Customer Reviews

Yes We Can Can [Vinyl]

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

 

 

It's incredible to me that the Pointer Sisters' first three releases, from which these cuts primarily are drawn, are no longer available. This CD does an admirable job of cherry-picking key selections. Still, key cuts from the great first album, such as "Sugar" are missing, as are the title cut from the second album "That's a Plenty" and the powerful "Grinning in Your Face."

The four sisters could flat out sing, any style, with tremendous imagination and flair. This collection shows off their versatility.

There's the funk of "Yes We Can Can," the rockin' blues of Willie Dixon's "Wang Dang Doodle" (one of the greatest party tunes of all time, and the women simply wail it), the jazz harmonies and phrasings of "Salt Peanuts," the show tune flair of "Steam Heat," and for good measure a straight-ahead country tune, "Fairy Tale," which dispels any notion that African-American women from Oakland can't get on down to the honkytonk bars.

In my opinion, despite some commercial success in the '80s, the Pointer Sisters never got the credit they deserved, but they may have been a victim of their own versatility. After all, the music industry loves to pigeonhole, and the sisters simply resisted classification. How many groups can you name who could sing Springsteen and Ellington with equal ease?

If you're really hooked on the pinpoint harmonies and rich humor that these ladies delivered, a search for the self-titled first album (1973), in particular, is advised.

I like this collection a lot: lots of jazzy-flavored type songs that will make you smile. I like "Jada" and "Black Coffee", very nice songs. Although they are best known for later hits like "Slow Hand" and the hits from the album "Break Out", this is a welcome edition for another side of the Pointer Sisters that some may not have thought existed.

If you purchased the 2-CD collection of hits "Fire: The Very Best Of The Pointer Sisters", then you may have noticed that only 4 of the 14 songs from this album are on that collection. Thus, the best of the Blue Thumb is NOT a supplement but an essential buy even for the casual fan.

The early Pointer Sisters recordings are phenominal. The Lambert, Hendricks, and Ross influence is unmistakeable. Backing up the babes is an astonishing array of studio masters. Gaylord Birch (drums), Tom Salisbury (piano), and Ron McClure (basses) just cook their butts off. Willie Fulton's guitar and the amazing Hoodoo Rhythm Devils give the essential swamp voodoo groove behind the vocalists. They really don't make 'em like this anymore. Turn it up!

Until the recent death of youngest sister June, I hadn't given the Pointer Sisters any thought in years. But after recently purchasing this CD, I realized the group is sadly underrated.

I first became aware of the Pointers with their 1972 version of "Yes, We Can, Can", a funk and R&B number a lot of listeners either are unaware of or forgot they recorded. That song coupled with their 40s style of dress and jazzy vocals were among my early childhood memories. But for many listeners, the Pointers would remain under the radar until they teamed with Richard Perry in the late 70s and crossed over into pop.

Unfortunately because most people are only familiar with their 80s hits where their vocals were often overshadowed by Perry's synthesized pop production, many critics find it easy to dismiss them as nothing more than a run of the mill fluffy pop girl group. This point was brought home recently during two separate conversations I had with individuals, who familiar with only the 80s songs, expressed surprise at how strong and diverse the sisters' vocals were after hearing their earlier 70s works.

If you really want to hear what the Pointers were capable of early in their career when they were four members strong, listen to this CD. I bet a lot of R&B fans who dismiss the 80s Pointers as too pop will be surprised at how funky the sisters are on songs such as "Going Down Slowly" and "How Long". They also show they're more than capable of handling jazz and swing on "Steam Heat" and "Jada." There's even a country song on here (Fairytale.) Another thing this CD brings to light is that the sisters, Anita and Bonnie in particular, had impressive songwriting skills. They composed "Jada", "How Long" and "Fairytale." It appears they did less songwriting in their 80s work.

It's a fun CD to listen to as the group obviously had a more musically adventurous side than their 80s hits would suggest. Check out their style before Bonnie departed and the remaining sisters took a more commercial and lucrative route.

...they acted as if they stepped out of an "Ain't Misbehavin'" type of scenario. Nineteen forties party gals who was all about having a good time in their Rosie the Riveter hairdos, their nylons knotted at their thighs, their Be-bop stilleto'ed platform shoes. Most thought they were a disco novelty act. But wait. Did you hear those David Rubinson produced, wah-wah in overdrive, 7 plus minute tracks like Yes We Can, How Long (Betcha Gotta Chick on the Side), Love in Them Hills, Going Down Slowly? Are they funky or what? Did you listen to those old jazz cuts they harmoniously performed like the Andrew Sisters deconstructed and then dipped in honey and green tea...Jada, Salt Peanuts, Cloudburst? These ladies were listening to jazz vocalese experts Hendricks, Ross and Lambert, fer sure. And that one country and western tune Fairy Tale. I ain't much for country, but it even had me looking for a Stetson. We pretty much all know what happens to the ladies: the Dreamgirls scenario. One leaves the group for a solo career, seemingly to leave the others for dead. The remainder of the group goes on to wild success, yadda, yadda, yadda. It's all in the History of R&B books under 'Sisters, Pointer'. But in all that, they put out some great music. I look forward to the repressing of some of the Richard Perry produced Planet Records they did--particularly Special Things. Until then, this will admirably fill my bill.

OK, I love this CD!!!This Cd features the Pointer's early recordings where you get the best of the sisterly harmonies before all the electronics started interfering in their later recordings. Songs such as "Going Down Slowly"(with Ruth Pointer at her best on the lead), "You Gotta Believe", "Having a Party" show the funky side of the sisters and are exciting to listen to. One has to be impressed by the tight harmonies and the blend that only the Pointer Sisters have. Besides, they sound like they are having a blast! Other songs such as "Steam Heat" (with humerous intro.), "How Long" and "Love up in Them There Hills" make this collection a must have for anyone who favors the early recordings of these fabulous sisters!

This is a compilation of their early ABC and Blue Thumb material. There's a mix of styles and material here. The Pointers were still finding their way to their more sophisticated, glitzy 80's run into the top 10. In some ways the treatments here are more fun to listen to as they experiment with different styles of music.

This makes a great complement to the ubiquitous Pointer Sisters collections of their later recordings. The only disappointment was the omission of the "Live Your Life Before You Die" single from '75.

OK, I love this CD!!!This Cd features the Pointer's early recordings where you get the best of the sisterly harmonies before all the electronics started interfering in their later recordings. Songs such as "Going Down Slowly"(with Ruth Pointer at her best on the lead), "You Gotta Believe", "Having a Party" show the funky side of the sisters and are exciting to listen to. One has to be impressed by the tight harmonies and the blend that only the Pointer Sisters have. Besides, they sound like they are having a blast! Other songs such as "Steam Heat" (with humerous intro.), "How Long" and "Love up in Them There Hills" make this collection a must have for anyone who favors the early recordings of these fabulous sisters!

Pointer Sisters great music,the early years ,full of energy,later music had more skill sure but nothing matches the excitement of this cd,truely timeless.

These are all first class recordings made in the 70s when the sisters were signed to ABC/Dunhill. Sound quality is great, and the CD is a facinating mixture of styles and approaches from an act which was still finding its feet and developing a style at the time. There are soulful tracks, funky tracks and even some that verge on MOR and C&W. Most famous is probably "How long" but for my money the long-forgotten "Going down slowly" is the best. Its a marvellous, heavy funky number with an uncompromising lyric which shows off the sisters' talents to the full. There are no really big hits here, and some of the tracks will not appeal to all soul/funk fans, hence 4 stars not 5. The Pointer Sisters made some of the best disco records of the 80s, but for my money this older collection includes some of the best recordings of their career. Recommended.