Wednesday 9 September 2009

Mongo Santamaria ”Feelin’ Alright”

Mongo Santamaria

Feelin’ Alright
( LP Atlantic Records, 1970 )
Catalog # SD 8252


Tracklisting:
A1 Feelin’ Alright (2:31)
A2 Fever (3:02)
A3 Hip-Hug-Her (2:50)
A4 Hold On, I’m Comin’ (2:18)
A5 I Can’t Get Next To You (2:39)
A6 Sunshine Of Your Love (3:21)
B1 Heighty-Hi (2:43)
B2 In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida (3:34)
B3 On Broadway (3:14)
B4 Tracks Of My Tears (2:51)
B5 By The Time I Get To Phoenix (4:07)

Personnel & Credits:
Haig Adishian Cover Design
Tom Dowd Producer
Ralph J. Gleason Liner Notes
Bill Halverson Engineer
Mongo Santamaria Percussion, Conga
Marty Sheller Arranger
Jerry Wexler Producer

Note:
Vinyl courtesy of Disco7Sete/São Paulo

Review1:
One of Mongo’s biggest records of the early 70s — and an important early side for Atlantic Records! Moving to Atlantic from Columbia, Mongo hipped things up even more — picking up on important trends in soul, rock, and the Latin underground of the time. Atlantic gave Mongo the freedom to open things up a bit more — and fill his grooves with a bit more funk, jazz, and Chicano soul than heard on earlier albums. The result is a wonderful blend of styles that crackles with electricity from track to track. Arrangements are by Mongo’s longtime partner, Marty Sheller — and titles include “Hip Hug Her”, “Sunshine Of Your Love”, “Hold On, I’m Coming”, “On Broadway”, and “In A Gadda Da Vida”, which is a real trip!
By Dusty Groove America

Review2:
While it fits in with the glut of Top 40 boogaloo efforts that record companies pressured jazz artists to record in the late '60s and early '70s, Mongo Santamaria's Feelin' Alright does offer a more than decent program of covers ranging from Motown to "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida." Santamaria and band spike the even-keeled, groove-heavy parade of horns, Latin percussion, and rolling basslines with tasty trumpet and saxophone solos and manage to recast most of these rock and soul hits as engaging and infectious Latin-a-go-go jams. Like Willie Bobo, Santamaria does a fine job of straddling the fence between soulful interpretation and limp mood music. And though attempts at reforming rock material like Cream's "Sunshine of Your Love" fall a bit short, jazz-friendly tracks like "On Broadway" come out sounding worthy of Santamaria's talent. The band's lively rendition of the title track and sophisticated takes on the Sam & Dave hit "Hold On, I'm Coming" and Jimmy Webb's perennial "By the Time I Get to Phoenix" further maintain the high standard. Although a fun record to listen to, Feelin' Alright should be passed over by newcomers for more viable first-disc choices like Fantasy's Mongo's Greatest Hits and Rhino's Skin to Skin anthology.
By Stephen Cook (AMG)

By Pier

1 comment:

rangoos said...

Password:

myfavvouritesound.blogspot

NOTE: Pictures copyright held by photographers. If you are the photographer of any picture and would like it removed please email us.

''Quidquid id est, timeo Danaos et dona ferentis.''


©® 2006-2016 My Favourite Sound© 1.0 (CC Licensed 3.0)