Kool & The Gang: Wild And Peaceful - 1973

Move on a few albums later, to 1973, and the band had added vocals to their funky sound and this was seen as their "breakthrough" album. The vocals were mere occasional additions, really, as instrumental funk was still the order of the day, now accompanied by what would soon be obligatory (for funk bands) whistles. 

Funky Stuff was an intoxicating funker of the sort that James Brown was releasing at the same time. Needless to say its bass, drums and horns are outstanding. It has that insistent strummed funky guitar sound that Brown also used so well. The track has been sampled regularly over subsequent years. Even more cookin', guitar line wise, is the irresistible More Funky Stuff. 

The well-known, much-played Jungle Boogie was the first track to get really popular from the band, as they tell us to "get down, get down" and do the jungle boogie. Check out the clavinet soloing half way through. Excellent. These tracks had all been influenced by Manu Dibango's Soul Makossa, from 1972, and you can hear it. 

Heaven At Once has the group going all tranquil and philosophical on a track that is a bit cheesy, with its spoken vocals, but it sort of has its appeal. The other successful track on the album was the full-on vocal (comparatively) song that was Hollywood Swinging. Again, it features wonderful bass, drums and horns. It has a sort of prototype Parliament-Funkadelic feel to it in places. This Is You, This Is Me is a superb serving of grinding but melodic funk. The funky beat doesn't let up for one nano-second. Great stuff.

Life Is What You Make It is insistently captivating, getting into your system via its bass, guitar and keyboards. This was funk of the highest quality and is a gritty world away from Ladies Night and Celebrate, the band's late seventies-early eighties hits. For the final track, Wild And Peaceful, the band go all John (A Love Supreme) Coltrane on a transcendental, blissed-out saxophone and jazz rhythm-dominated nine minute-plus workout.

This was a really impressive album and one that has still remained under the radar somewhat. It is the best of this batch of Kool & The Gang albums that I have reviewed. Funky as fuck, as they say...

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