.
It started off strong but I did find myself losing interest
Okay, not really my thing
Very good music. And idk something just keeps me from giving it 4. The music is really good but sounds a lot like many other funky music? And lacks uniqueness and novelty?
почему-то запоминается так же хорошо как музыка для лифта. и почему-то ямайские мотивы…
bland
Country und Blues Combo mit guten Elementen und sauberen instrumental Passagen. Leider aber wenig mitnehmend; trotzdem grundsolide.
I feel a little conflicted about this album. The longer more instrumental tracks were fun and engaging, but I didn't connect with the shorter tracks as much as I would have liked to. A solid world music listen, but not something I'd probably come back to. Top tracks: City, Country, City; Four Cornered Room; The World Is A Ghetto
Pretty good. Never listened much to this band.
I was surprised at how much jazz influence this album had. I enjoyed this album but it was definitely a period piece reflecting the ghettos of the 1970s. Key tracks were the title track and The Cisco Kid, though Beetles in the Bag had some great swagger.
I've always enjoyed War's greatest hits. Had the CD since the 90s. I enjoyed this one but Cisco Kid was the only track I was familiar with prior. Was surprised there were three 10-minute long jams (Four Corner, City Country, and the World is a Ghetto). I totally dug it though and could see myself popping this one on for a relaxed afternoon or evening. I will be exploring more of War's discography.
Good instrumentals, not sure how often I'd listen to it
The title song is outstanding, otherwise these long-spun-out jams are not entertaining enough to keep me engaged.
Good
Cool funky music. Liked the instrumental in city, country, city
Pretty good, nothing I would listen to repeatedly though.
I thought the instruments were very good. It was solid background music. Some of the songs could have been shortened just a little.
It was alright there was nothing to crazy or anything that screamed this is sooooo good
Awesome! Love that 70s soul sound, with elements of jazz. Some songs noodle on for a touch too long for me. But a really good album.
The song Low Rider by War stuck with me from years of playing on Grand Theft Auto. Never really paid much more attention to them until now. Prefer not to listen to 13 minute jam sessions but track 3 suits the genre well. Track 1 and Track 4 are the highlights of this album. It's ok!
This is fine! (: I think this is one of those albums that is probably better than I give it credit for. As soon as I started I was like "this is the same as Low Rider", but it got better from there. Still a distinct sound but not boring. idk
"The Cisco Kid" is incredible. Everything else just seemed a little too long and meandering. Not bad though. I would listen if it was on, but wouldn't seek it out.
This was an alright listen from War. It was less bumping then I'd have hoped for and not super memorable. Not exactly sure why this is on here but not horrible. 2.5/5 -> 3/5
3.5
Not really for me
Some nice long grooves but nothing extraordinary.
The first few bars of the album filled me with hope, but didn’t quite deliver. Percussion in City/country/city a highlight.
Like a weird hybrid of Steely Dan, Captain Beefheart and Blood, Sweat and Tears. Fairly enjoyable but not captivating, I'm not minded to give it multiple spins.
it was goofy ah, but the last two songs were fire
'War' is van die typische jam muziek. Lange nummers, die een cocktail zijn waarin verschillende genres worden gemixt; als ze maar funky zijn. Door hun origins in Cali heeft de band een hele andere vibe dan tijdsgenoten in de scene, die gevormd zijn in andere stedelijke gebieden in de US. Het is duidelijk dat er een hoop latino bloed door 'War' loopt, en dat de muziek iets minder gebaseerd is op zwarte stijlen als blues en jazz. Ik vind het een aangename cocktail, waar ik er ooit nog wel eentje van neem. Maar tegelijkertijd is 'ie ook een beetje flets en saai, en voelt voor een groot deel als de fillers op albums van Funkadelic of The Meters. De psychedelic soul in 'Four Cornered Room' en het ludieke 'The Cisco Kid' zijn me het best bijgebleven. 6,5/10 Highlights: Four Cornered Room The Cisco Kid
Wat een lekker album is dit eigenlijk. Het is wellicht wat 'saaiere' funk dan andere funk-collega's uit de jaren 70's, maar ik heb hierdoor eigenlijk wel goed gevibed. En shoutout naar de albumhoes, als ik deze ergens tegenkom, pluk ik 'm zeker mee! 7,5/10 Highlights The Cisco Kid The World is a Ghetto
funky as hell, really long songs
Great 70 funk. Loved it.
Cool stuff.
Good, but kind of bland and anti-climactic for what I was expecting.
Cool album overall, enjoyed the listen, especially “The Cisco Kid”. I soon realised, however, that it had kind of faded in the background. “The World is a Ghetto” is an enjoyable album, albeit just a little forgettable for me. Maybe a few more listening sessions will change my mind, but for now I think it’s mid-tier. 2.8/5, not bad but by no means remarkable.
frekar gott fönkskotið rokk. aðra umferð. 3,5.
3.5
True and funky.
WAR - real nice mix of Soul and R&B. A treat. Poor Frisco Kid, he was a friend of mine
I can see that this album is revolutionary. I see how it set up funk for the rest of the 1970s. While there is amazing instrumentation, it just hasn't clicked with me the way some other funk albums have. I bet it will grow on me, but for now, I have to give it a 3. Best Songs: The World Is A Ghetto Worst Songs: Where Was You At
Nice production on this one and good fun stuff although not my genre really. Will I listen to again: 30%
6.5/10 Nice, good vibes and excellent musicianship Really reminded me of the music of Curtis Mayfield Lyrics dragged it down slightly- not super-high effort tbh But the tunes were mostly excellent, maybe a bit meandering at points Best: Where was you at
I like City, Country, City but probably wouldn't revisit the album
Definitely sounded like the 70's bluesy&jazzy - 3-4 minute synth solos :-)
This was a nice album. Nothing about it "wowed" me or really spoke to me personally, but I did find it fun and easy to listen to. I'd probably give it 3.5 stars, because it was better than "middle of the road" for me, but I have to give it 3 on this scale, because it doesn't rise to what I think a 4 is, for me, which is something I would want to go back to or put in my rotation.
Not bad, but not great. Nice as background music.
Soul, Reggae, Jazz, 1972 -> 3
Un excelente álbum de soul/funk con tintes de rock y en ocasiones steady. La extensión de ciertas pistas podría considerarse un tanto exagerada, sin embargo, el LP fluye de manera armónica. No sé si el trabajo habrá influido en alguna otra banda, ya que no me manejo demasiado dentro de ese espectro de la música pop, pero lo disfrute bastante y espero que cualquiera que lea mi review le de una oportunidad. Pd: "Why can we be friends?", probablemente sea la peor canción de la discografía de War.
The World is a Ghetto is quite a crazy album if i do say so myself. It generally has some very odd instrument usage and some of the lyrics also feel pretty crazy to actually hear. But this is chaos that i kinda enjoy. This actually helps it to be a pretty original sounding funk album especially with all the keyboard usage (i think that's what that instrument is). Even with all the chaos, it never became too overbearing and was reasonably fun to listen to. This isn't an album that i would want to come back to all the time but with it's craziness, its still a good listen. Best Song: Where Was You At Worst Song: City, Country, City
Didn’t do a lot for me.
More cow bell!! Kidding…but not really. Was not prepared for a 13 minute instrumental. Very funky with an interesting exploration of sound. Personally I felt each song was a little too long; started to get repeatitive and boring. Could have done with 5-6 minute instrumentals versus 9-11. Great harmony on the few songs with words. Overall not bad. Honestly didn’t know what to expect.
Lots of funkadelic instrumentals I wasn’t expecting that - knew them but never got into them - that’s the point though isn’t it :)
Okay album.
Some good songs
Soul psicodélico progresivo. Ni fu ni fa.
jazz, progressive soul. Se escucha bien. Pero no me llama la atención.
Starts strong and then sort of meanders.
Like a 3.5. I liked the titular song but the others never caught my attention.
Issa cool
Groovy but a bit boring
Better than I thought
Good, overall average. I would not mind re listening to this.
3.2
It was alright
This kind of renews the debate about if Prog can be commercial because this is one song after another of a band just riffing and plain showing off - AND YET. It’s great!!! And apparently LOTS of people thought so because it sold a ton of records and won Album of the Year. Was much of it tuneful or whistleable? Not for me, but as groovy background music, it did the trick, and quite nicely indeed. Also, this song auto played when the album was over. Does this count as commercial prog? :slight_smile:
Bueno
What an experience this was. Thematically there's a lot to think about with this album as well as War's other music. But it's also just so dang fun to listen to. There's a little bit of everything. Jazz? Yep. How about some Latin and reggae? Yep. What about soulful blues? Plenty of that too. And it all blends together perfectly to make each track so distinct and so unpredictably interesting. The title track was my favorite on the album and some of the most cutting social commentaries I've heard in music (even as it ends with a somewhat hopeful outlook), but I'll definitely revisit "City, Country, City" and "Four Cornered Room" as well. Guitar solos over organs are gonna get me every time. Dueling sax solos over organs will, too. And they incorporated harmonica in a *good* way (not sorry, Dylan) along with wind chimes and even a gong to give so much more character to each musical interlude, so that by the time you return to the verse, you feel like you're in a whole new place entirely.
What can I say - funky, ambient, soothing - enjoyable
I enjoyed a lot of this album. Some of the funkier bits weren't my thing, but there was a lot of cool organ riffs. Probably won't listen to this one much again because it's not a style that resonates super strongly for me.
I wasn't quite sure what to expect from the name of the band, and I knew the song Lowrider - this was fine, but felt like it took forever to get through.
Some good tracks, but also pretty self-indulgent with the prog-funk elements
This is a nice little funky War album with none of the radio songs, but entirely listenable. I found this a pleasure. Totally in keeping with their style.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3SdUX_D-m4
Turns out I don't like prog-soul any more than I like prog-rock. First couple songs are good and then we fall into jazz pretensions that go on FOREVER (or at least that's what it feels like). I can appreciate the musicianship, but it's not my cup of tea.
For psychedelic/progressive anything, this is pretty good. The longer songs drone on a bit much, but the core sounds is appealing.
Very funky and very cool. Somehow War was totally off my radar.
Jam band/jazz vibe that I did not associate with War. Nice background music.
I fell a bit behind on writing my reviews, so I'm doing this like a week later (as I relisten to the album). I listened to it at work like a week ago, remember liking it enough, and remember basically none of it now that I'm writing this (though it's coming back to me a bit). Overall, perfectly enjoyable music, but clearly not particularly memorable to me. This is the fifth album by War, a soul-jazz band. The best song on here by far is the opening track "The Cisco Kid". This is their sound at its peak, it's groovy and a bit funky and really easy to listen to. It doesn't totally fall apart after this, but nothing quite reaches that level again the rest of the album. Overall a perfectly enjoyable listen, but nothing that is going to stick with me too much. I will say that I really do like the album cover on here, it's a pretty cool piece of art that honestly kind of captures the sound somehow, I'm into it. Favorite song: The Cisco Kid Other: The World Is A Ghetto 8/6/24
Happy to add this one to my relaxing/slow day music rotation.
Quite the interesting listen. A lot going on here and I liked the different genres that came and went as the album progressed. I generally liked what was going on while listening, but some of it was a miss. Don't think I'd seek out again, but it was a good listen.
Quite liked this, a mish mash of jazz, soul, and a few other genres, definitely had enough ideas to keep my attention for one listen. 6 songs over 43 minutes definitely meant some songs were longer than they needed to be but it never got too frustrating. First song was the best. Dont think I'd make the effort to listen to it again but I wouldn't mind it.
Got into it the longer it went on - and it was certainly long. Four Cornered Room was the standout, I liked how it bopped along. Mildly enthused.
Never heard of these I don't think. Nice to have something a bit different and I enjoyed it. Pretty funky, if not a bit long and winding in parts.
Pretty good vibes. Sort of a Latin jazz. Good, but I probably won't come back to it.
OK album. This is solid funk/soul, but it's not something I was really digging or would listen to again and again. ***
Cisco Kid is such a great song. Liked the funkiness of this, but some songs were just too long. 3/5
jazz, progressive soul. Se escucha bien. Pero no me llama la atención.
Well this was a pretty fine listen. The highs are really high, if you know what I mean, man.
overlong and not for me but perfectly pleasant
Enjoyed that.
Funky album, great instrumentals. Grooved through this whole thing, even though the subject matter is a little heavy.
It’s ok
the first song was easily the worst and put me off a bit, but the rest was very pleasant. nothing super standout but i can see myself returning for the relaxed vibe. great for a train ride.
This was pretty good. I would totally listen to this again.
big meh
It was pretty good
+: Where Was You At, City, Country, City, Four Cornered Room, The World Is a Ghetto +-: The Cisco Kid, Beetles in the Bog 6,9/10
Standard funk fare, I remain to still be fully convinced of the true depths of funk.
City, Country, City // Four Cornered Room // The World Is A Ghetto // 3.5/5
Lovely
I liked this. The musicianship was wonderful. Favourite track: City, Country, City.
Good, slow, good 4 vinyl purchase album cover fire
Day178 - makes me wonder how many war albums are in this list cause this one is just ok
Stranded with a flat tire in a Ghetto in 1972. According to a contemporary reviewer from the Rolling Stone it pushes soul and jazz further to afro-roots music.
Better than I was expecting, but not really my thing
Starts off pretty nice but those long songs really lose me. Overall not a bad listen though.
Not exactly my jam but I love the harmonica-play on this album. 3,5
Great 70's funk. 3.5*
Four Cornered Room, The World is a Ghetto, and, to a lesser degree, Beetles in the Bog, are great. The Cisco Kid is a decent banger, though repetitious and lacking in the narrative department of the usual Western/Cowboy songs. But "City, Country, City" lacks much emphasis and just aimlessly goes on and on and is therefore rather longwinded at 13 minutes; and Where Was You At is bland and forgettable.
War? What is it good for? The funk apparently...
It was pretty relaxing background music as I worked.
A solid funk album from a solid funk band. I really respect the musicianship displayed on this album and enjoyed the listen but I found myself getting easily distracted with this one.
I have always been anti-war, but this seems like a just-war I can support. Just some groovy tunes here. Funk, groove, jazz, psychedelic, a bit of Latin, it's a nice soup of music. The titular track is my favorite.
Funky soul jams with some Latin spice. I can dig it! Faves: "City, Country, City" and "Beetles In The Bog."
I liked this one, but with the song lengths, I didn't feel like I could really sit and listen and think it over like some of the others. A lot of really cool instrumentation and layering throughout with a lot of cool funk feel. Seems like the type of album you sit in your room and veg out to.
Nothing spectacular, but solid.
Had never heard the album. The only song I'd heard was The Cisco Kid. Really enjoyed the album. Great production. Strong 3. "Eat the salted peanuts out the can"
Only heard Cisco Kid before but enjoyed the rest of the album too. I'm surprised/impressed it was Billboard's top album of the year! Seems like it wouldn't have broad enough appeal for that, but it's cool that it sold so well.
Super funky album! It's out there and all over the place but a very cool sound on this one. It didn't blow me away but it's solid.
WAR significan Funk-Latin-Rock-Soul-lo que sea pero de exquisita calidad. La última actuación de Jimi Hendriz fue con ellos apenas antes de fallecer. Fue la banda que fundó Eric Burdon tras The Animals y que tuvo que abandonar por un ataque de asma. A pesar de ello la banda no solo sobrevivió sino que creció y tuvo un éxito aún mayor. En cierto modo, recogen el legado de Santana (que por aquel entonces andaba metido en discos menos latinos y más orientados al Jazz-fusión) junto con Malo (la banda del hermano de Carlos Santana) que ese mismo año publican su debut y otro disco más, ambos muy recomendables. Este The world is a ghetto es su álbum más conocido y de paso el mejor. También es muy recomendable el siguiente, Deliver the Word. Abreo con Cisco Soul, que es una fiesta. Es uno de sus temas más famosos y exitosos. Where was you at introduce toques de jazz. City, Country, City lo hace con una armónica que fusiona country-folk con free jazz y soft-rock y psicodelia sin abandonar la pulsión latina. Una delicia de casi 15 minutos para cerrar la primera cara del disco. Four Cornered Room, son casi 9 minutos de odisea piscodélica, The World Is a Ghetto es el otro gran éxito del disco (en su versión comprimida de 4 minutos, obviamente). Un tema con mucho desarrollo instrumental pero que es plenamente disfrutable. Beetles in the Bog cierra el álbum con otro instrumental. Otros discos de 1972 fueron: Debuts de Steely Dan, Roxy Music, Paul Simon, Big Star, Neu¡, ¿Fela Kuti? y Lou Reed (además de su espléndido Transformer ) Discos expecionales como los de David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars, Todd Rundgren - Something/ Anything?, Stevie Wonder – Talking Book y Music of my mind, Elton John-Honky Château, Nick Drake – Pink Moon, Yes – Close to the Edge, Miles Davis – On the Corner, Neil Young – Harvest, The Rolling Stones – Exile on Main St, Curtis Mayfield – Super Fly, Raspberries- Fresh, Genesis – Foxtrot, Van Morrison - Saint Dominic's Preview, Deep Purple- Machine Head y Made in Japan, Joni MIttchell- For the roses, Tangerine Dream - Zeit, T Rex- The slider, Kevin Ayers- Whatevershebringswesing, la banda sonora The harder they come... una cosecha excelente.
What a rich album, unfortunately not connectable at 1st listen for me at least…
background music but good
This album contains everything. Soul, Funk and Blues. It was good fun at the start. I really enjoyed the Cisco kid, But after a while the album got repetitive with long instrumentals kicking in from city country city. Favourite song: the cisco kid Least favourite: City, country city was far too jazzy for me Album artwork: Brilliant
cool album to funk out to. really good car ride music.
Musically, this album is really great. I know Zeal and Ardor came out way after War... But there are some similarities in composition that I noticed... And Zeal and Ardor is awesome. Lyrically, this album is meh... Not much is being said. Or I'm missing the point. Regardless, the repetition in each song are similar throughout the album, and it's mainly due to the vocal parts. Not necessarily a bad thing... But a lot of the songs sound like each other. I'm happy this album wasn't too long or that would have really bothered me.
2nd recommended album - Not a fan of the first 2 songs. However, the 2nd half picks it up for me. An okay overall but still not my cup of tea.
01) The Cisco Kid - 8,0 02) Where Was You At - 8,0 03) City, Country, City - 7,0 04) Four Cornered Room - 7,0 05) The World Is a Ghetto - 7,5 06) Beetles in the Bog - 7,0 TOTAL: 7,42 (74/100) Current ranking: 114/204 Pleasant enough but nothing more.
cool
I did not expect that type of sound from 1973. Billboards Album of the Year as well.
Enjoyable and well-layered. I'd never heard of this album before but am glad to know it.
Just okay, probably more suited to being played at an outdoor bar versus general listening
Good not great
Significantly more laid back than we were anticipating from the name of the artist.
Laidback, spacious grooves, with plenty of improvisation. Good album, but maybe not in my pantheon of funk and soul.
Slow, funky, soul jams with some hints of psychedelia and some long tracks (some overstay their welcome a bit). Casual, infectious grooves. Solid bass, nothing too flashy. Rad organ. Just a playing it cool vibe going on here. Solid listen but doesn’t stand out as next level. I mostly can’t decide whether it’s worthy of repeated close listen or just really excellent background music. I don’t love the pacing - the 3 long tracks in the middle start to drag a bit.
Typically I really enjoy funk bands but this one never took me to the next level. Good, but not anything amazing.
The World is a Ghetto I only know the well known War Songs; Low Rider and Why Can’t We Be Friends. And the only thing I know about the band themselves was that Eric Burdon was in them for a bit. The Cisco Kid is a great, great soul/funk/latin groove with just enough jazziness to be interesting without being distracting or taking it too close to easy listening lounge jazz. Where Was You At carries on the strong start, dialling up the funk and soul a bit more, very nice track. City, Country, City, as well as being silly long, does slide way too far into that MOR lounge sound, with the added bonus of 70s sitcom theme tune sounding influences. The last minute or so is ok, but this isn’t a great song, the blandness is a bit all encompassing. Four Cornered Room brings it back though, a kind of bluesy soul groove. I love the ominous feeling of the intro building to that psychedelic rock guitar ahead of the vocals. The big cymbal crash comes a bit out of nowhere though. Unlike City, Country, City this doesn’t feel long, despite being 8 and a 1/2 minutes long. Great track, probably the stand out. The World is a Ghetto is very good, although it occasionally leans a little bit close to that lounge jazz sound, but the bass and guitar keep things on track for the most part. It also does feel its length, but still a good song. Beetles in the Bog is a fun funk/soul/jazz tune with some added steel drums, I like the phasing and panning in the intro and the keyboards. I guess the title is a reference to the Beatles with the British vernacular of bog? Overall I liked this, reminded me of Donny Hathaway, and not just the use of the word ghetto. This type of album can fall into that bland easy listening lounge sound, but apart from City, Country, City and some bits of the title track it manages to keep on the more interesting soul/funk/rock/psychedelic/blues side of things and is a rewarding listen. It also sounds very good, a really rich and full sound without being cloying. Tricky to rate. At the moment it sits right between 3 and 4, but I think it will benefit from more listens and will go on my rotation. I’d be happy giving it 3 or 4 but as it’s a grey rainy day I’ll stick with 3. ⭐⭐⭐
06/11/24 S Tier—————————5 A Tier—————————4 Where Was You At B Tier—————————3 City Country City Four Cornered Room The World is a Ghetto C Tier—————————2 Cisco Kid Beetles in The Bog D Tier—————————1
Super cool, incredibly layered, surprising. A better listen than I was anticipating.
Ok to listen to but I will probably not come back to it and do it again. But let’s see.
I knew Cisco Kid and that is the only song I had previously heard on this album. I do not know if I would go back and listen to this often, but it deserves a place in this book. The two long jams on this album go by quickly and never seem to drag. Fun album and if I ever make a War playlist then I would put several songs from here on that album.
I love Cisco Kid and War's overall sound and vibe but most of the songs here are pretty forgettable. Like, I'm pretty sure I own a copy of this on vinyl but don't care enough to confirm.
I enjoyed listening to this album, but (a) never having listened to a War album before, and (b) with a pretty meager Wikipedia entry as a guide, I'm not really sure if this is among their best, and (c) it appears that this is the only War album in this collection, so I'm left feeling like I would have liked an even better War album than this one (maybe "Why Can't We Be Friends?"). "City, Country, City" was both intriguing and maddening, as it has a lot of great segments, but seems way too long and meandering for what I think they were trying to accomplish. I think I enjoyed "The Cisco Kid" the most, and a close second the radio-version title track (and foolishly heard "The Four-Cornered Room" as "the porcelain room," which gave a decidedly different take on the song...).
I like the music more than I liked the songs themselves--their way of singing didn't resonate with me.
Gave it a few goes and thought it was fine. Some good moments but nothing to really grab my attention. The jazz/soul variations of rock are always interesting to discover, drawing from a slightly different palate of instrumentation to what I'm used to in the rock genre. Overall it felt nice for the background but not one I feel the need to add to my collection.
This list really is seven degrees of Remember the Titans. I feel like there have been so many connections. Apparently these guys sing that one song Spill the Wine in that one scene. Sunshine pulls up looking obviously out of place with long blonde hair. Bertier: “hey guys, look at that fruitcake” Yost: “Gary keep your mouth shut” Sunshine’s dad: “hey we just moved here from Virginia, my boy plays quarterback” Yost: well we’re pretty set at the qb position but y’all should try up at north high school” Sunshine’s dad: “we tried up there but they don’t let blacks play with whites. The way I see it, if you can fight a war together you can play football together” Sunshine picks up a football and throws it a quarter mile and hits bertier in the back. Julius laughing hysterically: “oh fruitcake huh?” Great song. Great scene. Oh the album? It was aight
I liked it. Not too long and thematically consistent. Good sounds and good vibes.
We're almost a tenth of the way through this list and one thing I've learned is that the extra long track was a very popular move during the 60s and 70s. Unfortunately for my millennial mind, a 12 minute song causes me to eventually lose interest if I'm not listening to it live. The album is funky, it has socially conscious lyrics, and it jams, but it also makes me tune it out eventually. Not bad at all, and would make good background music.
Started strong; went down hill fast
Vibed witj this album immensely, though Four Cornered Room dragged on for far, far too long for what it is. Favorite Track: City, Country, City
Stellar album. Definitely historic and important. I will maybe pull it up again, but even if I don't I feel enriched from the experience
I don't know, it's War. They do good work. I didn't love it but it's War.
2,5
3.3
Good album, never heard it before
Non l'ho mica capito, ma non è malvagio
It’s my birthday today so I was expecting a really good album but instead got this. I went about my day doing birthday things and watching Leeds United lose and consigning themselves to the playoffs. Best thing was that I got a new Eversolo music streamer for my birthday. So I eventually listened to this on my new gadget. You might think that I hated this, and you might be right, but as I am typing this pissed in my bed, I am feeling generous and full of birthday goodwill. So I’m giving it a drunken three out of five. Not because it deserves this rating but I really need to get my average above 2.5 otherwise I am bound to hate half the albums on this list which I don’t. It actually wasn’t all that bad and a lot better than a lot I’m subjected from this genre. Please disregard the average score thing as I am trying to be fair across the board but on my birthday surely I can be a bit more generous? It really is a 2.7 so closer to 3 than 2. This is a one off for my birthday and hope that next year on my birthday the 1001 Gods give me a better album. Happy birthday to me and hope that all your ideas are great and there’s a big one around the corner. 3/5 4/5/24
A couple of good funky tunes but most kinda blah.
Won’t listen again but not bad. Just not my thing.
Easy listening. Rating: 3.3
Me gustó. Tiene unos arreglos hermosos en una mezcla de géneros tranqui. Pasa por funk, soul y algo progresivo.
It’s a shame ‘Low Rider’ got popular, because this is a better album than that song. Maybe in another life
Something that would probably be a 6/5 live but don’t know when I would listen to in my apartment
3.4 - Boring background funk. I feel like I’m watching a crappy cop drama from the 70s with endless montages of the afroed undercover cop protagonist as he drives through a lurid city center in his muscle car.
I've owned this record for years. I love War's sound. But I think it really finds its special purpose on Cisco Kid, when they come up with amazing songs to wrap it around. On this album, they sound like a bunch of stoners who've found a great sound, want to say something, but find it much easier to just jam out.
A bit different than the George Lopez song. More rambling jam stuff that never really kicked into the next gear
It's good, but serious music. I mean... Walkin' down the street, smoggy-eyed Looking at the sky, starry-eyed Searchin' for the place, weary-eyed Crying in the night, teary-eyed Don't you know that it's true That for me and for you The world is a ghetto really?
It's funky and well recorded, but not something in a genre that I enjoy.
- sounds like it could be a movie soundtrack - good to have in the background - smooth - 2.5
- as I sitttttttttttt in my four cornered rooooom - I don’t mind the long form songs as much as I usually do - love how funky it is
Pretty funky and cool, but wouldn't be something I'd listen to again
it was a long time since i listened to this, and i just feel like i don’t want to listen to it all again for a reason - it was ok but i didn’t love it, though it did have some interesting bits….
Pretty cool combination of soul, prog jazz and Latin influences. Given the title, I wish it had a bit more of an edge to it but it's pretty upbeat throughout. This may not be something typically in my wheelhouse that I'll listen to often, but it's a nice different style.
I dug this - maybe I didn’t pay close enough attention to the lyrics but not overly political. Great vocal harmonies, long jamming songs. I found myself focusing in the bass playing - fun listen.
Música negra bien desarrollada con un tono interesante.
Different jazzy
Nice!
Decent, but the early 70s is packed with incredible soul like Marvin Gaye, Sly and the Family Stone, or Stevie Wonder. I don’t think this quite stacks up against that
I don't have the patience for 10min+ songs so I skipped the longer tracks once I got about 6min in on them. That said, this was fine. I don't mind this era of soul, even though this was more like prog soul (which does exist as a genre, apparently). Not something I'd willingly return to but it was fine. Maybe more like a 2.5 but I'm feeling generous.
While The World Is A Ghetto and Beetles In The Bog are great, the album itself doesn't warrant a higher rating.
Love the Cisco Kid. The instrumental pieces are interesting, no doubt. I can't really sit and listen to it that long.
Really enjoyed! 3.8 to be exact. Got bored during City, Country, City but loved the other ones.
It's often tricky to rate an album by a super tight band, who have some super moments. I find myself having to listen again and again to see what grows and that was the case with this album, which didn't grow on me much at all.
What it feels like to live in a shoebox in NYC.
The album started with two fun, rockin’ tracks. The rest of the album did not match this tone, at it was followed it up with an extra long instrumental and two other longer songs. Not sure if I’d go back at this album, even if it is a high quality sound. 3
Audição satisfatória, sequência garante um clima agradável.
A good album and made for a relaxing listen. Part of it did invoke images of a noir detective show as I was listening which was amusing.
A very mellow, laid back funk album. Some long songs, a nice listen though, just not that memorable. Best track: Maybe the title track?
Influence
While I can see the greatness of this album, and I enjoyed the songs, there weren't any particularly memorable. Some felt like they dragged on as they repeated the same verse over and over. Great album cover though!
For some reason I thought this would have the song "War," but I'm confused, that's Edwin Starr, right? In that case, I'm not at all familiar with this group, but some of these songs sound familiar. Some long, odyssey-type soul tracks, I dig it. The melody on "Four Cornered Room" sounds sooo much like Black Sabbath's "Planet Caravan" to me, and I love that song (released two years before this album), so I'm cool with it. Nothing too crazy, but it's well done and I enjoyed the ride. Favorite tracks: The Cisco Kid, City Country City, Four Cornered Room. Album art: Very cool, very detailed drawing of a city street, of the titular ghetto world, and I love that this is animated on Apple Music, looks really cool with the driving back and forth. I NEED to eat at Joe Burgers, I just know it's gas. 3.5/5
That was pretty good. Lots of good funky stuff. Some of the songs were a bit long, but they didn't get boring. Pretty sure Fleetwood Mac ripped off Beetles in the Bog when they wrote Tusk.
Haven’t heard of this. R&B/Soul from 1972. Nice vibes right away. Not anything special though so a 3.
5/10 I listened to it. It was nice. 3-11-2024
Never heard of this band before, wasn't my usual thing but still enjoyable. Opening track was especially good but I was starting to be a bit sick of it towards the end.
Funky, jazzy, 70s
Its got a Stevie Wonder cover with a Stevie Wonder title in a Stevie Wonder era and its starts like a Steve Wonder mid-seventies kind of song. And it does sound like Innervisions with a harder edge, which isn't a bad thing. Throw in a bit of hendrix and a bit of Santana influence then you get a thoroughly satisfactory record which I won't have issue listening to again. Its jut a pity that cover doesn't remind me so much of Wonder's 'Living in the City'. I wonder which came first?
Interesting album, a bit of a mix of genres, or at least I can't pin it down. Quite funky, with sort of a mantra of repetition. Enjoyable.
Well worth a listen
More like a high 2 The world is in fact a ghetto
These were not the War songs that I was familiar. It was an a-okay listen.