Customer Reviews

Come Get It

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It was a sunny day in 1978. I'd been reading in Billboard about two new acts that Motown was touting. I went down to Tower Records and picked up the debut albums from Switch and Rick James. I was not disappointed. Motown's aim was to grab the attention of younger record buyers. Stevie Wonder was more mature, and even The Commodores suddenly went M-O-R. This was the ticket. This did the trick! Rick James was everything that Motown wasn't, up to this time. He was loud. He was controversial. He was (very) high, most of the time. He was over-the-top FUNKY! This auspicious debut was a near-perfect synthesis of funk and rock. Black kids (like me) loved it, but White kids could also get into it. "You And I" took over the radio waves that summer. "Mary Jane," Rick's Ode to Herb, was another out-of-the-box smash. And Rick could really sing, as on the ballads, "Dream Maker" and "Hollywood." You could tell that he was a creative force to be reckoned with (and if you couldn't, the next album, "Bustin' Out Of L-Seven," was the convincer)! Rick James sold millions of records, discovered Teena Marie, became one of the hottest producers of his day (including work with The Temptations, Smokey Robinson, Eddie Murphy, and The Mary Jane Girls), and was a major concert attraction, too. But I have to say his career (as a whole) was disappointing to me. Rick James had the talent to be on top of the show business world for decades. His troubles with the law are well-known. I feel he took too much for granted, wasted too much time, and squandered too much talent. Sly Stone was a big, big influence for Rick James, but Rick definitely didn't learn from Sly's crash and slow burn. I hope Rick is recovering from his stroke. I hope he can someday come back and thrill the world anew.

1) No road rage of any kind because evvyone drove a hooptie.

2) A drug dealer in the 'hood was more like Huggy Bear, not Pacino in "Scarface".

3) Evvything Rick James would put out was bound to be funky and soulful....

Relive the 70s with this original from Slick Rick James.

Come Get It and Bustin' Out of L-Seven are both masterpieces. The musical arrangements are phenomenal, the songs are loooong and funky as hell, the lyrics are priceless and Rick exudes confidence. Rick's early stuff is undoubtedly his best. I've listened to Rick James for 20 years and I never tire of these two titles.

rick is from my hometown and this debut made me feel proud.as writter,arranger,producer,instrumentalist and image maker this was the one that got the ball rolling.Mary Jane You and I,dream maker it grooves and it's funky but more than that it has soul.it's funny how he started out with a bang and kept on delievering for years that's the genius of this man plus a madd shout out to the stone city band.

In the summer of 1978, no one had really heard of Rick James or the Stone City Band. That didn't last long once Rick released his classic, and perhaps, his most authentic funk album, "Come Get It." It dominated the streets that summer. "You and I" was the big hit followed by "Mary Jane" - Rick's personal ode to marijuana. Of course, this should have been a telltale sign to Rick's descent into drug addiction but Rick still spoke in code, whereas today, rappers speak openly and proudly of smoking weed regularly. But regardless of Rick's ideology, this album is superb. There are powerful beats, swinging rhythm tracks, and simple lyrics about partying, life, and love. "Be My Lady" is my favorite while "You and I" still rocks as hard today as it did back in 1978. I can remember playing this album literally everyday back then. It came out at that moment when one is becoming appreciative of music for what it does for you emotionally. This was way before CDs and hip-hop gangstas and sampling machines took music in another direction that it seems to be lost in sometimes. "Come Get It" was pure dance music, authentic funk, and an album that saluted a particular time and era of great fun.

In the late '70s and early '80s, Rick James did more than anyone to challenge George Clinton's place on the funk throne. Eventually, his music would turn into a very tired cliché, but at his creative peak, James was among the most exciting and vital artists funk had to offer. Summarizing his Motown output from 1978-1986 and offering four new tracks from 1994 as well, this two-CD anthology reminds you just how great he once was, but it provides evidence of his artistic decline as well. Though some of the songs are mediocre, most are outstanding. Even the most casual funk fans owe it to themselves to savor such rowdy classics as "Super Freak," "You and I," "Love Gun," "Give It to Me Baby," and "Ghetto Life." James was equally superb when it came to soul ballads -- and anyone who thinks otherwise should give a serious listen to "Fire and Desire" (a stunning duet with Teena Marie), "Dream Maker," and "Ebony Eyes" (which features Smokey Robinson). Sadly, "Cold Blooded" and "17" illustrate how formulaic James' funk often sounded by the mid-'80s. Meanwhile, some of the new material (including an enjoyable remake of Norman Connors' "You Are My Starship") indicated that he had the potential to make a comeback with the right guidance. Boasting many more pluses than minuses, this set is the best place for novices to start.

I have listened to Rick for many years, and I have always loved this debut album from the king of funk. Most people regard Street Songs as his best, but I think this along with his second release Bustin' out of L-seven ranks as his masterpieces. The Parliament/Funkadelic influences are pretty obvious on the Stone City Band tracks, but songs like Mary Jane, Sexy Lady and You and I are pure Rick. I love the slower songs too (Dream Maker, Hollywood). I think this album is a better introduction to the world of Rick James than the compilations avalible.

Come get it, is a complete album from "You and I" an eight min + rollercoaster of a tune that takes you on a P-funk ride to Be My Lady "that all I'm asking you baby yeah yeah yeah yeah" (lady T I wonder) to Hollywood "how he got there" if you want to listen to a debut album to make your hair stand on end well look no further your ETA has just reached!!!

The cd is super, I had this piece of music on an 8 track tape, and I wanted to hear the sound, and I must say that I am well pleased.

on "You and I," Rick James' was saying "Come Get It!," this mix of hard core funk that still stands up, almost 30 years later. This is one of the top debut albums of all time from an artist who unfortunately had more going on in his personal life at the end of his career. When I first heard "You and I," I knew I had to have this album and when I finally got it, I wasn't disappointed. From "You and I" to "Sexy Lady" to "Mary Jane," this was my summer of '78 soundtrack album, one that got me to get up and move. And as he slowed it down with "Dream Maker" Rick showed that it wasn't all about "funkin' things up!" Rick would go on to make some great music in the future (the classic "Street Songs" album, work w/Teena Marie, among other endeavors), but it is this album that will always rank as my all time favorite. Later on it seemed that Rick let other things get in the way of the music and that in the end was too bad. I was saddened to hear of his death today and this lead me to thinking about his music and mainly, this album, which is a classic debut by a very talented man...RIP Rick.