Customer Reviews

Maggot Brain

5 star:		(58)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

"Mother Earth is pregnant for the third time, cause y'all have knocked her up. I have tasted the maggots in the mind of the universe...I was not offended, for I knew I had to rise above it all, or drown in my own s**t."

Though this DEFINITELY makes no sense at all, it sets the scene for some more experimental, revolutionary music from George Clinton and Funkadelic. Perhaps one of the darker albums of the early 1970s, Maggot Brain is a successful experiment and a tremendous success for Funkadelic's 3rd album.

Moving beyond the very freaky acid psychadelia of their first two albums, Funkadelic moved into a newer and eclectic sound; a mixture of harsh rock 'n' roll, psychadelic music, soul music, gospel choirs, and even more. Maggot Brain effectively managed to fuse all of these together.

The first song is worth the entire album, earning it the 5 star award: considered by many to be the greatest guitar solo ever, the late Eddie Hazel's "Maggot Brain" is a depressing, bluesy, acid trip that was recorded in one take. All it took was George Clinton telling Eddie to "play like your mother just died," and Maggot Brain thus was born. The song opens with a dreary guitar backdrop and "echoing" drums that mysteriously fade out once Hazel gets into the solo; reportedly, this is because Clinton found that they "sucked" in comparison to Hazel's improvization. The song progressively gets more and more intense, until it peaks at the middle; but at the end it gets as intense as before. Unlike many other solos out there, Maggot Brain succeeds at having both an immsensely skillful player and the perfect instrumentation. Rarely, if not never, does P-Funk play a concert without Maggot Brain; it is one of their hallmark songs. If I haven't convinced you yet, the ten minutes of Maggot Brain are not worth missing AT ALL.

The next song, the happier and gospel "Can You Get to That," is another great one. It serves almost as an "upper" from the depressing Maggot Brain, but is a fine song on its own.

Bernie Worrell's "Hit It and Quit It" features his expert keyboard skills, and---surprise surprise---another sublime guitar solo from Eddie Hazel in the middle.

"You and Your Folks" gave birth to the popular "yeah, yeah, yeah!" chant at Funkadelic concerts. While the song on the album itself is a little flat, the lyrics are wonderful. The song itself is a wonderful experience when played live.

"Super Stupid", a hardcore precursor of much heavy metal (in 1971!) is fun and ear-busting. Even if the lyrics aren't much, the instrumentation alone is worth the price of admission.

"Back in Our Minds" isn't much worth writing home about.

"Wars of Armageddon" closes the album, another masterpiece; but this one is designed to freak people out. Apparently Funkadelic got ahold of a sound effects tape, and went crazy with it; this song features a destructive guitar riff, and with the added sound effects you'd swear this song was the end of the world. Farts, laugh tracks, men and women screaming, etc...it sounds like the nation's fallen apart. And in 1971, still the race riot era, this did hold somewhat true.

Buy "Maggot Brain" immediately. Case closed.

Let's cut straight to the chase. Eddie Hazel (God rest his amazing soul) is quite possibly one of the greatest guitar players to ever walk the earth. The only problem with Eddie's work is that he was a part of something that consummated way before its time. The first three Funkadelic albums (S/t, Maggot Brain, and Free Your Mind...) are three of the greatest collections of music ever released for public consumption. However, Maggot Brain itself is the standout CD. The title track is a legendary Eddie Hazel emotional guitar ride that carries the listener to musical heights that only Jimi Hendrix was able to reach before him. The 10 minute epic track, all recorded in one take, is quite possibly the standard by which the statement "Who says a funk band can't rock" can be measured. However, the LP doesn't fall off there, with "Hit It and Quit It" and "Super Stupid" following up on the headlining track with grooving, yet forceful sounds that transcend multiple musical genres. "Can You Get to That?" and "You and Your Folks" are prime examples of gospel, rock, and soul influenced funk (what a combination!), and "Back In Our Minds" is a perfect piece of psychedelic sound that Funkadelic made famous. "Wars of Armageddon" is a total clusterbomb of a sound picture, complete with amazing Eddie Hazel guitarwork, classic George Clinton gibberish lyrics, and some extraordinary soundbites that showcase only a small portion of what was to come in the future of the Funk. This album is a must for anyone who considers themselves a fan of (deep breath): funk, pop, guitar rock, heavy metal, groove, and soul. In other words ... BUY THIS DISC!!!!!

What is there to say about MAGGOT BRAIN? Listen to it. Funkadelic's third album is to rock what BITCHES BREW was to jazz music in the late '60s, in that both fairly drip with evil. From the cryptic introductory poem that leads into the title track, a masterpiece of quietly devastating beauty as Eddie Hazel makes his guitar weep (literally), to the nuclear explosion ending the final track, and presumably, existence itself, MAGGOT BRAIN, after I'm sure about a hundred fifty listenings, has not for me lost one iota of its initial impact. It is still beautiful, funny, incredibly conceived, arranged, and produced, and ultimately creepy, if not horrifying. Aside from the title track and the last song ("Wars of Armageddon"), there are five songs: "Can You Get to That", a groovy piece of soul, with crisp acoustic guitar, scintillating grand piano, rumbling bass, yummy percussion, and unbelievably sweet harmonies bordering on gospel harmonies. "Hit It and Quit It", "You and Your Folks, Me and My Folks", and "Super Stupid" are quintessential early '70's funk-rockers, harder than most Black Sabbath (or even Led Zeppelin) rockers of the same period. These three are followed by "Back in Our Minds Again", an unusual arrangement to say the least, and probably the weirdest song on the album until of course "Wars...", the final tune. And that'll be my final tune. I hope you found my silly little review helpful. Ta ta.

I once read a review that stated that the early Funkadelic albums were really hard rock songs with a dance beat. So perhaps the criticisms that this album is not "funk" may be justified. This album does feature songs that qualify as pure funk -- "Hit It and Quit It" quickly comes to mind. But, let's face it, George Clinton really is the Godfather of Funk -- so he defines Funk with whatever he releases. I do not recall seeing anyone really define funk music in a dictionary and,therefore, can not (should not) be pidgeonholed as a specific "style". It has and always be a freeform soul/rock/jazz fusion. So, in my opinion, this is hard edge(real)funk and the aforementioned criticisms of this being non-funk are unjustified.

This album covers several "funk styles" from the Jimi Hendrix-like guitar funk on the title track, to the Temptations-like funk of "Can You Get to That", to the hard thumpin' rock (funk) track "Super Stupid".

If you are more interested in the lighter dance songs that Parliament/Funkadelic released in the late '70s, then this album may not be for you. The later releases in '70s were fine, as well, but did not come nearly as close to this gritty funk masterpiece. -- Highly recommended!

The ultimate electric guitar experience! Eddie Hazel like Jimi Hendrix should be in the Hall of Fame and if for no other effort than his superb contribution on "Maggot Brain". This is 10-minutes of pure listening pleasure. This album made me an instant Funkadelic/Parliament fan from 1973 to present. I have searched for "Maggot Brain" for years. I am completely content musically at this time now that I have found it. Thank you Amazon.com, thank you!!

I remember being surprised when I first got this CD ten years ago. I was familiar with Funkadelic's later albums and this was the first of their early albums I ever purchased. The first thing that struck me was that this was not a slick studio recording; it was gritty, loud, and impossible to ignore. I don't think that Funkadelic's debt to Jimi Hendrix was ever as evident as on this album. "Super Stupid" not only has a guitar riff reminiscent of Hendrix but a vocal part also. Eddie Hazel was an amazing guitarist and one that I don't think gets enough credit for his playing on songs like "Maggot Brain". I doubt that there are many guitarists that can play a solo for ten minutes and keep it as lyrical, spiritual, and interesting as Hazel did on this track. His work throughout the album is electrifying. "Can You Get To That" is a catchy song with some great lyrics and is one of my favorites off this disc. "Wars Of Armageddon" has to be heard to be believed. This nine and a half minute track that closes the album is a mix of screams, babies crying, sirens, and other sound effects cranked out over a deep groove by the band. I remember being taken aback the first time I heard it, but it has become one of the standout tracks for me over the past few years of listening. Overall, this album captures Funkadelic in their early stages of development and should be considered essential listening for fans of the group. As a fan of funk music I found this album to be particularly interesting because of the blend of late 60's psychedelia, heavy guitar, and the quirkiness that would characterize Funkadelic's later albums all combined into one sound. Knowing how the band would evolve as time went on makes this CD that much more interesting to hear.

In case you didn't already know....Funkadelic is sort of a spin off of George Clinton's R&B/soul band, Parliment. To get around legal/royalty issues, Clinton took basically the same band and renamed it Funkadelic. But instead of featuring the singers, he now featured the back up band. Eventually, Parliment and Funkadelic was rolled up as the P-Funk Allstars.

Funkadelic was more rock and funk oriented, with a little pyschodelia thrown in. And, these guys rocked hard.

The title track is what gives this album a five star rating. It is a searing 9 minute guitar solo. I don't agree with those that say it is the best solo ever, or that it better than most anything Hendrix has done, but it is still great.

The rest of the album is some very good funk rock. It is all very lively and energetic.

Some people rate this as Clinton's best album. It is certainly at the top.

If Zeppelin IV was on the "heads" side of a coin, this LP would be "tails." Some similiarities: Both albums came out in 1971, the year that the utopian dream of the Sixties really ran out of steam for good. Both albums open with a momentary snatch of sound before the singer addresses you a cappella. Both end with a vision of personal and societal disaster. And both sound like they were recorded under the influence of about 3000 hits of sunshine blotter.

But Maggot Brain is a much darker affair than Zep IV ( pun not intended, but not entirely inappropriate either). The British lemon squeezers leaven their mix with sunshowers like "Going to California", and even the heaviest rockers are mostly about getting your dolphin waxed and bustling in hedgerows with hobbits. Even the cops in "Misty Mountain Hop" are friendly. The universe of Maggot Brain is infinitely more malign; Rodney King would recognize the cops here.

An echoing chatter like a speedfreak's teeth races between your speakers, then George Clinton offers the album's Inspirational Quote, an affirmation of personal responsibility in the face of Earth's demise. Eddie Hazel spends the next ten minutes grieving for Mutha Earth through a wall of Marshall amps. The burning guitar spew of "Maggot Brain" is infinitely more crude in execution than anything Hendrix ever recorded (even on the brown acid ), but somehow manages to convey a range of human emotion so vast that it stands as one of the GREAT GUITAR MOMENTS IN HUMAN HISTORY, right up there with Sonny Sharrock's "My Song" and Zappa's "Watermelon in Easter Hay" in terms of transcending ... to split the very atom.

"Can You Get To That" lightens things up somewhat; the gospel choir makes you pass the collection plate, but the sermon's pretty heavy, even though you heard it already at the end of Abbey Road. Then, three increasingly dense blasts of snarky wah/metal, culminating in "Super Stupid"'s cautionary tale of drug deals gone sour. Tony Iommi, meet Ziggy Modeliste.
"Back in Our Minds" provides brief respite from the storm, an opportunity to rest before the next peak of lysergic activity. Uh-oh, here it comes, and it's a doozy: "Wars of Armageddon" is a nine-minute Santana-esque jam of crude force and acceleration, culminating in nuclear annihilation, the heartbeat of the Star Child from 2001...and then some more jamming. It's conceptually similar to the piano chord that ends "A Day In The Life", but much much longer.

A particular Buddhist tenet says that the lotus flower grows in deep mud; the deeper the mud, the more beautiful the flower. Maggot Brain rises from the cynicism and despair of urban America in the Nixon era and the bloom is still as amazing now as it was 23 years ago.

If for anything, buy "Maggot Brain" for the amazing title track, 10 minutes of Eddie Hazel burning up his amplifier. Other highlights are "Hit it & Quit it", "Super Stupid", and the lengthy outro track, "Wars of Armageddon", which sounds like something the Chemicals Brothers would try to do with their tons of electronic equiptment and drum machines. Another mind borrowing experience from Clinton and Funkadelic. Also highly recommended is the 1978 album, "One Nation Under a Groove", which not only contains "One Nation" and many other funky rock songs, it also has the live version of "Maggot Brain", not to be missed, especially by the aspiring rock guitarist.

Raging out of the sewers of black america in the early 1970's comes Eddie Hazel. Back off cause he ain't foolin' around. Funkidelic's sound is defined here, bringing to fruition the combination of heavy metal riffage combined with soul pop integrity, here is soul music on bad acid, here is acid in the ghetto."I knew I had had to rise above it all or drown in my own s**t." George Clinton defines the real American experience before Eddie HAzel rips into crying guitar work that sounds as modern and frsh today as in 1970. What follows is the emotional rollercoaster, the waves of good and bad, "Can you get to that" juxtaposed to "Super Stupid" each morphing grooves into soulful waves of conscienceness. What it leaves you with is amazement, and the sneaking suspisition that somebody mistakenly overlooked Eddie Hazel on the way to the guitar pantheon.