Customer Reviews

2nd Crusade

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I was a teenager when this Double Album came out in 1972 ;it changed my perspective on music and moved me toward exploring Jazz. This is an incredible mixture of finger-poppin',foot-stompin' Blues-Soul-Funk, eclectic straight-ahead Improvisation and introspective Ballads.The driving Horn power of Wilton Felder and Wayne Henderson is wonderfully balanced by the feather touch of Joe Sample on Keyboards (Stix Hooper sets the pace seamlessly on Drums).These guys had already played together for over 10 years in a time when most groups lasted 3-5 years max. They also had a pretty good Guitar Player named Larry Carlton join them soon after. This CD is a great bridge for the new Jazz fan, defining where Jazz came from to where it was going, a real Crystal Ball into the future of Jazz Fusion. It is a shame that this group is NEVER mentioned in the Lexicon of Great Jazz Groups. The greater tragedy is that they recorded SIXTEEN ALBUMS on the PACIFIC JAZZ LABEL which have NOT been released on CD. Maybe one review at a time will help this timeless Group get the recognition they deserve.

(10-07); My wish finally came true: Mosaic Records in Connecticut has transferred all of the Pacific Jazz Albums onto a 6 CD Set! This is a must have for Crusader fans!

The good news is that the CD was mastered in such a way that some of the hotter trombone notes that practically bounced the stylus off the original record are tamed down. They now fit in a signal that is well reproduced off the CD.

The bad news is that some material is missing on the last track. The intro and the wandering ending of the last song (Do You Remember When) is gone. This totally changes the mood of the album since it has a flow and the end of the story is deleted.

You should also know that the album sounds different than it did on LP. As I stated first this is not clearly a bad thing. The LP had it's own set of problems.

Since I have the original LP I'm not too worried about it. I'm having second thoughts about CDs but am being fair.

This is one of my very favorite albums from back in the day, and the Crusaders have always had a beautiful chemistry within their band that was truly highlighted on "The 2nd Crusade". The mixture of styles has a wonderful range, and Joe Sample's songwriting was exquisite even in the early 70's. Listen closely to "A Message From the Inner City", and you'll hear a snippet of Wilton Felder's great sax solo that was sampled (no pun intended) By Queen Latifah on her rap song "UNITY" of several years back. "Do You Remember When" still gets my toes tappin' too. This one is a great oldie to add to the jazz collection.

This is the second of three double-length albums that The Crusaders recorded for ABC/Blue Thumb in the early '70's. We start off with the soulful "Don't Let It Get You Down". "Take It Or Leave It" follows immediately. "Gotta Get It On" has a funky shuffle feel to it. "Where There's A Will, There's A Way" never loses its stride. Next comes the reggae-flavored "Look Beyond The Hill". The tune is stated and continuously repeated. "Journey From Within" is very wild and free. "Ain't Gon' Change A Thang" is a super funky tune, followed immediately by the heartbreaking "A Message From The Inner City" (my all-time favorite Crusaders song). Stix lays down a SERIOUS groove here (this and Genesis' "The Fountain Of Salmacis" are my favorite drum grooves). "A Search For Soul" is a true Crusaders classic. "No Place To Hide" sends chills down my spine every time. Next comes the disco-flavored "Tomorrow, Where Are You", another tune where the melody is continuously repeated. A remake of their "Tough Talk" follows. We end with an edited version of "Do You Remember When" (the fluff where the frontmen miss their cues leading to an improvised line from Larry Carlton is taken out and the guitar solo at the end fades out sooner than on the domestic issue of this album--see the 1981 anthology THE BEST OF THE CRUSADERS).

Some of my fondest childhood memories are of waking up with the sun pouring into my window and the sweet sound of the Crusaders coming up from downstairs, so I'll always have a soft spot for their sound. Along with "Pass the Plate" (wherefor art thou? ), "The 2nd Crusade" ranks at the very top of my all time blissful jazz list. Listen and You'll See...

The 2nd Crusade is one of the most classic jazz albums ever recorded. It's one of those rare albums, with one great track after another. A must have for any true jazz lover.

Jazz has always held a special meaning in my life and the community I come from. The Crusaders in particular brought a different dimension to JAZZ intepretation even more so when it is shared by a typical SOWETAN from the townships of Johannesburg South Africa. The 2nd Crusade album is but one of the Crusaders production which helped me understand the melody in the use of trombone, the subtle but yet satisfying translation of thought into song. I sometimes wonder what was going through the band's mind when they composed and recorded this lifetime masterpiece. Do you think you can find this out for me?

Still listen to this music regularly, recently bought a new CD to complete my collection that I have learned to love from the Seventies. Yea the Seventies, Like many who spent time in Europe where we learned there was more than just Rock. Mellow to this day.

when i first got this cd i knew i got it because i was looking for a queen latifah sample and to my amazement it was there and i heard the song in its entirety..and i must say its a really great song its number 8 and the sample comes in around 6 mins in...its recognizable horn sample to unity.

The original funk. This is the standard in jazz, rock, funk fusion!