by Danny Holdman
Nothing special on this CD, as far as
multimedia extras go. Released by Virgin Records, it is a standard 44.1kHz 16-bit music
CD, recorded in stereo. If you don't know what that means, then crawl out from under that
rock and get a life. What else is there to say?
This CD is possibly the best compilation by
Lenny Kravitz to date. As usual, he plays most of the music on the album by himself,
including vocals, guitar, piano, Fender Rhodes, clavinet, Mellotron, Hammond B-3 organ,
symthesizers, Mini-Moog synthesizer, Moog bass, bass, drums, ,percussion, congas, and
additional drum programming. Obviously, he is one serious musician.
The music is a fun mix of rock, blues, and funk that is not easy to
pull off. There is something on here for nearly everyone. The overall groove is
infectious, from the trademark Kravitz rythm guitar, the hammering sythesized bass, drum
tracks, brass accents and soulfoul vocals. Certain tracks lead one to think of revived
70's style-funk with a souped up millineal sound. Infectious. After just a couple of
listening sessions, I was completely hooked. Only a couple of tracks seem out of place,
such as Black Velveteen, which seems to drone on and on. I originally purchased the album
merely for the single "Fly Away" (my first-run copy does not have the
"American Woman" single), but have continually found myself skipping over that
track to listen to others. While its rocking style is remeniscent of Kravitz's classic hit
"Are You Gonna Go My Way?", it is not indicative of the entire album.It was a
major hit in the pop/rock genre, there are more than a few tracks on this CD which are
better, showcasing Lenny's musical vesatility and style. Instead of rock, think of
it as a funk-rock party on disc. Throw in a few blues songs, like "If You Can't Say
No", plus, there are even a few slow-grooving basshead love tunes in "I Belong
to You", " and "Little Girl's Eyes" (for those bassheads who want to
use your systems to impress a potential lady-love). Quite a few tracks exhibit
asphalt-pounding bass lines, so this CD rates a VERY high neighborhood annoyance factor.
Overall, a good musical addition to anyone's CD collection, especially those with a taste for funk, rock, OR blues. There is a reason this album netted Lenny a Grammy award nomination for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance with the single "American Woman". Get it.
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