Customer Reviews

They Say I'm Different

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Despite the "freaky" outfit on the cover, Betty Davis' "They Say I'm Different" eschews the space alien/psychedelic/glam/absurdist themes of contemporaries like Parliament & co. If those groups are the Bob Dylans of funk, Betty Davis (one-time wife of Miles Davis) is the Janis Joplin. The music has the simplicity and punchiness of blues, the vocals are screamy and guttural, and the lyrics are choc-a-bloc with raunchy sexual euphemisms ("He Was a Big Freak"), 70s black slang ("Shoo-B-Doop and Cop Him"), and gutsy womanhood ("Don't Call Her No Tramp").

Davis' alternate screaming and cooing is complemented by rich, swampy timbres from the backing band, which does without the brightness of horns - there is a muted trumpet line towards the end of track 1, but that's about it. The rhythm section is instead filled out by guitar, organ, clav, and acoustic piano, riffing and oodling above the deep bass and drum parts. The groove stays loose through both slow-stewing tracks like "Special People" and more propulsive numbers like "Git In There".

This particular edition (I bought mine from amazon) comes in an attractive digipak and has a generous (30 page) album booklet, and apparently with this CD release, Davis is finally getting the royalties.

I've tried to avoid value judgments thus far, but this album is truly brilliant. For those like myself who have a distaste for lengthy jams and meaningless lyrics, but still enjoy funk's danceability and rhythmic punchiness, They Say I'm Different is a revelation. And aside from sheer sexual gutsiness, tracks like "70s Blues" and "Don't Call Her No Tramp" have genuine emotional resonance.

In summary: an earthy, passionate, funky, raunchy masterpiece, more than worthy of an unqualified 5 stars. Give it a listen, then go and buy it. :-)

Betty Davis is an artist I've been hearing a lot of hype about for years.'They Say I'm Different' is an album I've been hearing about forever as well.I was almost entirely certain there was no way that this album could possibly live up to the hype.Well when Light In The Attic records decided to put this out on CD,.....well to put it mildly this MORE then lived up to it's longheld mystique and hype.The best way to describe this music is unhinged and unpolished funk.EVERY song on it fits that description.As for Betty Davis's singing,it lays somewhere between the the styles of Tina Turner,Sly Stone and Janis Joplin.All of the songs celebrate her liberated spirit but there's one that just blows you away in less then a second."He Was A Big Freak".......I don't know WHAT MAN she was referring to but she really paints herself as a wild,wild funky diva BIG TIME here;she wails out about her "man" who enjoys being tied up.The Ohio Players did a lot of S&M based album art at the this time but TALKING OPENLY ABOUT IT,A FEMALE FUNK SINGER?And it never seems like a gimmick either because you actually believe she lived a lot of the "wild style" she speaks about.And the grooves on that and every other song here are as raw a funk as you're probably ever going to hear.

This is the fisrt product purchased of Betty Davis and it was without regret bass, guitars and drums all excellent and the singing was all that was required to become a fan of Betty. She is agreat contributor of funk ,soul &R&B she is one of the best ,maybe she is the best, the beat of this album enters your soul...

After listening to Betty Davis you will never listen to other singers the same way. The experience and that is what it is, is like eating crap all your life and then finally being introduced to steak. I am like a fiend. Funk is my drug and I am addicted.

She is funny, sexy and smart and so are the lyrics. Nothing but music legends contributed to this album. So if you want to get out the matrix of garbage called today's music I suggest you take this red pill.

I hope more people my age take a listen.

When I slapped this cd on I was blown away. It's an amazing mix of super greasy blues and tight funk. She 's the real funky ass deal (don't let her disco diva costume fool you). Davis's singing is incredibly powerful and I can't really think of another woman r&b singer to compare her to. At times I was reminded of Captain Beefheart's Clear Spot record. Check out the 28 second album sound clips if this sounds like your bag and I think you'll be clicking add to cart shortly after.

I don't know what turned me on more;the sonic sexuality of her vocals or fine face and frame. I do know this; the tight rhythms and viciously vibrant bass-lines of this album made me a fan.Check out the gritty groove of "Your Mama Wants You Back"( I'm on my way,baby). It will raise the hairs on the nape of your neck! Serious,sensuous,solid funk,B-funk,the real bomb, with an undercurrent of blues(on the cut"They Say I'm Different" she pays tribute to variuos blues artists). This album is the aural equivalent of sensuality; unapologetic in its in-your face sexiness; unabashed in its examination of taboo subjects(He Was A Big Freak, Don't You Call Her No Tramp); unrelenting in its musical audacity. When you consider that she was broaching these subjects and producing this funky blues-rock sound in the mid-1960,s it makes what she was doing even more incredible! Betty Davis,ahead of her time, but always on time,with her music and her mischievousness.

You gotta hand it to Betty Davis, wife of Miles who called her Madmosele Marby in one of his best songs.

If Helen Reddy was women, Davis was dangerous women, back when a sexually free African American women was truely a threat to social finger sandwhich pickers.

Davis' uncompromising funk is all bump and pelvis grind, driven by heavy bass, clavanet, and Davis' estrogin throttled voice. She does not do the ballad, she does not experiment with softer nuance. This stuff chucks viagra arrows into your concious, and stays there.

Her voice has the grit--it is sometimes a littie sandpapaer in the upper register. But for what Davis accomplishes on this and other 1970s albums like Betty Davis and Nasty Gal.......

...well, trust me, you'll be thinking of Betty the whole time