The main thing about this album is that there's just tons and tons of energy in the room. I was surprised at how uptempo the whole album is. Even what he refers to as the "romantic" material is performed with a driving feel and a lot of momentum. At first I thought a little more contrast in intensity would have been better, but Cooke clearly knew his audience and the crowd's response is unequivocal. He's known for his smooth, sweet voice but the slight gravel apparent here heightens the urgency he gives his performance. From listening alone, there is a direct and immediate sense of his presence in the room. This record is almost as interesting for showing Cooke as an expert entertainer as it is for the specific musical performance.
The call and response sections with the audience and his overall demeanor are very preacherly. Cooke and a lot if his soul and R&B contemporaries got started with gospel music and Cooke's father was actually a preacher. This started me wondering if Cooke was the inspiration for "Son of a Preacher Man" (written for Aretha Franklin but first released as sung by Dusty Springfield). It's rumored that Cooke wrote "You Send Me" for Franklin (who would have been 15 years old when it was released).
The band is cooking but they're not always captured very well. The vocals are way out front (rightly so) and the drums and guitar are always present, but the rest of the band is not consistently heard. Sometimes the horns are playing hard and punchy but at the same time they sound weak and far away. Obviously, if this was recorded today with the intent to release a live album, it would be done differently. At least they put the recording aside rather than destroying it with studio overdubs so now we have this document of the lesser-recognized side of Sam Cooke. It's impossible not to imagine what it would have been like to have been there that night.
Also: King Curtis!
For what it's worth, the version available on Spotify (as of summer 2026) seems to be the 2005 remix, which according to Wikipedia "generally splits the difference" between the raw 1985 mix and the more polished 2000 mix.
Duran Duran was a guilty pleasure during the years when I thought I had graduated from Top 40 radio but at the same time couldn't keep my eyes off MTV. Not that I listen to Duran Duran much nowadays, but I can appreciate their music a lot more now. Rio is insanely catchy, a tour de force. The bass is constantly percolating throughout the length of the song, never letting up.
As an album, there's always something interesting going on if you listen closely, but nothing has the same energy as Rio. The second half actually drags a bit, especially New Religion. The album closer, The Chauffer, makes better use of the less-frenetic pace, creating a moody almost menacing piece that feels like it belongs on an episode of Miami Vice.
All in all, though, it's just an OK album, more interesting than it might seem but with only a few standout songs. I can't really consider it essential listening.
Well, despite liking the Chili Peppers earlier in my life I don't think I've ever listened to this album before. The songs I heard when it came out just turned me off the band completely, and I haven't really looked back. (That said, "LA Lakers, fast break makers, kings of the court, shake and bake all takers" still goes through my head pretty often.)
I'm going to try to give this a fair listen. Here goes.
The Power of Equality - good bass playing up front while the guitar repeats the same minimalist "Hey Batter Batter" part until the chorus, very effective way to build energy and anticipation, but the vocals are terrible and and the bridge is ???
If You Have to Ask - eh, OK groove but boring as a song, kills all the momentum from the previous song
Breaking the Girl - the chord progression is interesting, some flute sounds (mellotron?) and other interesting production choices (hammer-on-anvil sound mixed in with the drums?), I don't like the song but can see how someone could, the vocals feel like they have some sort of emotion to them
Funky Monks - there are hundreds of better funk bands, bands that literally make you want to stand up and dance
Suck My Kiss - no, just no
I Could Have Lied - not inherently terrible, the singing is a step up from the usual talking loud/almost rapping
Mellowship Slinky in B Major - and once again the vocals just ruin it, both the lyrics and the delivery, the band sets up a nice groove that would be fine but as soon as the vocals come in...
The Righteous and the Wicked - absolutely shit vocals, basic groove with some interesting sections, the first part of the chorus is the worst, the generic and repetitive metal riff that comes in later in the song brings it down too
Give It Away - OK this is a truly great bassline, guitar part really works, drums are solid, the weird nasally vocals are surprisingly not terrible, the psychedelic guitar solos make the groove that much more undeniable when it comes back, apparently this song was written by Flea and Frusciante for another band and repurposed for this Chili Peppers album
[Damn, there's 8 songs left!?!]
Blood Sugar Sex Magik - the vocals are just so, so bad, there's nothing musical about the flow, just say whatever word comes on the third beat a little louder and angrier, musically the least interesting song so far
Under the Bridge - pretty catchy and while I would never call Keidis a great singer, this is so much better than the other vocalizing he does on this album, the quiet transition from the verse into the chorus is nicely done with the rimshots, the bridge at least tries something different
Naked in the Rain - if you're looking for a blend of funk and hard rock this has potential, combines a decent groove with a scratchy guitar dancing around the beat, the chorus is really terrible though, a band like Living Color could turn this into something good
Apache Rose Peacock - pretty boring musically although the guitar is not bad, lyrics and vocals bring it way down, no energy and then the metal guitar at the end is just... what?
The Greeting Song - trash
My Lovely Man - more trash? I'm trying but someone stuck these songs at the end of the second side for a reason, Wikipedia says the album is 73 minutes and 56 seconds long, exactly 4 seconds short of the maximum length of a CD, it seems like they thought they had to fill the CD or they wouldn't get paid?
Sir Psycho Sexy - the closest they get to a p-funk sound (sonically, not musically, mostly because there's a wah-wah or something like that on the bass) but as with almost every song on this album, the vocals are intolerable
They’re Red Hot - throwaway, I hope Robert Johnson didn't leave his royalties to the devil but he probably did
If you made it this far, you probably know exactly what I'm going to say now. This is not good and it's mostly the fault of Anthony Kiedis. The rest of the band has talent and Flea is really one of a kind, but the result is less than the sum of the parts. On the songs where the band is best, it still feels like they are leaving a lot of space for Keidis to shout. The lyrics are mostly really bad (at best well-intentioned but not well-expressed) and even worse, they are soooo in your face. When Keidis actually sings, he is capable of imparting some emotion and musicality to the slower songs. Unfortunately, that doesn't play to the strengths of the band, the high-energy, hard-hitting grooves, but I guess they're now more popular for their rap-rock ballads?
I went back and listened to their earlier albums and Keidis can actually sing and rap decently, (although most of his lyrics couldn't be called decent by any definition). Every album before this one also showed some artistic development for the group too, including the one after Hillel Slovak died. This one's a big step down from Mother's Milk in almost every way. While I'm not sure Mother's Milk or any of their other albums are truly essential, saying someone should spend 73 minutes and 56 seconds with THIS album before they die is downright sadistic.
