Customer Reviews

Funkiest Man Alive: Stax Funk Sessions 1967-1975

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

 

 

So it says on the back of the album cover. It's no lie; this CD is hot!! Talk about funky! I think Rufus gave James Brown a run for his money some times. Here you get 18 of his funkiest and finest. From the title track which sounds like it will never end, (and why should it?) to classics like "Itch and Scratch" and "Sophisticated Sissy." On some of these that have dance names in the title, they all kind of sound the same. Rufus announces he's back with a new dance for everyone, says what it is and how to do it. Those are "Do The Funky Penguin", "Do The Push and Pull", and "Funky Robot" among others. It's pretty cool; even if you don't know how to do these dances, just do something that makes sense. These songs definitely have such colossal grooves to them. Bass lines and drum riffs are sweet!
The CD has inlay liner notes about Rufus' biographical info and his involovement with Stax and the songs presentes. So check Rufus Thomas out. He was middle-aged when he did all these songs, but that made no difference. He still could make life a dance party and that's what this CD is all about: a dance party!
As he said, "I ain't gettin' older; I'm gettin' better."

This is a fine compilation, featuring some hard hitters, but it leans more into the 70s than other sets. "Funky Hot Grits", "Itch & Scratch" "Funky Mississippi" and "Breakdown" are stellar, but the Warner Platinum Collection is an equally hard hitting set; what with the original version of "Memphis Train" (not the 70's version here), "Sister's Got A Boyfriend" and "Walking The Dog". Thomas rarely referred to himself as "The Funkiest Man Alive" outside of the song itself. His career tag-line was "The World's Oldest Teenager". From my perspective, Rufus brought a style of Street Funk that James Brown rarely touched until he got Bootsy and Phelps Collins in his band; sticking more to 'entertainment Funk' if you will allow that term. Anyone interested in seeing Rufus Thomas at the height of his popularity should look into getting the WATTSTAX DVD from right here on Amazon. Albert Collins, The BarKays, Staple Singers, Little Milton and Issac Hayes all do their level best... but NO ONE comes close to touching Rufus dropping the bomb ("The Breakdown" & "Do The Funky Chicken") in his hot pink shorts, Go-Go boots and cape! Thomas released something like 28 singles with Stax, two on Atlantic, two on AVI Records, one on Artists Of America and one on Hi Records; before putting out junk like "Rufus Raps" in the 80s. A number of the B-sides are quite good and have never been digitally released.