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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Magic on a disc..., August 20, 2002
On occasion, a musician, his accompaniment, and the engineering team recording the work, are so completely in sync that their performances are connected in a way that borders on telepathy. Such was the case with the magic first album of Oscar Brown, Jr., "Sin & Soul...And Then Some".Perrenial favorite "Dat Dere", a fun wordplay on the wonder of ever-questioning children, is just one of many highlights on this disc. At least two songs play on the cry of traditional Southern street vendors plying their trade from their wheeled carts. In both "Watermelon Man" and "Rags and Old Iron", Brown turns the routine patter of the street vendor into splendid commentaries. "Brown Baby" and "Afro Blue" are both gentle, quiet lullabies, and very engaging. "But I Was Cool" is a comedy of errors suffered by a heartbroken man, and "Somebody Buy Me a Drink" is the flip side to that coin, a bluesy lament on a similar topic. One of the many surprises here is "Bid 'em In", a proto-rap about slavery. The song is certain to provoke thought, if not passionate reaction. Five unreleased tracks are added, four of which comprise an unsuccessful musical that Brown was working on. "World of Grey" is a thoughtful commentary. Songs like "Mr. Kicks", "Forbidden Fruit", and "Hazel's Hips" make you want to see the play, for it must have been scandalous fun. This is an excellent, excellent jazz-blues album, which was not only a classic in its own right, but is made even more so by the addition of the five previously unreleased tracks made during the same sessions. If you ever want to hear magic, then this is the album to play.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Treasure Chest..... of humanity and soulfulness, July 10, 2000
Oscar Brown Jr., one of the great treasures... more people should know of this man and this recording. Touching, funny and profound. Mr. Brown gives each of the pieces a different unique reading. He becomes the central character of the story within the song like a part-actor, part-poet, part master musician. I was amazed when I first heard this quite a few years ago and still am. This album is artistry at it's highest. In many discussions there has been the question: "What is Soul"? Soul is Oscar Brown, Jr.
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
please let me introduce myself my name is mr kicks, December 9, 2001
that line actually is in a song on "heaven and hell", Oscar brown jr's companion album to this one, which columbia/sony haven't yet reissued -- though both albums can be found on ONE cd on some obscure italian label!! all my friends throughout the years who have listened to this album as well as "heaven and hell" -- and believe me, they all invariably sat down and listened to both albums right through, because they're so incredible, these are SEVEN STAR records, with not a dud song anywhere in sight, just a continuous string of pearls, no argument, no questions asked, these are simply the two best popular records of the sixties, topping everything, and that includes all the great records the beatles, dylan, hendrix et all came up with, THESE are the Mt Everest and K2 of that decade -- and so, let me make my point, all these friends, listening to Oscar Brown jr, instantly understood one very important fact about "Beggars Banquet", the Stones' masterpiece of 1968 or thereabouts. How INSPIRED those kids, Mick Jagger and Co., must have felt after listening to Oscar Brown Jr, and of course their own work really IS very nice. But what you understand after listening to Oscar Brown Jr's record is that the Stones' effort is like a school kid's essay, after you've read a classic. THIS is the original source of that inspiration, and it is a masterwork and a classic, ahead of all comers. Buy this record now and treasure it for the next 40 years, as I have done for the past 40. (amen, no BS)
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~ Oscar Brown Jr.
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