Star Kitty's Revenge

Joi Gilliam | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 19, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Umvd Labels
• ASIN: B00005V7G4
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (43 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #185,047 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Revenge is sweet on Joi's latest, a fierce, funky, groove-laden opus that should finally earn the Atlanta-based singer the recognition she so rightfully deserves. Her critically acclaimed (and now out-of-print) 1993 debut, Pendulum Vibe, and her never-released 1997 funk-rock masterpiece, Amoeba Cleansing Syndrome (widely circulated as a bootleg), fell victim to poor marketing and record label shutdowns, and despite her stint as lead vocalist in Lucy Pearl (replacing Dawn Robinson), mainstream success has eluded Joi thus far. But like any righteous diva would, she comes out swinging on Star Kitty's Revenge, packing the disc's 19 tracks and interludes with pure, unadulterated artistry. Mixing raunchy flair (à la Millie Jackson); cosmic, Parliament-style grooves; and her own brand of Dirty South élan, originals like the X-rated "Lick," "Techno Pimp," and "You're a W***e" should send listeners into blissful, funk-induced hazes, while the old-school R&B of "Missing You" and a cover of Chaka Khan and Rufus's "I'm a Woman" are sure to get booties shaking in all the right ways. --Sylvia W. Chan

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ...all the way live..., April 1, 2002

By 

R. Davis "upfromsumdirt" (louisville, ky) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Star Kitty's Revenge (Audio CD)

sista joi is proly what p-funk woulda sounded like had they collaborated with some millie jackson or barbara mason...this is some of that funky ish...you can tell that miss joi been hangin out in the dungeon with her husband gipp and them other dungeon family cats...even raphael saadiq comes thru supportin his lucy pearl partner with his creative skills...maaaan, yall dont know how i needed this...this is some of that love fareal, especially if yall be diggin on sista badu and maybe even some res...forgive me while i go indulge in this some more...

(check out that one girl, rebekah...she got a disc called 'remember to breathe' - it aint funky like this but she on some completely different ish...)

take it easy now...
bruh ron.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good, yet somewhat ordinary., March 20, 2002

By 

medjay (Chicago, IL United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Star Kitty's Revenge (Audio CD)

First let me say that I've been a fan of Joi ever since I saw her perform with Fishbone and open for De La Soul way back in the day. Her voice and stage presence grabbed me. I bought the Pendulum Vibe and even managed to get my hands on a copy of her never-released sophomore album The Amoeba Cleansing Syndrome (if you're a fan I strongly suggest you track this album down). So of course I waited with baited breath for the new album, anticipating even more wild innovation and genre bending experimentation and what I got was. . . well. . . a pretty good R&B album.

Is it a step back? Compared to Amoeba Cleansing Syndrome, yes. Gone are the ridiculously funky grooves and hard rocking tracks. In their place are more traditional vocal and musical arrangements seemingly designed for some sort of mass appeal. That's a shame because what originally made Joi stand out was her willingness to go agaist the grain and create something totally new and fresh. While her first album was slept on and the second never released, other artists (Kina comes immediately to mind) kicked similar yet inferior styles but managed to get some rotation.

Erykah Badu's excellent "Mama's Gun" was a step in the right direction and proved that there was an audience for a more experimental sound in soul music. Joi has the talent to push the envelope but just as it seemed the industry was ready to handle someone of her caliber, Joi scrapped the cutting-edge attitude in favor of a more mainstream sound. I can't clown her for that, though. It's hard to try and make a living as an unrecognized artist. I just hope her new direction is a genuine reflection of what she wants to do as an artist and not a last ditch attempt to get her music hear outside of her small cult of fans.

So, in essence, I'm not dissing the new album; it is a good listen and still stands head and shoulders over the competition but anyone who has heard her previous work knows what I'm talking about.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Return, March 23, 2002

By 

Marc200 (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Star Kitty's Revenge (Audio CD)

Joi is back as fly and funky as ever. It's been almost eight years since "The Pendulum Vibe" and about 5 years since "Amoeba Cleansing Syndrome" was shelved by the diabolical EMI Corporation. But thankfully Joi has found her way back to us. The music is a Sly Stone/Betty Davis/P-Funk/Prince/Nona Hendryx-blues-funk-rock amalgam, the woman is a once-in-a-lifetime original. She can sing as sweetly as Minnie Riperton on the verse and then wail as ferociously as Chaka Khan on the chorus.

Of course, greatness breeds great expectations and "Star Kitty's Revenge" is a mixed bag that doesn't necessarily meet those expectations. There are definite flashes of brilliance - "Missing You" is a breathless, mid-tempo funk jam with some tripped-out lyrics and is the best song you will never hear on the radio this year. "Jefferson St. Joe" is Joi's ode to her father that is never sappy or sentimental but will make you weep nonetheless. "What If I Kissed You" is a slinky come-on, and "It's Your Life" is Joi's typically idiosyncratic anthem of self-affirmation. But then there are some seemingly superfluous oddities ("Techno Pimp" chief among them) that could have been cut to give the CD more cohesion.

Joi is a progressive, uncompromising artist, and has little in common with her derivative, overly-hyped contemporaries even though she will very likely be shoved into the banal "neo-soul" sub-genre. Of course, that insult to her artistry would be worth it if urban radio would actually give Joi a spin. The parental advisory sticker on this CD is no joke, Joi can be raunchy at times but it is never gratuitous, it is a true expression of who she is -- Joi may shock you but she ain't trying to, she's just being her freaky ole self.