Island of Real [Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered]

Rascals | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 8, 1999)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered
• Label: Sundazed Music Inc.
• ASIN: B00000I561
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #154,923 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Lucky Day

2. Saga Of New York

3. Be On The Real Side

4. Jungle Walk

5. Brother Tree

6. Island Of Real

7. Hummin' Song

8. Echoes

9. Buttercup

10. Time Will Tell

11. Lament

12. Prove It

13. Love Is A Woman

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An underrated album by a super-underrated band!, November 18, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Island of Real (Audio CD)

The Rascals second and final album at Columbia.Two of the original Rascals ;Gene Cornish and Eddie Brigati left in 1970 so it was decided by Felix Cavaliere and Dino Danelli that the new line-up of the band would take an incredibly brave (if unommercial) turn toward jazz/rock/r&b fusion.The result:a completely different Rascals.The previous LP "Peaceful World" was even more remote and eclectic than this.After that Lps poor showing,Columbia president Clive Davis insisted The Rascals produce a more "commercial" sounding record-and this is the result.It s full of incredible playing (Dino Danelli,Robert Popwell and Buzzy Feiten are drum/bass/guitar MONSTERS and they gel perfectly) Felix is his usual-awesome vocals,decent organ playing,masterful songs,lackluster lyrics.Annie Sutton and Molly Holt were two added background singers.Holt solos on "ECHOES", Cavalieres' shamelessly well-done attempt at a Bacharach/David-Warwick record.Sutton duets with Felix on the great TIME WILL TELL.Buzzy copped an a-side single with his super-funky JUNGLE WALK.Popwells' groove on the social commentary track, BE ON THE REAL SIDE was ahead of it's time.BUTTERCUP is terrific and one of my favorites.LUCKY DAY and ISLAND OF REAL both attempt to recapture the soul and spirit of 1968's A BEAUTIFUL MORNING (a near impossible task-especially without Eddie Brigatis' lyrical input). Two unreleased tracks PROVE IT (classic 60's Memphis/Stax groove) and LOVE IS A WOMAN (slow,heavy funk) make this essential for Rascals fans.No,it's no the GOOD LOVIN' Rascals from the Atlantic years.But any music buff,jazz fan,hip drummer,guitar freak... can HEAR that these are AWESOME talents making great music that 98.5% of the public never got to hear.There is a cultist clique of surprisingly diverse music fans who praise these two Columbia albums.See for yourself.A gem of an album. JOE RUSSO

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Rascals flying high on Island of Real, March 7, 2001

By 

John W. Butler, Jr. (Spring, Texas USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Island of Real (Audio CD)

The colorful cover says it all. This is a magical album from a truly great band. Even without guitarist Gene and terrific singer Eddie, this album lacks nothing. Felix, a fine singer and songwriter (who, despite comments from another reviewer, does not write lackluster lyrics), and Dino's catchy rhythms (along with the wonderful cover!) make this album a must buy. The record soars, with pop, jazz, and r&b effortlessly fused into an always interesting set of tunes. "Lucky Day" starts it off promisingly, and it just keeps on, with other standouts including an unbelievably funky "Jungle Walk", a pretty "Brother Tree", and a slow grooving "Be On the Real Side". Many great guest artists drop in to add saxes, background vocals, and other nice touches. One of the Rascals' best albums ever.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Why didn't this album do better, April 14, 2003

By 

D. Wolf "wolfd" (Fairfax, VA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Island of Real (Audio CD)

Island of Real is a superb pop, funk, R&B album with lots of good hooks, great playing etc.

I've never understood why this band never got bigger. I heard lots of stories from insiders back in the 70's that Felix C. was incredibly difficult to deal with in a business sense. The message being that he hadn't earned his prima donna status. Nonetheless, this album clearly demonstrates the band's ability to produce that rarest of blends - really good music with strong commercial appeal. Like another reviewer commented, "Lucky Day" should have been a pop classic. It always struck me as one of those songs you'd hear blasting out of a car radio during the summer.

Oh well.. those of us who've found this album are the lucky ones. Hopefully this CD will stay in print long enough for others to find it too.