Customer Reviews

Spread Love Like Wildfire

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This sixth effort from Down to the Bone is a continuation of the pared down sound which debuted in "Cellar Funk." As always the band plays tight, and it's good to hear the horns again after their relative absence from "Cellar"...the boys leave no doubt that they still can funk out. Having said that, "Spread Love" doesn't give me goosebumps like the previous releases. When I listen to DTTB's other CDs it's easy for me to lose myself in the music because it is adventurous. They took all those soul, disco, latin, '70s blaxploitation movie grooves, and garage influences and blended them into something unexpected and original...yet maintaining 100 percent of the funk (a great example of this is the title track from "Crazy Vibes and Things"). Here the funk is more straightforward, which is fine but it doesn't stay with me after I hear the track. In addition the absence of keyboardist Neil Angilley is definitely felt in this effort, as he only wrote and played on "Mystic Samba." In my opinion Angilley's talents really made DTTB head and shoulders above their contemporaries, as anyone who has seen the band live can attest (his live reworking of "The Zodiac" completely blew away the studio version, unbelievable as that may be since that CD track was simply amazing).

My recommendation is to go ahead and buy this CD if you are looking for music that will leave you tapping your toes, but if you're looking for DTTB that will knock your socks off get their previous works.

Ain't enough superlatives to describe this but I want more! I kind of fell out of the loop after DTTB's first album, but I see they ain't lost their touch. Now I want their entire catalog! All of the cuts are excellent, but my favorite cut is "Angel Baby" which came as a shock to me at first (I wasn't expecting any vocal tracks). The bass player is just awesome and the vocals infect the groove instead of merely riding on top.

Been a fan of DTTB since I first heard Brooklyn Heights on a Palm Springs radio station back in 2000. Bought that album and then The Urban Grooves and was definately hooked on the sound at that point. Spread The Word was equally as good and has some of my favorite tracks on it: Mighty, Mighty Fine and Downtown Shuffle. The following two albums didn't do a lot for me, so I kept listening to the other three because I never tired of it.

Spread/Wildfire has had me listening almost non-stop ever since I first put it in about three weeks ago. I work in Russia so I had to wait until I got back to the States to get my order from Amazon. Memphis Groove caught my attention like the first time I heard Staten Island Groove. I knew this was going to be good. Personally, I'm not a fan of lyrical music but I must admit I like Angel Baby.

Took a trip with the kids and THEY kept asking me to play songs over and over, especially Pure Funk. They are 4 and 2 years old and know good music when they hear it. Couldn't wait to get to my brothers house and pop the CD in and start drumming on his set.

This CD puts DTTB back where I feel they left off after Spread The Word.

Stuart, this one kicks a$$.

The title of this CD is misleading: it is not a compilation of love songs, but track after track of solid funk. I never get tired of listening to this one.

This is their best to date, in my opinion! Stuart Wade, Shilts, & others just know how, when, and where to put it down. I do miss Neil Angelley (sp?) on keys, but they fare just fine in spite of his absence. High energy, innovative, and just FUNKY acid jazz at its best. To say I "love" these guys is a gross understatement! Just listen...period!

Don't get me wrong, this CD does have some incredible music. "Gotta get back to you" and "Latin Sagebrush" are excellent tracks worth hearing over and over again.

Yet, somehow, Wade (the composer for Down to the Bone) has been, in my opinion, de-evolving from a delicious, elegant, almost - unheard Acid Jazz (example: all previous albums and particularly tracks "The Zodiac" and "Mighty Mighty Fine") to a Fusion-Jazz that already exists in the market for which he is not creating a very particular style.

Buy it if you have some other Down to the Bone CD, it is nice to hear a author evolve and not stay in the same groove (as so many do nowadays, taking the easy way out to have a sure selling CD). But if you are new to Down to the Bone, buy the previous albums first.

This album is a bit of a letdown on the heels of Cellar Funk, which had its down spots but on the whole was a quality album. In contrast, there are only a few good tracks on this album, but too many are simply underwhelming, and they're all a good 1-2 minutes too long. That's a big reason why it's almost impossible to listen to this album straight through, despite the fact that it's not really a "bad" album. When Down to the Bone gets it right, they bring an urban funkiness that is unparalleled (listen to any track from their first two albums to see what I mean). But this album was released less than two years after the previous release (Cellar Funk), and it may be that the group is trying to push the albums out too quickly and letting quality suffer as a result.

Highlights on this album include: Tiburon, Hammerhead, Gotta Get Back to You, and Latin Sagebrush. London Life has its moments, and is therefore worth a listen as well. Not coincidentally, the three shortest tracks on this album are all recommended (Gotta Get Back to You, Latin Sagebrush, and London Life).

Lightning Rod has a few bright spots, but is frustratingly monotonous at times. At 7 minutes and 17 seconds long, it exemplifies how this album underachieves by taking decent hooks and dragging them out instead of keeping them short and injecting some life by taking some musical risk. Wildfire Woman is entirely forgettable.

After two stellar albums to kick off their career, Down to the Bone released a slightly less attention-grabbing 3rd album, but bounced back relatively strongly with their 4th and 5th releases. Here's hoping that Spread Love Like Wildfire is just a temporary setback and that the group returns to form in their future releases.

This Review Copyrighted 2010 by J. Smith

I have all of the 'down to the bone' cds, this is by far the best
and I was waiting for it to come out and the wait was worth it.
track 5, is just great! it is fast and the beat is out of this world and it makes you just dance its that simple, track 6&7 are just as great if not better, they should of put these tracks first but like I said its worth the wait til you get to those track's. This is a whole new sound from them which is good, the only thing I wish is that there is more singing, there all good songs but for me if some of them had words they would just blow you away even more.If you dont have any 'd t t b' cd's than start here and work your way back cos the last cd is also great!.
This is there best work and you wont be disapointed by getting this one, but like I said get there last one also you wont be sorry,

Down to the Bone's last album "Cellar Funk" was some funky stuff. This album continues to bring the funkiness. The horn section (MJR Horns..so they are called) are tight and on point. Shilts lays down a couple of nice solos (loved him on London Life). I wasn't too crazy about the vocal track "Angel Baby". But it grew on me.

If you like a funk and tight horns, check this album out.

It's so funky, you need deoderant after listening to it.

What can I say? WOW!! Well worth the wait. There isn't a bad track on the whole CD. Buy it!