Customer Reviews

Soul of Rasta

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

 

 

This is one of my favorite CD's of all time. Its grown on me incredibly and after over a year of steady listening, I am not bored of a single track. How best to describe them? Its definitely not reggae, though there are tinges of it in various songs, and there is a certain Caribbean flair to their accents and emphasis. I'd say its the Meters meets Carlos Santana, with a little bit of P-Funk thrown in on top. Every song is great. But especially Anthracite, Bra and The Message. Its a true feel good album - ups the spirit at least a few notches. If you haven't heard it, its definitely time to give it a listen.

These original funky brothers from all hailing from the West Indies created the most amazing and invigorating fusion of funk and african reggae ever heard.

Most famously sampled by the Fugees, De La Soul ,EPMD and many others. Cymande is one of the most sampled bands in Hip Hop ever.

However, no longer is this band hip hop's little secret. This album allows new listeners to hear the great original tracks in a re mastered format. Featuring "Brother's on the Slide" and "Listen". This is an anthology of their most memorable material from the original 3 LPs recorded the between 1972-1974 in London, UK. Its unfortunate that their amazing musicianship was too unique for the period.

Yet today people are rediscovering and grooving to these hidden jewels. Dive in and feel the Funk!

Here is what MIXMAG magazine had to say: One of the most original groups to emerge from the Black British music scene of the mid 70's, Cymande became the epitome of 'rare groove' a decade later. When The Message, perhaps the group's defining moment, dropped at clubs such as Shake And Finger Pop, you always got the feeling that this was music which was totally out on a limb - difficult to pin down, to locate within any particular time-frame. In fact, Cymande were a tightly-knit collective of Caribbean musicians who had migrated to London in the late 60's. And you feel it in just about all the tracks - the leisurely ripples of guitar, the nyabinghi-style percussive beds, the celebratory references to Jah. Cymande were not just black and proud, they were loud and West Indian. Athough wholly conversant with the rigours of funk, they developed a cosmic, mellow but nevertheless full-blooded sound that retained the reggae and calypso pulses of the Caribbean. The Cymande sound also had breakbeats jumping out of virtually every fourth bar. Tracks such as The Message, Dove, Brothers On The Slide, Bra and Fug would find their way into the sequencers of numerous hip hop producers some 15 years after being recorded. Cymande's music has been called anything from Afro-funk to Nyah Rock to hippie soul but these terms don't really do justice to the complexity or the finesse of the compositions. Although the band was more associated with the raw funk sound that was evolving in the States around the mid 70's, their music was decidedly island-style. Perhaps the closest point of comparison would be New Orleans funkmeisters The Meters, whose earthy bayou beats also had a strong aftertaste of the Caribbean. It only remains for me to say that for those who missed Cymande first time round, this re-issue, which brings together cherished tracks from the original three albums; Cymande, Second Time Round and Promised Heights. This is an essential purchase.

Cymande is a one of the greatest soul bands I've ever heard. This album is a must for anyones catalog. It is the backbone to funk as we know it!

The Tracks, "Dove," "Bra," (check the anna paquin hallway dance scene) and the classic "The Message," are all featured during the supposed hot DJ Dusk club appearance. Its interesting that they all talk about how cutting edge the DJ is and then he plays and scratches over 3 classic Cymande tunes. Perhaps cutting edge to some but standard classics to me. If you don't know about Cymande then you need to discover them. Its really that simple. I don't care who you are. Cymande is loved by Spike Lee and people all over the world. These are all classic Funk tunes. WHAT BAFFLES ME IS THAT PEOPLE WHO LOVE FUNK OR EVEN THE GRATEFUL DEAD ARE UNAWARE OF THIS GREAT BAND'S RAW POWER. DISCOVER BROTHER'S ON THE SLIDE, BRA , LISTEN, and THE MESSAGE." DIVE IN, GET LIFTED AND FEEL THE MESSAGE. Go check out the best latest remastered collection entitled,
Cymande "The Soul of Rasta."