Customer Reviews

First Minute of a New Day

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

 

 

From the opening strains of "Offering" ("We have...something to offer you...") to the final crescendo of the touching "Alluswe", the music flows with sincerity and power. While I'm not as enamoured of the spoken tracks (a bit too preachy and dated), the music holds up well 25 years later.

This is a band with fine soloists (Brian Jackson on keyboards, Bilal Sunni Ali on sax, and of course, Gil Scott-Heron's soulful singing), soaring harmony (esp. on "Must Be Something"), atmospheric arrangements ("Western Sunrise", "Guerilla", "Offering"), and driving rhythm ("Liberation Song" and "Superman"). All this without any guitar in the group. But you really don't miss it...

I hear a strong Coltrane influence in Ali's sax playing, am hauntingly touched by Jackson's piano on "Alluswe" (my favorite track on this disc), and while the lyrical content might seem off-putting to a capitalist such as myself I am nevertheless reminded that we all must never lose touch with our innate humanity. (Stevie Wonder's music of this time also serves this purpose for me.) To paraphrase Casey Kasem, one must always keep "your feet on the ground", even while reaching for the stars!

The Midnight Band are eternal. I expect to be enjoying this album many years into the future, as I have over the past quarter century.

Excellence in musicanship & content. This is what conscious music is supossed to sound like. Gil is one of the pioneers in rap & hip-hop ( with James Brown, George Clinton & The Last Poets)."Must be Something","Ain't no such Thing as Superman","Winter in Amerika","Offering",&"The Liberation Song" and my personal favorites "Pardon our Analysis" &"Guerilla". Gil Scott-Heron & The Last Poets were my introduction into politically aware musicians.The artwork alone, by Brother Ron ( the Iceman) is worth more than the price of entry. "I believe we will see us in my lifetime, standing tall on a mountain letting our light shine"..............Buy anything with this Brothers name on it.

GS and BJ were a awsome duo.You don't have to agree with the politics in order to enjoy it. He is an powerful musical poet who recorded a string of jamming albums that moved your soul as well as your feet. GS is a balladeer of moving emotions just listen to "Winter in America". One only hopes that he can shake his demons and return to form! Buy It!

I always make this delineation when I listen to and review Gil Scott Heron, which is admittedly never enough: he had three distinct periods. His solo poetry proto-rap on albums like Small Talk at 125th and Lenox, the jazzy funk with jazz musician backing on early Flying Dutchman albums like Pieces of a Man, and the Midnight Band albums, which I feel is Heron's best work.

I need look no further than First Moments Of A New Day to explain why I am Midnight partial. The Flying Dutchman material has many charms, but you always got the sense listening it was a poet backed by a band.

Technically, this is also true here. But like all the Midnight Band material, Heron's concepts are fully realized with a band that has jazz chops, but is more informed by rock and 1970s funk. The added backing vocals do not hurt---they give more of a musical backdrop to the poetry, and Heron here seems liberated to work as both a reciter AND singer.

This album works not because of the downplaying of the literary piece, but how it becomes a color in a funk jazz poetry protest painting.

Obviously, most of what Heron writes about is either outdated or does not now appear in the same way it did in the 1970s. But the fact that we are still buying ALL these albums show how well constructed they musically were.

Forget the poetry and the protest and the 1970s. As funk, right at this 2010 second, you can't and won't beat this.

this album when I first heard it in the 70's really made me cry, I have not listened to it in 20 years and only recently bought the cd. Now it makes me cry with tears of joy for such great artists and poets

Gil Scott-Heron is one of the most sampled artists of the 70's (besides Roy Ayers and George Clinton). You can find Gil's work on more than a few modern-day hip-hop albums. The reason? Gil's music, particularly on this album, is funky and pretty unique...no one blended political lyrics, world and jazz music, and wonderful arrangements quite like Gil Scott-Heron. This album is definately one of his best and has all of the above-stated elements in place to be considered a masterpiece. The only better album of Gil's would have to be "Bridges" which sadly has been out of print for a very very long time (although it can be found on vinyl pretty easily and cheaply). However, this album is his second best, and definately the best of his albums that are currently in print. A good album for those wanting to get initated to Gil Scott-Heron's music. If you like this album other albums to explore further would be: Bridges (vinyl only unfortunately), It's Your World (good live album), Pieces of a Man, and Winter In America. But this one is a really great place to start.

Armed with a contract from the fledgling Arista record label and building on the success of the stripped back "Winter in America", Gil Scott-Heron and musical partner Brian Jackson entered the studio to record "The First Minute of the New Day". Whereas "Winter in America" was largely just Scott-Heron and Jackson, "The First Minute of the New Day" is fully arranged music sitting close to a vocal jazz style, but with a healthy dose of funk overtones. The sound on this record is distinctive and quite unlike much of Scott-Heron's other work-- in part because of the presence of additional vocalist Victor Brown. Brown's high tenor provides a fantastic offset to Scott-Heron's lower register, and the two harmonize to great effect. The band supporting them is essentially a sax quartet (Bilal Sunni Ali on reeds, Jackson on piano, Danny Bowens on electric bass and Bob Adams on drums) augmented by a trio of percussionists-- Charlie Saunders, Eddie Knowles and Barnett Williams. The band whips up a blues/jazz/funk stew, anchored effectively by Bowens, who proves stunningly agile and effective, weaving in and out of the delicate wall of percussion and the melodies.

The pieces themselves on the album are staggering in their diversity, from a mournful blues ("Winter in America") to a delicate and serene jazz ballad ("Offering") to deep funk ("The Liberation Song") and spoken word ("Pardon Our Analysis"). As expected, Scott-Heron's lyrical wit is in full effect, whether discussing the politics of Africa, the Nixon administration, the state of the nation or just reflections on everyday life, he's nothing short of brilliant.

This reissue augments the album with a pair of bonus tracks- an extended spoken word piece including a reprise of Scott-Heron's famed "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" (and one of the most brilliant performances on record by him in spoken word) and a solo performance of "Winter in America" from the late '70s. All of this is remastered and sounds superb.

It's not quite the masterpiece that it's predecessor ("Winter in America") or its successor ("From South Africa to South Carolina") is, but "The First Minute of a New Day" is a fantastic album, capturing an artist at his peak. Highly recommended.

The First Minute of a New Day is where Gil Scott-Heron and multi-instrumentalist Brian Jackson truly hit their stride. Unlike Winter In America, which was a very introspective album, this release stirs up the pot musically. Scott-Heron's vocals, which could be choppy on his earlier albums, are in fine form throughout and his spoken word observations are more focused without losing any of their conviction. It's also here where the music truly matches the power of Scott-Heron's message. The album's opening track, "Offering", is very solemn and is carried by an emotional flute line by Jackson and great harmonies from both Scott-Heron and vocalist Victor Brown. Tracks like the cool R&B of "Must Be Something", the jazzy "Western Sunrise", and the funky "No Such Thing As Superman" are top notch and feature great sax playing from Bilal Sunni Ali. Heron's lyrics remain as poignant as ever on the mid-tempo turned shuffle of "Guerilla" and the aforementioned "Must Be Something." The track "Alluswe" is an elegant ballad similar to those on Winter In America and feature smooth vocals from Scott-Heron and beautiful piano from Jackson. While the spoken word pieces "Pardon Our Analysis" and "A Talk..." may sound dated today, they're both clever and intelligent as he correctly observes the social inequalities that were present in the mid-1970's. Although everything here is first rate, there are two tracks that take the album to another level. "The Liberation Song (Red, Black, and Green)" is the most exciting track that Gil Scott-Heron has ever performed. Driven by an intense performance from the Midnight Band, the music matches their plea for equal rights perfectly. Finally, "Winter In America" is a haunting ballad with some of his most thoughtful lyrics. The solo version included at the album's conclusion featuring just Gil and his piano is just as powerful. All told, The First Minute of a New Day is the strongest studio release from Gil Scott-Heron, Brian Jackson, and the Midnight Band. Highly recommended.

This album/CD provided one the most impactful experiences of my life. I rate this cd up there with the best that Bob Marley or Stevie Wonder ever produced. Gil, Brian and the rest of the Midnight Band were really an all-time great unit whose music and social/cultural/vision stand the test of time. This album/cd was my first venture into their music and I have been hooked for 20 years. Start here if you want to hear the very best.

This CD is a classic. The ideas and sentiments are as true today asc they were when Gil-Scott Heron and Brian Jackson put this together.