Various Artists [Afrodisiac - Forty Original Soulful Classics]Of course the word 'Afrodisiac' on this album comes from the word 'aphrodisiac', a substance to help increase sexual arousal, it's a nice play on words, of course most if not all of the Artists on these discs are Americans of African origin, and Soul music is certainly associated with sexiness, the discs steer somewhat away from from Disco and R & B, concentrating on real Soul, this was an inspired idea, make the discs into a fairly narrow band of genre, no track seems out of place.
The booklet and back insert are very well laid out indeed, with a picture of a girl with a huge afro hairstyle, very apt, but it's the monotone yellow and brown [and of course black and white] which make the visuals very appealing, the track listing easily differentiates between Artist and songs, by using different colours, something other compilers should take note of, it really makes things easy to read, and is visually pleasing, i see these disc on Ebay a lot as i search for desirable discs to buy, and i can't count the amount of times i've seen this set going for £1, and with £1 postage too, it means that a whole disc of music costs just £1 each, and delivered to your door too!, i recommend you snap up a copy if you see one.
Well again there's so many tracks that really got me in the mood, maybe i could just mention a few, tracks 17, 28, 37 & 40 were especially incredible, possibly the Disco slant to the discs?, here's my feeling about them,
17 The Real Thing - You To Me Are Everything, this got to No1 in the British charts in July 1976, yep that summer of '76, a heatwave, i remember this song being on the radio a lot, everytime i hear it, those endless summer days come flowing back to me, surprisingly it didn't do well in the States!, this song has a wonderfully flowing groove it, there's that cha cha guitar laying down a real groove, and in the chorus the sweet strings come in, plus the chorus has an incredible intensity to it, with a chorus of three guys creating a real Disco froth, a superb track.
28 Jimmy Helms - Gonna Make You An Offer You Can't Refuse, got to No1 in the British charts in 1973, starts right away with singing the chorus, with the first word sung in A capella in a high powerful voice, making a tremendous effect, it's just this high falsetto voice that mesmerises throughout, verse and chorus blend and complement each other perfectly.
37 Limmie & The Family Cookin' - You Can Do Magic, got to No3 in the British charts in 1973, i thought it was a fantastic song at the time, but largely it's been forgotten, and now doesn't feature greatly even on compilation discs, so it was a great reunion when i got these discs, they also had another hit with 'Walking Miracle', which was also excellent, but who remembers them now?, Limmie actually comes from Limmie Snell, a guy, but i always thought it was a female singer, it's certainly a very high voice, the chorus is so contagious, such a great burst of energy on magic, magic, this is a song worth getting acquainted with.
40 The Three Degrees - When Will I See You Again, hit the No1 spot in the British charts in 1974, a perfect song to end these compilation discs with, the bittersweet parting of two people who don't know if it's love or just friendship, and don't know if they'll meet again, it's those sweet strings that soar in at the start, over a clever percussion, but the stars are of course three girls with superb harmonies, with their sexy ooh's and ahh's as an intro, deep down it's the ongoing strings in the background that binds it all together, a real nostalgic hit to the heart.
