Reviews (page 4 of 8)
Kan backe det her
This squeezes out a fourth star for the great production and forward-thinking compositions, even if some of the early songs dragged a bit long and not every one of them was a shining star.
Great vibes here!!!
like this. i will be looking for more of his work
Now this one is for sure setbreak music as it's on the list and I listened to it in that context last year. Strawberry letter 23 is a jam!
Smooth vocals, groovy vibe. Nice listen!
To some extent this is quite the jam.
Mistook this for some mediocre soul music at first but then it got weirdly psychedelic with great instrumental parts. Never heard of Shuggie Otis before but this is an excellent example of a good find in the 1001 album list.
Ah! This was nice! Kinda aimless, but atmospheric. BT - Aht Uh Mi Hed - Island Letter
Lots of similarity to Stevie Wonder and other 70s R&B with some interesting jazz tunes
Criminally underrated. Will never understand why he is not massive. This isn't my favorite of his but that's still better than most.
I really liked the funky sound here.
Strawberry Letter 23 by The Brothers Johnson is a favorite of mine. I was surprised to discover that the song’s author created music in his own right. I liked this 70s groove.
Tempted to give a 4. Interesting read about some of the history, and I listened to it twice.
Mjög gott, lögin fara ekki allaf í þá átt sem ég vildi (Ice Cold Daydream t.d.), en hér er margt subbulega töff og skemmtilegt. Mið-áttundi tugur í góðum gír. Mæli með hlustun.
Nice soulful, jazzy, r&b type album that flows well. While I do like the general sound, it all feels a bit too samey towards the end of the record. 7 out of 10
I didn't hate it.
Just an all around fantastic album.
It's got a great vibe to it, but it lacked something as compelling as Strawberry Letter 23.
Hard to believe the cat was only in this teens when he made this. And one wishes so many of the artists to follow would have made such judicious and tasteful use of the drum machine. Bumper-car bass lines and dreamy-trippy vibes generally. One recalls the hype around this record's rediscovery or rerelease in early aughts ... and it seems to have got even a bit better since then. Still, one's not quite ready to go all Stevie Wonder on the comparisons though.
I liked it! Can't believe this was the first I ever heard of Shuggie Otis
Nice and short. Pretty relaxing too. I was a little sad that there weren't more vocals on this album, because his voice is nice. The instrumentals were nice though. My favourite song was Inspiration Information.
Huge fan of this album. I started listening to it on the train, and unfortunately fell asleep. Not because I wasn't enjoying it, but because I was dead tired. Round 2: unreal. I really enjoyed the last 7 songs. So good.
Loved the instrumentals mixed in there. Really good music. Can't go wrong with good soul 8.1
This rare gem of an album is a vibrant taste of what I would describe as early 70's funk/fusion. Hip and cool throughout. Delightful. As an aside, Shuggie was featured by Frank Zappa on Hot Rats. What more needs to be said?
Sounds an awful lot like an album by a dude name Shuggie should sound. Mellow groovy, with tinker-y electronic textures and a way laid-back vibe. "Rainy Day" and "Pling" are '70s at its seriously chillest.
Soul très sympa, love letter 23 c'est un banger qui le fait passer en 4 étoiles
Funnily enough recognised the first song as Madi's boyfriend covered it. This album massively grew on me as it went along. And really enjoyed the 12 min song at the end. Could totally picture smoking weed and being blissed out to this album. Will definitely listen again . Great combo of psych and soul
A luvly bitta stoof
THIS BOPS Almost can't believe this is 1974; just a great sound and I don't know I'd have picked out that all the drums are a drum machine (aside from some obvious tracks like "Pling!"). Sounds great and very organic. Keyboard/organ sounds are especially perfect. Note: at 1:28 of "Pling!" you can hear coughing in the background. That's it - nothing magical about it; just that I love and miss when stuff like that would either be missed or they'd just be like "screw it" and keep it in the track. Perfection is boring. Lack of a real killer track or 2 (although "Magic" is pretty great) keeps this down a bit but this is a keeper. 7/10 4 stars.
A lot closer to timeless than I expected it to be - a lot of it sounds current. Sweet Thang is a 7* out of 5, and the rest of the album is very good.
This is just a really cool album. Very chill and relaxed instrumentals on most songs, but with some nice vocals when they appear. It's a pretty quick listen as well. I'd never heard of this album previously. It's very interesting that it is an early album with regard to the use of drum machines. I didn't even notice. The drums fit into the music very well and don't sound too clunky the way a lot of early drum machine stuff does. It's very tasteful work 4/5
Not bad! Easy listening 70s funk enjoyed on a cold snowy day.
Could definitely hear his influence on Prince. Hard to believe he played all the instruments on this. Beautiful guitar work
I had honestly never heard of Shuggie Otis before, which is a shame. To realize he was only 20 when Inspiration Information was released and this is his third album. It's honestly impressive. At times his voice reminds me of Jay Kay from Jamiroquai. I feel Shuggie must have been an influence on them. This album has a nice smooth feel. It is a relaxing listen. Certain songs are stronger than others. While some are a little more forgettable. But given his young age this is some serious talent. I definitely want to check out more of his music.
This is a jam. I really enjoyed him. Last song is a hell of a groove. Made a favorite list. I would say Jeff Beck worthy.
yes
Another great album i've discovered from this list. The production on this album was good considering it came out in '73, it's a bit bloated particularly near the end but overall I thought this album was great. 8.4/10
First time hearing anything from Shuggie Otis, I loved this album. Great dynamics and feelings to the songs.
This sone funky shit.
Rating: 7/10 Best songs: Inspiration information, Aut uh mi head, Strawberry letter 23
neat actually
Love the instrumentals
nice chill jazz/soul
smoooooth
Lovely cheesy funky shit.
I'd found out about this album earlier this year and enjoyed it... and enjoyed it again today! Couple of stand out tracks, but overall it was just a good vibe. 3.5
Realy good funk/soul album with some really interesting instrumental parts. I will definitely listen to that one again.
Funky, easy listen
I didn’t get to spend much time with this one. Skipped through some tracks. First impression “good not great”, but I reckon I’ll come back to listen again and find out. Might end up a 3.5, but by the criteria I’m using I need to give it a 4 for now.
Until last year , the only Shuggie material I was familiar with was a 1969 album he did with Al Kooper (very bluesy) that I’ve had for years, an album called Giants of Rhythm & Blues, a 70’s album featuring greats like Louis Jordan, Shuggie’s father Johnny Otis, Big Joe Turner, etc, on which Shuggie plays guitar, bass & some piano, and his guitar on Peaches En Regalia from Frank Zappa’s Hot Rats lp. I knew he’d written Strawberry Letter 23, but had never heard it until last year, when I acquired a copy of the cd reissue of Inspiration Information, which include 4 tracks not on the original album, of which this was one. It’s a very laid-back listen, very 70’s, jazzy at times, funky at others, quite a few instrumentals, on which he plays just about everything. A talent who shunned the bigtime to do it his way. Really enjoy this album.
Muy tranquilo, copado
I quite liked this album. It was mostly background listening to me - but background listening of the very best kind. The album is a very nice mix of soul & funk with a sprinkling of R&B & disco and some psychedelic shading to finish the picture. The original version of the album was a bit too short in my opinion, but it worked very well with the 2001 version extras.
Comfortable to listen to. Can see another visit in the future
Love Shuggie. Don't play this enough
Never heard of Shuggie Otis until today. From what I've read, his father had a band which Shuggie would start playing guitar for at age eleven. He had to disguise himself with a fake moustache and dark glasses so he would appear older and could play bar gigs with the band! So, obviously, a hell of a talented guy. I then learned that he played all of the instruments (except horns and some strings) and sang/wrote all of the songs himself. At 21! Crazy! Delving into this record, it is amazing! I don't quite know how to classify it though. Shuggie was obviously an innovator because there are touches of jazz/funk/R&B/psychedelic rock/blues throughout. Shuggie's voice sounds a lot like Jay Kay's from Jamiroquai, and by times, his music sounds similar as well, so I would bet that Shuggie was an influencer of Jay Kay's. Overall, this is a phenomenal record, and I am very happy to have discovered it! Will definately listen again. Favourite songs: Sparkle City, Inspiration Information, Aht Uh Mi Hed, Ice Cold Daydream, Strawberry Letter 23 Least favourite song: if forced to pick one, Freedom Flight (it was a psychedelic rock number that ran for 12 mins and change. There were wind chimes in the background for the whole song, and they just became a bit annoying after a while) 4/5
The ideal vibes for a peaceful, blue-sky Friday. Shuggie Otis manages to keep things moving steadily while still fostering a gentle chill.
This lagged at the end but I'm not mad at it
Jazz. R&B.
It’s not a new record to me, but Inspiration Information was just what I needed today to take my mind off the job I hate and the nightmarish commute I endured today. Took me right Aht Uh Mi Hed, as the man said…a Funky, dreamy, psychedelic, jazzed out odyssey to escape every day life with. That Prince and Stereolab are champions of Shuggie Otis should tell you all you need to know. He was so far ahead of his time on this record that it’s become timeless.
As if Sly took a more soulful and orchestral approach. Also reminds me of a more talented and less coke-induced Thundercat. It's groovy, cool, and relaxed with noteworthy psychedelic effects. Each track is diverse and memorable, and there were only a few parts I didn't care for. Especially enjoyed the instrumental finish. Favorites: Island Letter, Aht Uh Mi Hed, Happy House
What a sweet, smooth little funk/soul album! So chill, I could listen to this over and over. Might have been a 5 with a human drummer. https://www.reviler.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/shuggie-otis-dog.jpg
Good vibes
Like a fusion of Marvin Gaye and Sly Stone this guitar-based soul grooves along beautifully. Excellent.
Chilling and pleasant
Was good for the background
awesome!
Great funk
Oh my! Funky when he wants to be, soulful when he wants to be, highest highs and most excellent grooves. Shuggie Otis doesn't blow my socks off but there's nothin' in here I don't love.
Some really nice tracks and great overall vibe. It is too bad he is not more of a household name, but I am glad he is for me now.
Pretty good, I definitely prefer the vocals vs instrumentals but a funk/psych combo works well for me.
Never heard of this guy before but it was quite soulful and funky. Not as funky as I like, but still a great listen.
Pretty catchy stuff. Good bit of funky groove, mix of soul and jazz etc. Impressive to see he wrote and played basically everything on the abum. Kept it to the golden half-hour length as well. Kinda surprised I'd never heard of him before. In reality this is a 3, maybe 3.5 if possible, but I can't let it sit just one star above the garbage I had yesterday. 4/5.
Started promising, and had some good tracks scattered throughout, but just did hold my attention just a lot of the more improvisational bits.
Spotify has sent Strawberry Letter 23 my way a few times, and I wondered what’s so special about this guy’s cover of The Brothers Johnson song, it sounds a lot like the original? Duh! Anyway, this is really smooth funky stuff, with nice understated guitar playing - the sort of thing rare groove DJs would love. It reminds me a bit of Sly and the Family Stone. It’s cool that, like Todd R, he played all (or most in Shuggie’s case) of the instruments. The title track and Aht Uh Mi Hed are great songs and I wish he would have continued singing on side 2. David Byrne was very wise to add Strawberry Letter to his release and I’ll give it an extra point for that.
I’m so glad that this criminally underrated album made this list. It’s unfortunate that so many people have never heard of Shuggie Otis, a child prodigy that played with Frank Zappa when he was only a teen, and you know that Zappa only recruited the best musicians. He also played most of the instruments and wrote most of the songs on this album. Aht uh mi hed is one of my all time fav soul songs, and Inspiration Information and Strawberry Letter 23 are also great. I think it’s unfair that the Brothers Johnson’s interior cover of the latter gets more airplay and recognition than the original. This album is a real hidden gem.
Glad I got a chance to listen to Shuggie Otis. All I knew about him was he wrote a classic R&B hit and Prince always said he influenced his music. A very soulful album with a surprise troubadour cut near the end.
Good background R&B mood maker.
A really great, easy listen! Thoroughly enjoyed these last 2 hours which is a feat in music for sure.
Aht Uh Mi Head -> anscheinend Sample Inspiration für Riesenglied von KIZ Schönes jazziges Album. Kannte die Band bisher nicht.
Pretty smooth!
Solid. Vibin
Soul progresivo. Me ha gustado. Un 4.
4.0
Ahh Shuggie Otis. Love that psychedelic soul sound. Great album and a good listen. However Freedom Flight and even kooper sessions I think are much stronger than this album and more true to the roots of his sound. Hopefully Freedom Flight will appear on the list because that is the album you need to listen too.
I had never even heard of Shuggie Otis before… why?? I really liked this record, and will definitely listen again. aAnd with a double album as an introduction it felt like a deep dive. Soulful, funky, jazzy, and… country rock blues (Black Belt Sheriff)?!
If Jazz was groovy.
I knew nothing about this album, can not recall ever hearing the name Shuggie Otis...one would think I remember that name. Quite liked the title track Inspiration Information, Strawberry Letter 23 seemed vaguely familiar, Aht Uh Mi hed and Happy House were also ones that really snagged my attention.
Some really tasty guitar playing going on here, plus some groovy slooooow funk tracks. Never heard this dude before, but this album has piqued my interest enough to take a deep dive into his back catalogue.
Black and sexy. Sticky sexy. Put this on when you want to get in the mood for love. I can imagine this record is great for date nights. Seafood, candles, open a fine bottle of white wine, and play this record. She'll thank you in the morning. Or not, maybe you have erectile disfunction, maybe she hates Otis, maybe she's sleepy. Then sit down on your couch, finish the bottle alone, and close your eyes while you sink slowly into unconsciousness.
Sometimes I think of artists’ styles like a cocktail. Shuggie Otis, for example, is 2 parts Stevie Wonder-style soul, 1 part smooth jazz, 1 part funk rock and a dash of reggae, shaken and served over ice. The music goes down easy. The back half is particularly mellow and mostly instrumentals. I’m curious to hear more by him, especially more of the upbeat, soulful, funky songs. Apparently he wrote “Strawberry Letter 23” — for years I’ve loved the version by The Brothers Johnson but didn’t know it was a cover. (I first heard it on the Quentin Tarantino soundtrack for “Jackie Brown.”) His version (not on this album) is excellent too! Highlights: “Inspiration Information,” “Aht Uh Mi Hed,” “Rainy Day”
All (artist, album, all tracks) new to me, as is often the case with this wonderful project, and, dang, there's some good stuff here. Love the groove on most of the tracks, real smooth funky feel, some excellent guitar performances, and sweet harmonies, but not saccharine. Thankfully, there are plenty of interesting things going on melodically, harmonically, and rhythmically, so it kept my ears engaged nicely.
Wow. Never heard of him. Pop the Spotify in the car on the way to work and then a big warm bath of an album comes on. Soulful, Steeley Dan guitar licks. Orchestra. Chilled grooves. Experimental jams. Semi psychedelic funk. A voice from heaven. Brilliant stuff. 4
3.75
The opening and title track really grab your attention from the get go and then it's all super chill. Strawberry Letter 23 is great but Freedom Flight takes the cake for me.
Really enjoyed it. Listened to it while the sun set on my balcony in the city. 7,5/10 Fave: Island letter
Can't believe I had never heard this before. It sounds like walking through green fields on a summers day. Sometimes wistful, sometimes blissful, always tuneful.
very nice funky album
4/27/2022 Today's Album: "Inspiration Information" by Shuggie Otis - This is an album that I didn't think much of just from the cover, but there is some funky, groovy, soulful gold within this track list. All fantastically recorded and produced, the 13 tracks on this album have an incredible flow to them as passionate guitar solos and expressive vocal performances make each track shine. There's this great wavy sort of vibe to the project that give it this really mellow and psychedelic tone. The vocals from Shuggie are expressive and on pitch and performed with such great tone and personality. I really enjoy how the middle tracks of this album like Rainy Day and Pling offer an instrumental break from the rest of the sung tracks. The first 4 tracks of the album kick it off by showing off everything that is going to make this album shine for the next 30 minutes after. The last leg of the album wraps things up nicely, going from the great hit Strawberry Letter 23 to the mostly instrumental Sweet Thang, and then finally to the funky Ice Cold Daydream. The final track is a 13 minute sonic journey with this slow building experimental feel to it. There's this really hard to listen to bass in the mix on this song, however, that just sounds really crackly and bad. It doesn't ruin the track as it only hangs around for about a minute, but yeah that is probably the worst part of the project. The rest of the track is psychedelic, memorizing, meditative, and most of all a great thematic closer to this whole project. Overall, I like a ton of tracks of this album and I think as a whole work, it offers a lot both in terms of hits as well as instrumental experimentation. Listen to this one if you love funky psychedelic jams, singer songwriter talent, or just vibing out to a long instrumental track. It's a great vibe all the way down and there's a ton for music fans to chew on. Highlights: Inspiration Information, Island Letter, Sparkle City, Aht Uh Mi Hed, Rainy Day, Pling!, Not Available, Strawberry Letter 23, Sweet Thang, Ice Cold Daydream, Freedom Fight Score: 8/10 Amazing funky psychedelic bliss
I liked it a lot, but there were more instrumentals than I was expecting which I think I would have preferred less of.
Super chill. Nice vibe.
Soul progresivo. Me ha gustado. Un 4.
Loved this
Hell yeah.
This is gonna be pretty good. Yup, it's really good actually, but not quite a five, it gets a bit boring at times. Didn't know "Strawberry Letter 23" was on this album too, but what a nice surprise. 4
I like shuggie… this is a bit more soulful that some of his r’n’b output. Still good!
I like this! It feels like a prototype of so much neo-funk to come.
Inspired music
9.5
Rainy Day et Pling! c'est les lofi beats to relax/study to des années 70.
Rather splendid jazz soul funk from '74, part instrumental and part lyrical. Lights down, silk sheets, champagne and candles.
Funky. Really enjoyed that.
great
Enjoyed it a lot....
Mellow
Didn't think I would like this one as much as I did. What a surprise! 4/5
I'm amazed this guy isn't more well known, this is a really interesting album
Really like this one.
Started off a bit slow-ish. Had a few good songs on it. I especially liked Strawberry Letter 23. The Freedom Flight song made me a bit dizzy for some reason. Giving it a 4* but I'm being quite generous.
Very chill album!
Enjoyed album - was like a modern soul album.
Really dug this. Fantastic album.
-Perfectly good soul funk type album, but nothing really mind blowing
Bangerzzzz
Very groovy, a nice suprise
Funked up!
cool funky sound. Jazzy, quiet. Very interesting
Really cool album. Interesting mix of styles - Progressive soul?
Funky, easy listen. Good for cracking on with work
Another really cool funk album I hadn't heard before this project. I love the folksier sound mixed in here and the use of drum machines.
I didn't want to like this, but it's catchy and smooth. This is good chill-out music.
Was ok.
Surprising. Not enthralled by the beginning but as the album deepened I was pulled in. Some almost Fourth World sounds on some of the instrumentals.
The album comes off really strong. Really liked the first half. Second half… the instrumentals were good, but I wanted to hear them more in a complete song. Still, this was a pleasant surprise, I really liked this guy.
well, this is fantastic. is it weird that it reminds me of Todd Rundgren?
Fantastic funk infused soul. Very groovy :)
Such a good epic. Will add to regular rotation. Love how he just grooves with an idea.
A bit of a gem! Eclectic funk and soul. Sounds a bit like Sly Stone, but less WAAHHHHHH, and more hhhMMMmmmmmMM! Some of the tracks are quite intricate, and the first track reminds me of Tame Impala. My latest summer groove.
synthy funk, some of it seemed a bit middle of the road now, but some I really loved.
Surprising good
It was a good funk album
kaef
Really enjoyed listening to this. It wasn’t all worthy of 4* but it was a high 3* consistently.
Pleasant, grooving low-key funk with some really high-class musicianship on display. It's not the most spectacular record I'll ever hear, but it creates an effective late-night ambience for the most part, bar the odd touch of seasick keyboard playing (I'm thinking here of 'XL-30'). Did anyone else think Otis' singing is not too dissimilar to that of Christopher Cross?
Great funk/psychedelic record. The drum machine give the music a slower more driving rhythm. The instrumentation is phenomenal down to the multiple guitar parts, bass, and horns. Shuggie Otis' voice is light and smooth, a perfect complement to his music
Getting major Stevie Wonder vibes. Super good, funky, lots of instrumentals.
Oh, what a SOLID album! And what solid SHOES! It goes dangerously close to last-brain-cell level easy listening, but it doesn't cross the line... I think. (also confused by why several songs are also on his 71 album??)
Yeah, this is more my speed! Funky, layered, original. Dude plays all the instruments and did the whole thing as a teenager!
Cool, funky, really enjoyed it.
AMAZING álbum! 4.5
Some great songs, some filler. But the filler is sort of killer? What a great, imaginative, florid guitar player.
I’ve never heard Shuggie Otis but I’ve definitely heard his influence. Chilled out sounds for a sunny day, funky bass lines and superb rhythm section that bring to mind both Bill Withers & The Band.
Sehr cool, einige Songs als bekannte Samples wiedererkannt
sounded like minecraft music and that is obviously a good thing
This was great, will definitely listen again. Only knew Strawberry Letter 23.
Vibey as hell and reminds me of Bill Withers at times.
Actually liked this a lot
I loved this one, it may not be nothing extraordinary but man it's smooth.
Production: 17/20 Songwriting: 15/20 Innovation: 15/20 Bangers: 15/20 Emotional response: 16/20 =78 What a fucking corker.
Miellyttävää taustamusiikkia ja kuulostaa taidokkaalta. Ei jäänyt mieleen mitään erityisiä hittibiisejä, mutta kokonaisuutena hyvä. Pyöristetään 3,5 tähteä tällä kertaa ylöspäin, kun pisteytys on viimeaikoina ollut muuten niin alavireistä.
Smooth, groovy with a bit of funk. Nice easy listening, will check out some of his other stuff.
Super cool vibe on this
Really good overall! I think it could’ve used a little more drive/emotional intensity especially in the vocals, I found some of the tracks boring. 8/10
7
very nice
Funny, I've never even heard of this. Really enjoying it. Jamiroquai totally ripped this off! Production is so crisp and bright. It doesn't sound like something that is 46 years old.
Pretty good, didn't listen super attentively thought. 7, but might have been a little better
Buenas vibras. No soy muy fan del blues, no porque me desagrade sino porque no me engancha lo suficiente, soy milenial y necesito chingos de gratificación instantánea diaria, como cuando escucho pop, por ejemplo; pero bueno... ese no era el punto. El disco me pareció muy reconfortante por lo bien producido que suena (o al menos esa es la idea que me formé porque me suena como que uh la la, todo está muy bien "pensado" y bien ajustado antes de sacarlo a la luz), siento que tiene una melancolía ligera y una introspección tranquila. Canciones favoritas: aht uh mi hed por el ritmito, Rainy Day por la guitarra melancólica y Strawberry Letter 23 me hace sentir muy bien además de su letra wholesome, jaja. Mood: en un lugar de introversión, descansando en un lugar muy cómodo, sin gente a mi alrededor y a una temperatura ideal en el ambiente.
This is incredible! Funky and highly engaging. I never would have found this on my own.
Perfect early morning material
4.3 + Just thumping with soul and mellow funk. An amazing album that’s equally at home bumping in the background as it is on a pair of cans.
Oh this the vibe. Shuggie has got me chillin out maxin, relaxin all cool. He was always a name I'd been familiar with but someone I'd never listened to. Huge fan of the synth loop, drum machine groove stuff on here. Perfect music to just chill to, possibly to relax and study to, know what I'm saying. Fantastic groove through out. This dude really knows how to find the pocket.
Good blues
buen disco
I thought I might like this more than I did. Some of the songs were just kinda background despite being pretty good R&B in other places. 7
8/10 ta gueno
Ahora sí que un álbum muy chill. Ni siquiera sé qué género es, pero hay un balance acertado entre lo instrumental y las vocales. Acertado porque varía, se complementan, al principio parece que las canciones van perdiendo la voz, pero después regresa y bueno, finalmente desaparecen en esa última canción larguita de pura instrumentación. Fue muy bonito escucharlo, desconocía a Shuggie Otis por completo y creo que "Inspiration Information" es un rolón. "Aht Uh Mi Head", "XL-30" y "Strawberry Letter 23" me gustaron especialmente por esas percusioncitas y la vibra más chill que siempre. Un álbum del cual me quedo con canciones, pero quizá no revisitaría entero. 8.5/10
Got a kick out of this one - a groovy album navigating various genres and standing out as an early predecessor to more modern R&B styles. Put it on good speakers and vibe out!
Oh yeah, this is lovely! Super chilled out soul, with a splash of psychedelia and folk. "Strawberry Letter 23" is an absolute tune, but it's not present on most versions of the album, so I'll go with "Island Letter" or "Pling!" as my top track - love those relaxing latin rhythms underpinning them!
This album was long! It had alot of great songs, but I don't see myself revisiting them.
Fuggie epic.
8.5
Incredible inventiveness, musically adept and powerful. I’m not sure it all quite hung together as a cohesive whole, though all the individual pieces were exquisite.
funky
I never listened to it before, but the mix of vocal and instrumentals is great. Nice introduction for me, but a favourite for her.
Some really good funk, here, and it led to me learning more about Shuggie Otis, which was cool.
Sparkle City is my jam. Funk is a genre I wish I listened to more of.
Likte det overraskende godt. Vanskelig å plassere helt, funk, rock, blues, alternativ. Hadde vært fin å ha i platesamlingen.
Funky shit, loved it
Funky. A couple of forgettable tracks, but really pleasant overall. Best track: Sparkle City
Groovy
A nice relaxing album. Surprisingly pleasant. 3.5
2/4 Our brother Shuggie had the right ideas! Standout Tracks: Aht Uh Mi Hed, XL-30, Wings Of Love
Some great funk going on here.
I’ve listened to this album several times and I always think I should like it more than I do, and I do! But incrementally. Haven’t had a breakthrough moment.
Very good album to relax to.
I had not heard of this 70s singer songwriter before. This was lovely, reminiscent of Stevie Wonder and like him Otis was a multi-instrumentalist playing most of the insturments on this album. Sounding folky, proggy, soulful and everything in between and is so relaxing.
Enjoyable 1970s soulful will listen again
Eg likte denne godt, ei plate eg nok vil gå attende til ved høve. Samstundes så vert det aldri dei store høgdane ved fyrste lytt, sjølv om eg syns plata vert meir og meir interessant utover. Det vert 3+, men mistenker at den kjapt er på fire om eg køyrer nokre rundar til.
Fy faen så bra det er når det er bra! En litt skummel setning når noen snakker om forholdet sitt, så kanskje det er litt faretruende når man snakker om et album også? For det er jo ikke så veldig bra når det ikke er helt på topp, heller.
Sjølsagt imponerande at han gjer alt sjølv, men før me konkluderar med Stevie/Prince-nivå her, har han låtmaterialet som trengst? Ja og tja. Nydeleg opningsstrekk, særleg tittelsporet. Likar stemma hans godt. Noko Bill Withersk over den. Rett på utan for mykje krussedull. Det har eg sans for. Bakoverlendte greier, funky men tar ikkje nett av. Instrumentalane som tar over midtvegs gir kanskje plata karakter, men dei gir også knollen min høve til tenka på andre ting. Strawberry letter 23 er feit, og den einaste eg har høyrt før. Positiv men litt betenkt. Sidan eg gav 7/10 til Talking heads får eg nøya meg med 6/10 her.
Et mer glatt album enn hva jeg har hørt tidligere fra fyren. Det mer utflytende preget den får utover i albumet er både litt uventet og bejaende. Vil tro jeg må høre mer på dette for å få det under huden. Kan like de spede disco-elementene.
Én gigantisk klassiker. Et par andre greie låter. En del uforståelig fyllstoff. Jeg forstår ikke hva Shuggie forsøker å få til her. Hvordan er det meningen at jeg skal lytte til denne plata? Det er litt som med Burzums Filosofem, for å sammenligne med noe helt annet hvor albumet også går i mange retninger. Jeg forstår jo likevel hva han grevefiguren tenkte, tror jeg. Shuggie forblir en gåte.
Shuggie Otis - Inspiration Information Einig med Endre: Tittelsporet som opnar plata er knallbra. Den noko sløyare “Island Letter” som følgjer opp er óg veldig fin. Det er kanskje litt inspirasjon frå folk som Stevie Wonder og Sly Stone her, men etter kvart går plata over i ein litt for stor andel lounge-aktige greier som er behageleg nok, men ikkje så mykje meir. “XL-30” er ingen ny favoritt, til dømes. Har aldri høyrt denne tidlegare, så dette var jo ganske givande, men tar vel kun med meg eit par av songane på starten vidare på vegen. (Eg tok utgangspunkt i originalen og dei ni spora den har.) 6/10
hm, mediocre
ganz nett anzuhören
Marvin Gaye if he was a bit boring. You hear elements of psychedelia buried in there, some feelgood/ska elements... but mainly it just passes as slightly underwhelming soul. (Soul without the soul, if you will.) Incredibly strange – the grooves should bop, but instead they fall ever so slightly flat. As another reviewer commented, "I feel like it overpromises and then underdelivers on the grooves." What I also notice is that the songs become significantly more digestible if you treat them as background noise rather than close-listening music. Plus, every song is genuinely pretty good in isolation. Per my own rules, I can't give this any less than 3 stars. Inspiration Information's title track, I guess, is pretty good on paper. And the guitar part shines through. It makes me feel a little sleepy listening to it, though. Is it the mix? The tired vocals? The problem becomes a little more apparent in Island Letter – the percussion and vocals are much too blurry and quiet – but the actual composed musical lines are solid. This would sound vastly better if performed by somebody other than Shuggie Otis. I do enjoy Sparkle City quite a bit, particularly the last couple of minutes, when it diverges into into slightly more experimental, bluesy melodies/harmonies. (Mainly making use of blue notes. It's the little things.) I'm positively clueless as to what's happening in Aht Uh Mi Hed – presumably there must be a good reason for all four words in the title being misspelled, but I can't place that reason. Another reasonably groovy one, and the introduction of a nice light acoustic guitar, though I can't help but feel it's still missing something. Perhaps ironically, the 76-second-long Happy House makes for the most sonically interesting track thus far. Brevity can be a virtue, as long as the track in question contains something that contributes anything musically to the album. (Hip-hop interludes, I'm looking at you.) Rainy Day, another relatively short song, is the first instrumental, and a pretty good one at that. Sort of anticipates lo-fi with that acoustic guitar sound. The strings are beautiful, too. I guess I was just hoping for something punchier after five consecutive "lightweight" songs. XL-30 and Pling! are much the same: pretty cool instrumentals when consumed in isolation (featuring some nifty melodies in the former, and great soft textures in the latter), but as part of the album sequence? Kind of underwhelming. Not Available, though, ends the album on a relatively punchy note. And it deserves all the praise in the world for that. This Otis guy finally figured out how to make his music just a smidge more exciting. (Worth mentioning that Strawberry Letter 23, Sweet Thang, Ice Cold Daydream, and Freedom Flight are not included on the original album release. Shame – Sweet Thang and Ice Cold Daydream are both excellent.) 3/5 Key tracks: Happy House, Not Available
Glad to have heard this one. But doesn't do it for me really
Height of 70s funky soul
6/10 some songs sound like one wayne g its good but not that good
No es malo, just kinda boring por momentos.
This album was a bit of a frustrating listen. I felt like it had a lot of the right ingredients to be really good, but it never quite came together. You could see where it was trying to go, but it ended up wandering aimlessly. The laid-back funky vibe was fun and the first few songs were pretty decent, especially the opener/title track, but the string of four instrumentals at the end didn’t do much for me. It felt considerably longer than its barely half-hour runtime. Just scrapes a low 3 stars on the strength of the early tracks.
Very funky and chill, good listen
Give me number three for now, there’s a bit too much filler in it for me. But I’d love to revisit it when I’m in a different mindset.
This was really good, I knew strawberry letter 23 and a few others but the guitar work and music is what makes it really memorable and exciting
Not bad! 3.5/5
Was ok. Bit samey and overlong.
pretty mid
Again. Fine. Better than Megadeath.
3 stars
Quite a variation!
I knew a few songs from his other album, so this was nice to hear. Just a great vibe, perfect to listen to a while cooking.
Kinda gets lost in dull instrumentation town in the middle of album, but it manages to find its way again by the end. Some nice funky guitar, but nothing mindblowing.
Not a single bad song. Island Letter perfectly captures the feeling of being abroad in a tropical country. Very listenable. 7/10
A pretty good vibe with some excellent stand out tracks, but the rest got a bit boring. I can't seem to find the version with the 2001 remaster bonus tracks anywhere but Spotify, but those are a pretty nice addition but I wish they were a replacement for some of the original tracks as it made the album a bit too long for me.
"Lazy genius" — that's Shuggie Otis. At twelve, he first hit the R&B charts; at fifteen, he was tipped to be the next Jimi Hendrix; at nineteen (!), he turned down (!!) The Rolling Stones' offer of a guitarist; at twenty, he released this album. And the album is good! It's a calm, pleasant funk, a precursor to acid funk, very similar to the music now being made by Jamiroquai and (at a slightly faster tempo) Parcels. Towards the end, this funk actually takes on a trip-hop feel. However, the album flopped, the label terminated its contract with the artist, and Shuggie looked on it and thought, "I'm fine as it is!" And for many years, he worked as a session musician. He only released his next album in 2018. In 2001, David Byrne's label reissued Inspiration Information, adding four tracks from the previous album. This version is now available for streaming.
Nice music while cooking. I liked it.
Pretty good
Notable Textzeile: You making me happier Now I am snappier While I'm with you Zwei mal gehört und trotzdem ist es an mir vorbei gerauscht. Nicht auf eine unangenehme Art, aber auch ohne zu resonieren. Ein ganz netter Fund, hätte in der Plattensammlung meines Vaters mit den ganzen "großen" Gitarristen der 70er sein können. Ist es aber nicht und daher auch keine autobiographischer Ankünpfungspunkt. Ich bin einfach kein Instrumentalmensch.
Underground early electronic RnB? Geht so!
3.25
So not my jam...yawn.
Has merit
There are some points where it sounds like this album is going somewhere, then it doesn't. A flash of a groove, then it's gone. Turn up the funk, turn down the jazz and soul, and this could be really good.
Very pleasant vibes on this album. Totally dig it. Keeping it at a 3 but it doesn’t surprise me enough.
Psychedelic soul, 70's prince - played all instruments/produced
This is groovy. But nothing that blew my mind.
Clearly talented, but just didn’t vibe with it.
Different but quite enjoyable
Funky background music, it stands out a lot from similar albums on this list. It's consistently groovy, and it doesn't feel like that long. Sweet.
Wow, this is a beautiful, soulful album from an artist that I had never heard of. Definitely one of the good surprises from the list. The arrangements are funky, with interesting textures and rhythms. I really enjoyed this!
Parliament on prosaic. Funk soul jazz at a laid back pace .
a looooot of potential here
Nice, chilled out, but could offer more Fave track: Strawberry Letter 23
The vocal sections are surprisingly sparing for someone with such a great voice. 3.5/5
I didn't recognize the artist or album title, but I did recognize a few tunes, presumably from the classic rock station of my youth.
Correcto
Three-leaning-four
muy drogado
now I know where Jamiroquai got his sound.
Real smooth.
Not much to say on this one. Its fine old rnb or soul or something of that ilk. Just doesnt do too much for me. I enjoyed it well enough while on but just didnt get into it much. No saves and no care I guess. Good enough is all I got here
Good piece of music. Something id listen to again. Maybe as background music though. Its not strong enough to excite me, but it's good enough to own
Vibes music
Smooth soul/funk. The instrumentation is pretty decent Sparkle City sounds like it could have been a Prince track a decade later (with some extra punch). Aht Uh Mi Hed has a nice folksy psychedlia side too Happy House also has an eclectic energy, with semi-spoken on the funky background. Really reminding me of Prince. Then a few very laid back instrumentals.. Freedom City has a jazzy feel with the improv and freeform sections Yeah then it kind of peters out.. Best track - Sparkle City, Aht Uh Mi Hed, Not Available 3 stars - there are some 4 star moments here but it just loses momentum and focus
Haven't heard of him before so I didn't have any expectations. Pleasantly surprised! Some nice groovy tunes. Not spectacular but quite cool 3/5
Good album but not really a life changing one. Easy listening funk infused that gives it a 70 vibe but didnt age well the time line
3.5
Fav song: Freedom Flight
This was okay. Not something memorable for me personally.
pleasantville
It was iight, I quite liked Aht Uh Mi Hed but a lot of the rest of it all blended into one 3
Fine but unnotable
Decent
J'ai adoré le dernier son "Freedom Flight". Le reste est très sympa mais jsp pas plus que 3 pour moi. Je me le suis pas vraiment pris
First listen
It's a good album. Never truly understood the hype.
"Lazy Sunday" experimental soul funk. Standouts are Sparkle City, Happy House, and Aht Uh Mi Hed. The drum machine, which was a new novelty back in 1974, contributes to the quirky sound on this one. A similar mid/slow tempo shared by the songs on this record contribute to its laid-back chill groove, making it a good album to have on in the background.
a nice 70's rock/blues album. Fun listen - brought me back to the times...
pretty nice
Yeah I remember this one.
🙂
Good listening. Didn't catch me enough for 4/5 though, but nearly.
IT was fun
It’s pleasant and listenable but it kind of washed over me without leaving a big impression
Wow, never heard of him but this was quite good! A bit slow towards the end but it’s absolutely something I’d listen to again, particularly if I was in the mood for something bouncy but chill. It started autoplaying another of his albums after. Liked it too.
Funky and fun. Jazzy and easy to bop along to. I had another jazzy/funky album yesterday (The Crusaders), but I preferred this one!
Enjoyed this very smooth and funky
Enjoyed listening to this.
A tale of two halves. First half is excellent, the title track especially. But the second half falls into this disjointed collection of instrumentals
tinha potencial mas perdeu a linha ali no meio do caminho, de fato apenas deus e o pessoal no estúdio saberiam nos falar como que os cara pegaram um negócio que tava fluindo e fizeram isso ai
oficialmente o album da metade do desafio hein começou bem, mas me perdeu um pouco na segunda metade. mas não eh ruim nao, eh bem bacana e tem potencial!
Meh
Highlights: Inspiration Information, Island Letter, Sparkle City, Aht Uh Mi Hed A decent, smooth and calm funk record. First half was very good, with some sources comparing it to acts that would only emerge 20 years later. I beg to differ a bit, since I don't find it to be crazy revolutionary. There's a lot of similar material from that period. The second half, which is mostly instrumentals was ok, but nothing worth pointing out. Overall it was a nice record but my belief is that it's on this list only because David Bryne rereleased it through his label, thereby exposing it to his critic lobby.
Cool album. It's not my favorite music style, but it was very easy to listen to.
Started of strong and then it lost me in the second half.
really nice, cute and chill album, liked it!
Nice, groovy, easy listening. Probably not something I'll return to, but I enjoyed it.
really expected to like this more than i did. it had a lot of potential to be a good funk album leaned way to heavily into the soul aspect for my taste
First track was extremely promising but the energy fell off after that despite some high points instrumentally.
Jeg liker dette på mange måter veldig godt, men ligger hele tiden bare og runker i bakgrunnen i stedet for å engasjere.
Ikke så mye inspirasjon eller informasjon. Syns tittelsporet lovet veldig bra, men så gikk det over i helt ålreit smørsang på de to neste låtene. "Aht Uh Mi Hed" likte jeg godt nok til å legge i en liste, mens resten av plata er bare litt testing av Yamaha stueorgel? Synd "Strawberry Letter 23" ikke er med på originalplata.
A beautiful album. This would be great for studying or learning\work tasks in the background. The lack of strident or heavy vocals lets my mind zone out and enjoy. Not incredibly engaging, but lovely. This would be great music to have on as the first music at a party when everyone is chatting and getting to know each other. That said, listening is not a WOW moment for me.
Cool and groovy, not super interesting.
Probably good music for making babies but I'm shooting blanks. Good background music but never really got me going. Some of it is muzak.
Strong opening that tapers out to a weak finish. It's no Freedom Flight, but there's a few songs worth your time.
Just about a three.
3.5
3.5
I really enjoyed the vocal tracks of side one. Kind of a funkified Withers. The instrumental side didn't do much for me. (7.3) ★★★½ The bonus tracks I liked more than the album, all of which came from his previous Lp, which leads me to wonder, why this album and not *Freedom Flight*