Anthology [PA]

Performer: Rick James (Bass)
Artist: Teena Marie; Smokey Robinson; Grandmaster Flash; Roy Ayers; Roxanne Shante
Distributor: Universal Distribution

Notes: Personnel includes: Rick James (vocals, arranger, various instruments); Teena Marie, Smokey Robinson (vocals); Grandmaster Flash, Roxanne Shante (rap vocals); John McFee (guitar); Daniel LeMelle (saxophone); Roy Poper (trumpet); John Ervin (trombone); Roy Ayers (vibraphone); Randy Dunlap, Cheryl Dunlap (background vocals). Producer: Rick James. Compilation producer: Harry Weinger. Recorded between 1978 & 1988. Includes liner notes by David Ritz. All tracks have been digitally remastered. Of the many Rick James hits compilations available, ANTHOLOGY is one of the best. James was the flagship artist at Motown throughout the late 1970s and '80s, keeping the sound of the label vital and contemporary long after the heyday of the Temptations and Smokey Robinson. Over the course of two discs and 28 tracks, ANTHOLOGY surveys the length of James's Motown tenure, extending all the way up to 1988's "Loosey's Rap" (featuring Roxanne Shante), and representing the performer's mix of classic R&B, disco-inflected dance-floor anthems, '80s electro-groove, and hard party funk. Like the best Motown artists, James had an outstanding ear as an arranger and producer. His songs feature roiling beds of rhythm, burbling synthesizers, sharp horn charts, swirling strings, and unfolding choruses of male and female backup singers. The biggest hits--"You and I" (James's first single), the exuberant "Give It to Me Baby," and the irrepressible "Super Freak (Part 1)," his signature song--are here. However, the set is also packed with other gems, including collaborations with Smokey Robinson ("Ebony Eyes"), the Temptations ("Standing on the Top [Part 1]"), and Teena Marie ("Fire and Desire"). ANTHOLOGY works perfectly as a retrospective, and as a top-notch sampler of this funk icon's work. (Note: The 22-track GOLD collection features many of the selections found here.)

Q (9/02, p.126) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...It's hard to argue with music this determined..." Mojo (Publisher) (9/02, p.116) - "James pulls out all the stops, drawing from jazz and old-school R&B riffs and reggae, Detroit soul, and even rock 'n' roll...this is a well-annotated anthology that paints an honest picture of the artist and his oeuvre, [however] raw and revealing it may be."

Rick James got an early start on his music career, forming the Mynah Birds with future Buffalo Springfield members Neil Young and Bruce Palmer while still in his teens. Though signed to Motown, the group fell apart when James got in trouble for draft-dodging. He rebounded in the '70s, eventually becoming a solo star with his winning combination of rock, pop, and funk (which he called "punk funk"), scoring numerous hits in the '70s and '80s. He became quite the impresario, producing Teena Marie, the Mary Jane Girls, and others. James's biggest visibility in the '90s came from being sampled for M.C. Hammer's megahit "U Can't Touch This," and then from an arrest for drugs and various other more violent crimes. By the end of the decade, however, he was free, clean, and back to recording and performing, getting the chance to clean up his legacy before passing away in 2004.

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