Curtis Mayfield

[Soulstation1]

Classic album / CD

any fav cuts?

i've been spinning this one the past days

i've got the 2 disc edition

Edited May 9, 2007 by Soulstation1

[Soulstation1]

YouTube: Freddie's Dead

[Free For All]

I recently bought this on CD. It's some great music, I love "Freddie's Dead" and "Pusher Man".

Poignant storytelling set to great music. And it takes me back to the 70s, which for the most part was a great decade for me.

[Rooster_Ties]

Dear lord, the whole thing. And the 2nd disc of the expanded edition is SWEET!!!

I first heard the Superfly soundtrack my freshman year back in college (Fall of 1987) -- just something crazy I borrowed from the college radio station (with the die-cut fold-out cover). I taped Superly on one side of a C90, with Herbie's "Death Wish" soundtrack on the other (another crazy find from the radio station library).

This was all WELL before I had ANY interest in jazz (and I hadn't heard any jazz either, for that matter). And truthfully, I mainly dug Superfly (and Death Wish) because they were unlike ANYTHING I'd ever heard before in my life. At the time, I thought they were weird -- but "weird good" (or is that "weird baad!!!"). And for several years, they were basically a novelty items in my musical upbringing.

Now, I just love 'em - and there's no novelty factor to them at all. I started getting more and more solo Curtis Mayfield several years ago, and even some really late 60's Impressions too.

But it all started with Superfly, some 20 years ago.

[J Larsen]

This is a really good one, but my favorite Mayfield record is Sweet Exorcist. Curtis/Live is really good too.

[sal]

Pusherman is the jam!

[Teasing the Korean]

This is a really good one, but my favorite Mayfield record is Sweet Exorcist...

[Harold_Z]

Great record.

I saw Curtis and this rhythm section perform this music live at the "Other End" on Bleeker Street right after the lp came out.

Smokin' !!

[John L]

Great record.

I saw Curtis and this rhythm section perform this music live at the "Other End" on Bleeker Street right after the lp came out.

Smokin' !!

I caught Curtis at Winterland on the same tour. Great stuff. It's interesting that this album started sounding stale and even corny to me for many years. But now it sounds just as good as when it was released. Funny how time plays ticks like that.

[Noj]

"Give Me Your Love" is my favorite tune. I love Curtis.

[porcy62]

Not want to be a vinyl psycothic, but the analog version sounds far better then the overpumped remastered deluxe edition. Great record, anyway.

I love Roots too.

[Sundog]

I posted this many months ago in the youtube thread. Worth another view for sure.

[Stefan Wood]

Not want to be a vinyl psycothic, but the analog version sounds far better then the overpumped remastered deluxe edition. Great record, anyway.

I love Roots too.

No it doesn't.

[porcy62]

Not want to be a vinyl psycothic, but the analog version sounds far better then the overpumped remastered deluxe edition. Great record, anyway.

I love Roots too.

No it doesn't.

I haven't got the deluxe cd anymore, I sold it after an A/B comparison with a cheap US pressing, so I couldn't do another comparison today. Generally speaking those UNIVERSAL DELUXE REMASTERED editions never convinced me, I kept the very few with some interesting outtakes, like The Who at Leeds, with the whole Tommy live on cd 2, or Marley's Catch a Fire with the unrealesed jamaican album w/o the heavy production of Blackwell but...De gustibus non disputandum

edit: Remastered Superfly was on Universal, wasn't it?

Edited March 22, 2007 by porcy62

[Soulstation1]

Anyone pick up the let's do it again soundtrack?

[zen archer]

I picked up that soundtrack a few years back. Excellent !!!!

It's funny i was in Cheapo's in Cambridge and the owner is pretty knowledgable and he

was unaware that this was reissued on cd. I actually found this at a FYE believe it or not .

The sound is very good .

[Soulstation1]

anyone have the dvd?

funny movie

[Kari S]

I picked this (the Superfly 2CD) up when it was reissued by Rhino, not knowing anything about the movie or (shame) Curtis...but the moment the riff from "Freddie's Dead" starts pumping, or the bassline to "Pusherman" - I was sold.

Anyone heard this - "Mayfield Remixed"? Has a quite decent remix of Superfly (the track) by Louie Vega.

[HWright]

I'm a big Curtis Fan. After I got the Rhino reissues ("Curtis," "Roots," "Super Fly" and "Curtis/Live"), I wanted more. Most of the post-"Super Fly" albums are available in one form or another, although they are much harder to find than the Rhinos. For the longest time I didn't even think about checking them out because they weren't in most stores and they don't get a lot of critical attention either.

So far I got "Back to the World" and "Got to Find a Way" as used CDs (Charly reissues from the '90's, I think) and "Sweet Exorcist" and "There's No Place Like America Today" on iTunes since I couldn't find any CDs of them at a reasonable price on line, although there may be some copies of the Charly CD editions out there somewhere... All four albums are quite entertaining and I recommend them to any fan of Curtis' music.

If you don't want to go so far, samples of some of the singles from these albums can be found on the second half of Rhino's one disc "The Very Best of Curtis Mayfield" disc (1996) as well as on various other best of and box sets that are readily available.

I've also been reading "Higher Ground" by Craig Werner, which is about Curtis, Aretha and Stevie Wonder. It's the only book I've been able to find that has anything to say about Curtis' post-"Super Fly" career...

Edited March 27, 2007 by HWright

[etherbored]

I've also been reading "Higher Ground" by Craig Werner, which is about Curtis, Aretha and Stevie Wonder. It's the only book I've been able to find that has anything to say about Curtis' post-"Super Fly" career...

hey, i've been interested in that book. what are your impressions?

[zen archer]

anyone have the dvd?

funny movie

I have that on DVD very funny and also the first one Uptown Saturday Night ........Geechy Dan !

[zen archer]

I have "there's no place like america today " on cd it's on the Curtom label. cd was released in 1989.

distributed by Ichiban records ?? out of Atlanta GA.

[J Larsen]

I have all the albums on vinyl on Curtdom. The vinyl quality isn't very good, but the records are all great.

[HWright]

>>>hey, i've been interested in that book. what are your impressions?

I like the book ["Higher Ground" by Craig Werner]. I would recommend it certainly, although keep in mind that I have only read one other book about Stevie and read no other books about Curtis or Aretha. In any case, it's not an academic treatise with musicological comments, understand. It's more of a collective biography with some comments about the music. I suppose this could therefore be considered a book "written about a record collection," but I think that Werner did do some original research and certainly interviewed a number of people himself, including Curtis, if I recall correctly. The theme of the book, as I understand it, is that Curtis, Aretha and Stevie all represented the gospel impulse carried out in the pop arena. In addition to recounting the careers of the the three stars, there is also material on their gospel forebearers (Clara Ward, Mahilia Jackson, Marion Williams, the Soul Stirrers, etc) as well as background on pioneering figures such as Sam Cooke and Ray Charles and secondary figures who crossed the paths of the three subjects such as Donny Hathaway and Leroy Hutson.

(Werner is/was an associate of Dave Marsh's. He co-authored a study of Creedence Clearwater Revival with Marsh and has also written a more general work about American rock and soul (popular music) in the' 60's and after called "A Change is Gonna Come" which I have ordered and and plan to read when it comes).

[Adam]

So far I got "Back to the World" and "Got to Find a Way" as used CDs (Charly reissues from the '90's, I think) and "Sweet Exorcist" and "There's No Place Like America Today" on iTunes since I couldn't find any CDs of them at a reasonable price on line, although there may be some copies of the Charly CD editions out there somewhere... All four albums are quite entertaining and I recommend them to any fan of Curtis' music.

I've also been reading "Higher Ground" by Craig Werner, which is about Curtis, Aretha and Stevie Wonder. It's the only book I've been able to find that has anything to say about Curtis' post-"Super Fly" career...

How about this, coming out in a couple of days:

http://www.amazon.com/Sweet-Exorcist-Got-F...364&sr=8-16

Also, I have that book Higher Ground but haven't read it yet. Saw Werner present it at teh LA Times Boko Fair at a panel on music writing and bought it afterwards.