Melvin Sparks - Akilah! (1972) [re-rip]

Here's another great LP from the guitarist Melvin Sparks. Akilah! is one of his best from Prestige's classic early 70s! It is his third LP and recorded at Rudy van Gelder’s Studio. Sparks is a genius guitarist, with a great talent. He played with Lou Donaldson and Jack McDuff during the late 60s, but by the 70's, he was making his own way as one of the hottest funk guitarists in jazz. The group presented is an excellent one; and features Idris Muhammad on drums, Virgil Jones on trumpet, Frank Wess on tenor, Sonny Fortune on alto and Leon Spencer on organ. Akilah is an album that features more musicians than the usual soul jazz quintet format. Included on the album are guests Ernie Royal on Trumpet, Dave Hubbard on tenor and flute, Hubert Laws on flute, and George Coleman on tenor. Melvin's guitar work is proficient and rewarding. All compositions are by Melvin Sparks except “Love The Life You Live” [Kool & The Gang] and “The Image Of Love” [Leon Spencer]. Orchestrations are arranged by Billy Ver Plank on two tracks. Some highlights include "Love The Life You Live", "Akilah", and "All Wrapped Up". Enjoy!

Prestige Records, PRST 10039, 1972
Beat Goes Public, BGPD 1066, 1993

Recorded 14^th & 21^st February, 1971 at Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey

Personnel:

Melvin Sparks - Guitar

Virgil Jones - Trumpet (#A1,A2,B1)

Ernie Royal - Trumpet (#B1)

Sonny Fortune - Alto Saxophone (A1,A2,B1,B2)

George Coleman - Alto Saxophone (#B1)

Frank Wess - Tenor Saxophone (#A1,A2,B1)

Dave Hubbard - Tenor Saxophone (#A3), Flute (#B3)

Hubert Laws - Flute (#B3)

Leon Spencer - Organ, Piano

Idris Muhammad - Drums

Buddy Caldwell - Percussion

Tracks:

A1. Love The Life You Live {Gene Redd, Kool & The Gang} (5:35)

A2. On The Up {Melvin Sparks} (5:56)

A3. All Wrapped Up {Melvin Sparks} (4:42)

B1. Akilah {Melvin Sparks} (4:39)

B2. Blues For J.B. {Melvin Sparks} (7:04)

B3. The Image Of Love {Leon Spencer} (6:51)

Credits:

Supervision - Ozzie Cadena

Recording Engineer - Rudy van Gelder

Orchestrations - Billy Ver Planck (#A1,A2)

Art Direction, Photography - Tony Lane

George Freeman - Franticdiagnosis (1972)

A legendary bit of funk - and a killer record from one of the most unique guitarists ever! George Freeman's got a sound and a style unlike any other player we can think of - an approach to funky guitar that's often got a really hard touch on the strings, and which gets nice and noisy at the best funky moments. Freeman's probably best known for the few obscure records he cut with Groove Holmes, but this album's his out and out masterpiece - a rare one-off session cut in the funky Philly scene and supervised by DJ Sonny Hopson - and featuring a rare mix of players that includes Caesar Frazier on organ and Charles Earland on Arp! The mix of organ and Arp is really incredible - especially on the side-long jammer "Franticdiagnosis", which runs for nearly 20 minutes, and is one of the most messed-up funky jazz jams of the 70s! Other players include Von Freeman on tenor sax and Dave Hubbard on alto flute - and the album features the legendary jazz dance track "The Bump", plus the cuts "Free-Man" and "God Bless The Child". © Dusty Groove, Inc.

Bam-Boo Records, GR003, 1972

Bam-Boo/Shout, SHOUT-241, 2013

Recorded At Media Sound Studios, Electric Lady Studios, New York

Musicians:

George Freeman - Guitar

Von Freeman - Tenor Saxophone

Dave Hubbard - Alto Flute

Caesar Frazier - Organ

Charles Earland - ARP Synthesizer

Gary Jenkins - Drums

Eddie Moore - Bass Drum, Cymbal

Donald Rivers - Percussion, Gores, Cowbell, Tambourine

Billy Connors - Congas

Tracks:

1. Franticdiagnosis {George Freeman} (19:16)

2. The Bump {George Freeman} (7:56)

3. Free-Man {George Freeman} (8:22)

4. God Bless The Child {Billie Holiday} (5:22)

Credits:

Producer - Sonny Hopson

Assistant Producer - Beverley Whitehead

Arranger - George Freeman

Cover Design - Lewis Buo Anderson

Cover Model - Paulete George