Curtis Mayfield - Curtis

GHETTO GOSPEL

I WAS A YOUNG GUY ,WHEN THIS ALBUM CAME OUT ,BUT IT LEFT A LASTING IMPRESSION ON ME THROUGHOUT THE YEARS.OFTEN PLAYED IN MY COLLECTION AND I SHOULD HAVE REVIEWED THIS MASTERPIECE EARLIER ON.EVERY WORD SPOKEN FROM THIS MAN'S MOUTH,IS ON POINT WITH WHAT BLACK AMERICA STILL FACES TODAY!
THIS CD RANKS HIGH AND IS THE COMPANION PIECE TO MARVIN GAYE'S WHAT'S GOIN ON.MR.CURTIS MAYFIELD WAS A BRILLIANT SONGWRITER AND MUSICIAN AND THIS LANDMARK RECORDING WILL CONTINUE TO GET PLAYED FOR YEARS TO COME,
ESSENTIAL TO YOUR SOUL COLLECTION.......TIMELESS November 24, 2007

(4.5 stars) Visionary and uplifting!

Curtis Mayfield's solo debut, and his entry in the "1971 Socially Conscience R&B Album" sweepstakes (other entries include There's a Riot Goin' On and What's Going On ). I don't think it stacks up with What's Going on or Riot, but that's by no fault of its own: after all, those two albums are among the best ever created, and even then I think the uplifting Latin-funk-R&B epic "Move on Up" is a better song than anything on either of those albums, and that Curtis Mayfield is a better lyricist than either Sly or Marvin: check out his commentary on racism "The Other Side of Town" and the apocalyptic "Don't Worry (If There's Hell Below, We're all Going to Go)", which just may have the best introduction ever: Curtis intoning in an echoey voice, as if he's on the top of a mountain, "Don't worry! If there's hell below, we're all going to go!", then launches into a total Isaac Hayes-like drama with strings, horns, wah-wah guitars, keyboards, you name it. Now that's a song: if it weren't for "Move on Up" (nine minutes, and I can't imagine it any shorter! Just listen to that percussion solo! It's good stuff! And it's also great to hear a song as uplifting as that in a day where mindless violence is endorsed by so many bands), "Don't Worry" would be the best song on the album. It's the total opposite of "Move on Up", of course: the message there is if we don't get our act together, we're all gonna die! Few managed to balance such opposing emotions on the same albums: to bring back the Sly Stone comparison, it took him two years to follow the optimistic Stand! with the bleak There's a Riot Goin' on. Plus, Mayfield has fun with song structure, as on "We the People Who Are Darker Than Blue", which again takes on racism: here he starts it with a smooth, cinematic R&B section, which transitions into hard funk and back into smooth R&B. And "Miss Black America" is a wonderful love song. There are a couple lapses: I know "The Makings of You" is extremely popular, but I find its strings and harp saccharine and overly sticky; "Wild and Free" has a horn riff right out of a bad game show. So while it's not as good as my favorite Mayfield album, Superfly, Curtis' talents as a singer, songwriter and guitarist are on display here. August 8, 2007

Gone, but not forgotten.

Only nine reviews for such an important album! Curtis was a giant. For me this was his greatest accomplishment. Yet, apparently, this masterpiece flies under the radar. I won't presume to explain.

In the late 60's Curtis Mayfield was the musical conscience of black America. He pulled no punches and at the same time he took no cheap shots. He never came across as preachy yet he always passed along a message that absolutely needed to be said. Moreover, even if you weren't cognizant of the message the sheer majesty of the music shone through.

I wish that I'd had the opportunity to meet Curtis. For this 57 year old "whitey" he was a hero of immense proportions.

Curtis has no weak songs. Horns, strings and that fabulous voice! I never tire of listening to the record, and now this CD. Unlike most recordings, once this one hits the player it stays on until the end. And then I play Move on up, again.

Curtis may be gone but he'll never be forgotten.
July 22, 2006

Five stars and beyond for me...this man knows his stuff indeed.

This man stays on my mind all the time. I have to admit, "We the People Who Are Darker Than Blue" is the jam on this album with its breathtaking strings and rhythm section that sends chills up my spine. It is the jam right along with "Wild and Free". This particular album went platinum cause it was consistent from one song to the next, had a common theme that is shared (being black in today's society and love among mankind)and last, the album had actual musicians playing on this record and not the computerized music we hear today. Just listen to this record all the way through and you won't be disappointed at all. You get your money's worth with this guy. Curtis puts out quality material and he is never sounds rushed. December 29, 2005

He's A Winner!

Of all my favorite songwriters, a group including the teams of Tosh/Marley Lennom/McCartney, Page/Plant, Jagger/Richards and Patton/Benjamin (Outkast), Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Jimi Hendrix and Ben Harper to name a few I would have to put the late, great Curtis Mayfield, Soul Brother #1 right at the top. His songs had the social conscioussness and political militance of Martin Luther King and he was a major influence two of the greatest Soul Brothas of all time, the "Bush Doctor" Peter Tosh and Brother Bob Marley who imitated his work with the Impressions as they first performed as the wailers . His music over three plus decades was just off the meat rack funky as hell, and so ahead of his time that his songs have been sampled on some of the best hip hop beats OF ALL TIME like Camp Lo's "Black Nostaljak a.k.a. Come On!", 2Pac's "r u still down", or the "BathTub" skit from Snoop's first album. You might not recognize these songs on paper but you most definitely would if you heard them. The man was a certified musical genius.
That said, this, his first solo album might just be his best which is really quite a feat considering teh two or three he released subsequently like Superfly and Roots. Not a weak track among the original or added tracks but the very best are "Move on Up", "(Don't Worry) If there's Hell Below", We People who are Darker than Blue" and "Miss Black America" among the original tracks. Of the demos "underground","suffer" and "Ghetto Child" are the best, the latter track being nearly identical to the killer opening cut "Little Child Runnin' Wild" from Superfly only without horns or strings and other production overdubs).
This album is a must have for a fan of top notch songwriting and musicianship as is his follow up solo effort Roots-1999 Live album entitled 'Curtis/Live!' both from 1971. I assume anyone with remote interest in Curtis knows Superfly is a masterwork in no need of explanation. I would also recommend buying ONE of Curtis' greatest hits packages because they have some great songs from scattered soundtracks and latter staged albums he did that were not quite as consistent as his early work but just as potent. I found one with almost 50 songs for 20 bucks!!
A substantial Curtis Mayfield library would fit well into any music listener's home because, as many of his songs emphasize, people, whether black white yellow or brown are far more alike than they are different. I don't consider myself a fan of certain genres as much as a fan of good music and anything by Curtis is definitely that. I urge you to explore and enjoy him. January 23, 2005

More reviews at Amazon.com ...