Customer Reviews

Let's Take It to the Stage

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

the remastering job and cover art and liner notes are great, but westbound edited the beginning of atmosphere. i bought this version instead of the import because i read that the import had this edit also, so i figured that westbound wouldn't make the same mistake but they did. the edit is just stupid because it's only about 10 seconds they take off the beginning of the song and it makes no sense to do it.

don't buy until you know for sure that the edit has been fixed.

I personally believe that Funkadelic were hitting a peak when they made 'Let's Take It To The Stage".They had certainly perfected their mix of funk and psychedelic rock and
had it down to a science.And in the pure funk-rock idion
"Good To Your Earhole","Stuffs And Things" and the unforgettable
"Get Off Your Ass And Jam" are the real deal!The zany title track and the cryptic "Better By The Pound" are P-Funk basics with the latter featuring a brilliant percussion section.And the
whole shabang ends off with the dirty,dirty "Atmosphere",nothing
but gospel organ and a filthy lyric-it so sacreligious I LOVE it!
"Be My Beach" is one of those psychedelic Bootsy ballads that just punches you out (at least it does me) and
"No Head,No Backstage Pass" is trashier then anything I've
heard Aerosmith or Sabbath or ANY groovy hard rock band do!
"This Song Is Familiar" is yet more of Funkadelic at their
irreverant best-almost acapella gospel of sorts!To me this is
one Funkadelic album that got pretty overlooked at first but that the years have treated VERY kindly!This is the kind of music that Digital Underground and Outkast have cut their teeth on and as it is it's still out and out FUNKY!Not to mention how
it steers out of the long winded jam band style that had become a Funkadelic clishe'.I'd actually recommend this to anyone as the Funkadelic album to start with-their first album is at the
same level but this is somewhat easier to get into!

This album strikes a balance between the earlier more psycadelic material; Maggot Brain, Free Your Mind; and the later more commercial stuff; One Nation. The first cut, Good To Your Earhole is as strong a record as the group ever made, with stong drumming, excellent keyboard work by Bernie Worrell, and a blistering guitar solo at the end, courtesey of the legendary Eddie Hazel.

I go back & forth between this album and Standing on the Verge being my favorite Funkadelic albums. Gun to my head, I'd probably say "Let's Take It To The Stage" most days. My father brought this home for me on 8-track (I was 14), and to this day I still don't know if he had any idea... The album smokes from start to finish, from Earhole to Atmosphere. More accessible than the earlier stuff, not as commercial as the later stuff, this is the band at the peak of its powers.

I first had this on 8-track in high school, so among other things, it is a sentimental favorite. But ... I have most of their stuff and to me, this is their best. It does not have the longer funk jams or completely whacked out guitar work that some of the later/earlier CDs feature. What you get here is very TIGHT, very clever and very funny stuff. The title track is a classic where they poke fun at other funk/soul groups of the day. Lot's of Bootsy shines through here too. "Get Off Your Ass and Jam" forces you to do just that, albeit for only 2 minutes. The lead cut, "Good To Your Earhole" is another burner.

Don't miss this one!!!

BTW, it is not a live album, as some folks think.

I saw an interview w/ Bootsy Collins (bass player) and he said that of all his musical efforts, this was his favorite album. Nuff said?

It bothers me when Parliament and Funkadelic are lumped together as the same entity. For example, VH1 claims that the 99th greatest rock act of all time is Parliament/Funkadelic. Although both groups, spearheaded by George Clinton, had rotating line-ups of musicians that usually overlapped, each band had their own sound and boasts an impressive catalogue of music that is not related to the other in any way. In my opinion, BOTH Parliament and Funkadelic should be included separately in any "Greatest" list, and both in at least the top 20! I just had to get that off of my chest. On to the review.

Let's Take it to the Stage is easily a top-3 Funkadelic album, maybe even the best. It opens with the rocking one-two punch of "Good to Your Earhole" and "Better by the Pound". I've always considered Funkadelic a rock band that is extremely funky, not vice versa, and these two tracks add credence to that way of thinking. Next is "Be My Beach" which is one of the most unique, trippy songs they have ever made. Bootsy's vocals are fantastic. Fourth is Clinton's updated take on Sly and the Family Stone's "Jane is a Groupie". "No Head, No Backstage Pass" is hilarious, sleazy, biting and to the point. It's also on the verge of heavy metal, a concept that was being invented by Black Sabbath and, to some extent, Led Zeppelin at the time. Next is the title track which is the biggest "hit" off of the album. Memorable for the funk mob's playful skewering of their contemporaries, this statement of dominance doesn't hold up as well, to me, as the wonderfully crafted tunes that surround it. One track that holds up exceedingly well, however, is "Get Off You're A$$ and Jam". Fueled by Michael Hampton's frenzied guitar solos, this live staple practically assaults you when you listen to it. Hampton (along with his predecessor and inspiration, Eddie Hazel) still ranks among rock's greatest guitarists, and his performance on this album is one of the reasons why. "Baby I Owe You Something Good" is an epic track with tremendous vocals by Gary Shider (I think...). "Stuffs and Things" is a ludicrously suggestive and goofy track that lampoons traditional R&B's less than subtle use of innuendo to talk about sex. It literally cracks me up every time I hear it ("I'm gonna do my utmost to your stuff..."). Musically, its the funkiest track on the disc with Bernie Worrell's synths doing crazy things in the background. Alas, Funkadelic can't quite keep up the incredible pace, and the last 2 songs are somewhat of a drop-off. "The Song is Familiar" is a nice-enough ballad, and "Atmosphere" is an eerily catchy little keyboard experiment.

While Let's Take it to the Stage doesn't get the recognition of Maggot Brain or One Nation Under a Groove, it is every bit as essential. Clinton and company were at a song-writing apex, giving us several 2-5 minute blasts of brilliance. The assertion that Funkadelic is the "black Beatles" is not far off base. Strip away the psychedelia, the dark humor, the monstrous bass of Bootsy and the general Funkadelic craziness, and you've got a perfectly crafted pop album. Of course, strip all of that away, and you don't have Funkadelic.

this album contains all the diversitys that this band was approching. psychedelic funk, groove, jam, and funny stuffs. there's no doubt about those bass line ; amazing...
superb funky vocals...
a bit less of guitarness (compare to debut westbound) but good solos anyways.
maybe you'll think that this album contains weird songs; listen to them anyway and you'll understand the concept...
any fan of the thang shoul step on it and dance!

This was the first Funkadelic album I ever purchased. No doubt incited by The Exorcist influenced cover; at fourteen, I was at once corrupted by the funk of it all.

From the first licks of "Good to your Earhole" to the psychofunkafied-keyboards of Bernie Worrell on "Atmosphere," I was hooked. For me, this is the Funkadelic album by which all others are compared "Let's Take it To the Stage" had my ears glued to the speakers for months trying to understand every word, every note, every nuance of brilliance that emulated from the Mob. "Be My Beach" was the first track that Bootsy used his quasi-Hendrix imitation to create that "Bootsy Rap-Style" he became famous for years later. And let's not forget... "Get off your Ass and Jam." This short track is worth the price of this CD alone. I remember playing this song at a party with a room full of rockers, and every one of them was playing air guitar to this song. Every one in that house knew the name of Eddie Hazel by the time that party was over. This album/CD is fun, exciting, adventurous, playful, daring, and of course Funky to the bone!

Let's Take it to the Stage was the first ever Funkadelic album that I purchased. I was 16 and it was love at first listen. Finally, I had found the soundtrack to my abnormal adolesence.

My life hasn't been the same since.

These guys somehow distilled their wily essence and put it all on this platter. This is a nasty, cartoonish, forward thinking, trash talking, groove heavy, sexy, silly, funk/rock party record. Oh, and did I mention the ballads.

The band manages to squeeze just about every style of American music that existed up until that time into these ten songs. They do it without breaking a sweat and most importantly without you ever noticing.

Every song on here is a diamond. But, let me just big up 2 of my personal faves-Baby, I Owe You Something Good and Atmosphere.

'Baby'is one in a long line of Funkadelic ballads/love songs. If you are down with the Funk Mob you know that these are usually their strangest tunes. I consider myself a connoiseur of the P-Funk ballad and for my money, 'Baby' is one of their finest. It combines an intense and amazing lead vocal(if anyone knows who sings lead on this, please email me) set to a brutal Black Sabbath like dirge. This number puts me through an emotional ringer everytime.

'Atmosphere' is Bernie Worrell's time to shine. This is essential an 7 minute instrumental (excepting George's naughty couplets which introduce the piece)with Mr.Worrell carrying the way on what sound like at least 3 way old school synths. The result is schizophrenic and awe inspiring. He leaps from classical to funk to sci-fi all the way to some other dimension and somehow avoids the aural masturbation you would expect. It is a stunning recording and is proof positive just how accomplished these musical mutants were.

But enough of my rhapsodizing.

Buy this album NOW! And be sure to call your favourite radio station and ask them to play FUNKADELIC MUSIC!