Customer Reviews

Survival of the Fittest

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Easily rates as one of the very best jazz/funk albums of all time. The title track "God Make Me Funky" is as funky as it gets. This is Herbie Hancock's "Headhunters", recording their first (and best) record without Herbie or any other keyboard player present, although he did produce it. This allows for more space, in more ways than one...

Without Herbie's full, dense keyboards and synths of this period, there's much more open space, giving a better opportunity to hear the individual players, all of which have phenomenal tone and chops. Paul Jackson's incredibly punchy Fender bass sound and funk technique are second to none. The great Bennie Maupin is excellent as always. Acid funk pioneer Blackbird McKnight is the ultimate electric funk guitarist, playing everything from precision wah-wah rhythms to absolutely insane effects-washed leads. Drums by Mike Clark and all sorts of heavy percussion by Bill Summers are excellent.

And speaking of "space", this is Space Funk at it's best. I mean, it even says "The best Space-Funk album" in big letters on the back cover of this RCA Victor Gold Series reissue!

Highly recommended for fans of the Herbie Hancock Headhunders albums or any of the great Miles Davis electric stuff. Their second album "Straight From The Gate" is not nearly as good, but has a few interesting cuts, and another ridiculously wild guitar solo by Blackbird McKnight.

In the 70's Hancock was a king. This "Headhunters" band was of a particular mythology. I own this on vinyl. It is an ABSOLUTE TRIP !!! This is something! Headhunters and Thrust had funk. Mwandiishi and Sextant had space. This has space and funk. I swear, when I was in high school in the late 70's (sucking up whatever US releases of Miles I could find) this album scared me! It is sooooo intense, psychadelic and FIRM !!! It wasn't ever "more Herbie". It was seriously KICKIN "first generation" fusion, standing on it's own, at it's best then. I'm still waiting>

P.S. I own the CD release, now, and it sounds fine. Excellent addition to the "Mwandishi" period!!! I mean... REALLY GOOD addition !!

This was the album cut by Herbie Hancock's back-up group soon after the massive unexpected popularity of Herbie's Headhunters LP. It's actually much better than Herbie's own follow-up LP, Thrust. The 1st track, God Made Me Funky, is everything the title promises, with a really great, greasy guitar riff (by Blackbird McKnight) holding it all together. One of the very best jazz-funk cuts of all time. The first & last tracks have vocals, the other 4 are all instrumentals.

Most of these tracks would have fit very comfortably in Herbie's Headhunters LP. One or two are not quite as interesting as the rest, but the highlights (including the aforementioned God Made Me Funky, Daffy's Dance & If You've Got It, You'll Get It) are way worth the price. The sound quality is first class.

If you've been disappointed by more recent Headhunters releases, join the club. This one is the real thing -- accept no substitutes.

The Headhunters was a major turning point for Herbie Hancock fusing jazz with funk and rock, this album sold over a million copies while cross-overing and recruiting rock and R&B fans alike, outselling Miles Davis' popular Bitches Brew at its time of release.

Employing Bennie Maupin on sax/clarinetist, Paul Jackson Jr on bass, Harvey Mason on drums, Bill Summers on percussion with a special appearance from Paul Jackson on guitar and vox on "God Made Me Funky". All CD releases are getting hard to find and will be a Audiophile Collectible in my opinion.

I find the 1976 original Arista AL-4038 vinyl release hard to top for richness, but the remastered reissue on Arista Europe CD UPC 743214095225 made in EU was mastered extremely well and nicly packaged in a digipak reproduction of the original artwork. -Audiostar

To Simply put it...BUY THIS RECORD!!!!!!
No serious Funk-Purist or Groove-buff that pride themselves on the litany of funk should be without this album!!!
This is the record that's apart of funk's soundtrack and launching pad for some of the loops you hear in Hip Hop!
Bernie Maupin is in the master of creativity seat on this record!!!!!
Check it out!!!!! You won't be sorry!

D. P.

you don't even know how lucky you are to have found this. if you are interested in checking out some seriously FUNKY jazz odysseys, you have come to the right virtual place. buy this now, as i am forever thankful that i have been given this out of print material to enjoy, and you should embark on this great opportunity as well.
'space-funk' is right; these compositions are absolutely wonderful groovier-than-thou bits, long-lost to the caverns of music history. the vocals on the first and last tracks are undyingly amusing, and the instrumentals that lie between are rife with talent and oozing with heavy funk skronkiness, as well as smooth horn sections and laid back bass lines.
get it, or get got.
get it?

I honestly thought this was a Herbie Hancock album. How wrong I was! No fear because its still great. Its really funky ("Daffys Dance" will account for that) and well recorded with a terrific bass sound. Essential jazz-fusion listening!

I HAVE MORE THAN 10,000 ALBUMS; THIS IS BY FAR THEE MOST FUNKIEST RECORD OUT OF THE WHOLE BUNCH (EVEN WITHOUT MR. HERBIE HANCOCK HOLDIN' DOWN THE 88'S)

There's no need for me to write an extensive review on this album since it carries the same vibe as other afro funk/jazz albums that was recorded at that time. The only thing that separates this from the others is the gutbucket feel that Paul Jackson brings to the bass and Blackbird's Mcknight's acid flourishes on the guitar(especially on the last track).

Other than that, it's business as usual from these top caliber Herbie Hancock proteges. In this case business has never been better than it was on "Survival of the Fittest". It's not the first album I would reccomend for beginners of this genre (Bitches Brew and Headhunters are still the flagship recordings of this specific style) but, it's worth the discovery after you've had your first journey through this style.

In short, another superior set of world class Jazz/funk.

I listened to samples of this music on Amazon, and purchased this on 05/11/2007 (got it on 05/15/2007 - fast delivery!). This album is nothing less than outstanding.

The other reviewers' echo my opinion of this work, I just wanted to say that this man (like Miles Davis) was years ahead of his time. I had "Man-Child" by Mr. Hancock, but with that album (as Headhunters), it would have taken me awhile to get my arms around it. Heavy stuff!! Five stars!