Customer Reviews

Turn My Teeth Up!

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

 

 

Sometimes its good to buy music you keep covered in mystery. So when in 2007 a friend of mine who owned a record shop called me and asked "do you want a copy of this Baby Elephant thing,?" which he described as a Funkadelic keyboard player band with Nona Hendrix. Na, and I don't want a sack of hundred dollar bills either--of course I want it.

Which leaves the music, brought by the great Bernie Worrell, a man capable of anything. (Check out the jazz infected Improvisczario)

And this is pretty good collective modern music, where Worrell works with Hendrix, John Hicky, Darryl Dixon, anyone Warrell sees fit to bring aboard.

The results are solid if not stunning. This is not old school funk, not hip hop, and certainly not the modern digital frozen diva dinner that passes now for soul music.

But Baby Elephant does contain elements of funk, soul with a modern polish, and loose soul-jazz jamming. I have listened and nothing on here turns my head or makes me listen twice. But Worrell seems more interested in taking the eclectic spirit of the era he rose in and applying it to modern contexts

This Baby Elephant is a bloody mess, but it is a bloody mess the best musicians make on purpose. And even if Baby Elephant does not stay on my radar, which it probably won't, and even if I never get back to it, which I most likely will to discover it is much better than I thought, this is one interesting attempt to make the old school modern, and put some school into what is usually an empty modern music zoo.

Okay lets see, you did not know who was on it. You've heard of Prince Paul right?,and you have heard of George Clinton, right? Okay you're getting warmer now. Nona Hendryx is on here, still no clues yet as to why you should have this disc? Are you a crack addict in love? Me,I am just wondering how does your brain wave? Or are you scratching at an itch outta reach. Okay let me explain, think, P-Funk, think scratching, scratching, think Urban Dancefloor Gorilla Music. Now your starting to smoke, now mix in Bernie Worrell, hell your done. This album is dope on a rope. If you do not have this in your collection of funk, you need to go out and get drunk. This is a P-Funk tribute to Bernie by some casual friends and it is on hit, cutty. You need to do some cool ruuning and get hip on this disc.But, If you don't wanna dance,I guess I'll have to bring your ear here my dear.Cause you need Baby elephants and thangs in your diet,c'mon you need to try it.

This is a tribute to all that is Bernie Worrell:the Woo-ru! This is that rare party/funk/jam album that actually has technical brains to it! I don't know how else to say it--if you like Bernie,Parliament/Funkadelic/P-Funk,or any funk/party music and DON'T like this....you're in the trend ocean without a boat sweet-cakes!

All I can say is that looking back this album came and went without much fanfare, but has steadily gained respect as time has went on. Prince Paul takes Bernie Worrell on a wild journey through sounds and space. Hang on and Turn up YOUR teeth!

you love bernie worrell and prince paul you gotta get this bernie worrell is the wizard of woo and once again he woos me with those crazy freaky sounds george clinton does 2 tracks onn here and yes he's as mad as ever nona hendryx, shock g, yellowman, gabby la la, david byrne, show up you know all the people bernie shared his vision with this ios really a tribute to mr. worrell his keyboards tricksd were ahead of time but like bernie once said he plays with jimi hendrix evberyday and the last 38 years have shown this make my funk the woo funk if you dig this you must check out bernie's new cd plus woo warriors true dat live cd.

After all these years, Bernie still delivers. i didn't know what to expect(it was like waitin for the next P-FUNK album to drop, remember that feeling?). Vintage Bernie taking you in all directions and loving every minute of the ride. Without bernie there would be no P-Funk as we know it.Nice.Creamy. Funky. Abstract. Bernie. You cant do this cd without doing the Baby Elephant Mental-Instroz, Bernie Worrell Improvaszario and Stranger: Bernie Worrell on Earth. All well done.

this album is one big celebration unto the p-master of woo-wizardry himself,mr bernie worrell!I can't believe that there haven't been 10 albums of this sort to come out since the 80's, after all whom bernie has influenced thru funk and the talking heads.gangsta raps owes many of it's first hits to this man,as do the 'heads,but sadly this guy gets no credit.with this album he gets that credit in the form of a talent showcase of his amazing keyboard skills!make no mistake,this is one funky-awse party cd!he has some great guests on it(g-clint,gabby la-la,etc),not to mention prince paul and...sorry,forgot the other guy.main point:if you like bernie,funk,or just need something to get the party bumpin and jumpin this weekend baby elephant will mo'definately sassify!

I really had no idea what to expect when I ordered this album. I knew it would have some interesting and original beats because of Prince Paul and Newkirk, and I figured the supermutant-funk-organ of Bernie Worrell would elevate this to some sort of crazy psychedelic funk, firmly grounded in hip-hop beats.

Instead, it's more of a scattered collection of R&B musings with some weird organ work and the occasional psych-type flourish. For my money, it's a lot more synthetic than I'm used to hearing from Prince Paul. Lots of instrumentation with a feel that's more digital than analog. Parts of it are certainly reminiscent of P-Funk, but then other parts remind me of Black Moth Super Rainbow's 'Dandelion Gum'... semi-blissed-out funk-pop with an underlying current of unease/strangeness. But where Black Moth leaned more toward the psychedelic side of things, the members of Baby Elephant appear content to vamp over a steady groove.

Cuts like the title track and 'Fred Berry' really embody what I was anticipating out of this collab: bouncy hip-hop grooves with the Woo Warrior clucking and hammering all over his keyboards. And Digital Underground's Shock G makes a nice little cameo over the minor-key funk of 'Plainfield.' But then there's 'Crack Addicts in Love,' which sounds like one of the generic 'message' tracks on any number of mid-'90s R&B albums.

Overall, Baby Elephant is worth checking out, but it doesn't really crack my top five Prince Paul-related records.