Shuggie Otis

Product Details

* Audio CD (February 8, 2005)
* Original Release Date: 2001
* Number of Discs: 1
* Format: Original recording reissued
* Label: Luaka Bop
* ASIN: B0000CC833
* Average Customer Review: based on 16 reviews. (Write a review.)
* Amazon.com Sales Rank: #32,803 in Music (See Top Sellers in Music)
Yesterday: #22,573 in Music

Track Listings
1. Inspiration Information
2. Island Letter
3. Sparkle City
4. Aht Uh Mi Hed
5. Happy House
6. Rainy Day
7. XL-30
8. Pling!
9. Not Available
10. Strawberry Letters 23
11. Sweet Thang
12. Ice Cold Daydream
13. Freedom Flight
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Like Stevie Wonder and Allen Toussaint before him--and Prince and D'Angelo afterward--Shuggie Otis was a musical visionary whose early 1970s recordings showed he could do it all, writing, arranging, performing, and producing some of the decade's most satisfying, innovative, and, unfortunately, overlooked music. This reissue of his 1974 Inspiration Information album--a soulful song cycle that took three years to create and was worth every minute--ranges from early drum machine-driven experiments like "Xl-30" and "Aht Uh Mi Hed" (note the Sly Stone spelling influence) to Otis's most stunning pop confection ever, "Strawberry Letter 23." (The latter song, which ended up being a big hit for the Brothers Johnson, is one of four bonus tracks taken from Otis's 1971 Freedom Flight album). Otis, who once turned down an offer to replace Mick Taylor in the Rolling Stones, continues to perform around the Bay Area on his own and with his father, bandleader Johnny Otis. Hopefully, the long-awaited resurrection of this material will help bring him the attention he deserves. --Bill Forman

Product Description
Inspiration Information, the brainchild of guitar prodigy Shuggie Otis, more than justifies the cult following garnered in the years since its (largely ignored) 1974 release. Son of R&B legend Johnny Otis, Shuggie was a late-'60s celebrity due to his Super Session duets with Al Kooper. Opting out of arena rock -- he reputedly refused an offer to join the Rolling Stones -- the 19-year-old Otis spent three years in the studio generating this one-man opus. His multitracked rhythms recall the laid-back funk of the Meters embroidered with psychedelic filigree, and his voice resembles Allan Toussaint's. But in every other regard, this is singular, sexy music, dislocated in time. Drum machines propel "Island Letter" and the beat-box-plus-organ stabs of "XL-30" predate England's Young Marble Giants by several years. Also featured are four bonus cuts from the artist's 1971 set Freedom Flight, including "Strawberry Letter 23," which was later a hit for the Brothers Johnson. Heard here in its original form (with a surprise prog-guitar coda), the song conveys the impression of "Good Vibrations" being played by a lone musician. Unbelievably wonderful. - Billboard
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36 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
An unbelievable cross-pollination of styles!, January 23, 2004
Reviewer: C. Roark "tri-zeta" (from under the floorboards and through the woods...) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)
Hmmm. For once I agree completely with the Billboard review above.

This one floors me. Each song sounds like Shuggie is reinventing soul and rock and blues and funk- all at once. And he is. I can't believe how young he was whe he put this out. In his early 20's younger than I!!!!! It would be depressing if it weren't so damn good!!!! It's rare for me to find albums that I can put on and play in their entirety. VERY RARE! This is one of the handful. Despite the complexity of the arrangements, there is continuity. Despite the shuffling of styles and modes and aural textures- it's still hella funky and soulful overall (the drum patterns on the tital track- they way they start echoing and skittering towards the third verse- it never fails to make me tap my foot). Even the string sections are funky.

This album is like having a breezy, clear, azure-beyond-belief summer day siphoned into your CD player. It is the antithesis of boring, repetitive garbage that treacles out of car windows when I do errands. This is the antidote, or, I suppose, one of the better forms the antidote has taken. Everyone I have given this to as a present has in return bought a copy for someone else who 'gets it.'

Some minutiae: Many great artists have sampled this milestone, most notably, Digable Planets on Blowout Comb (one of the best hip hop albums of all time). And like the above said, The Brother's Johnson had some fame and appeal with their cover of Strawberry Letter 23 (a version of which I heard recently used as background music in a Special K with Strawberries commercial. Yuk.) The original is far better. This is an album that has to be heard to be believed.

Finally, The one negative reviewer likened this work to Shuggie being, "the Syd barrett of the blues." I'm sorry, but how is that a bad thing? I disagree with the comparison for a couple of reasons, but even so- how would it be bad to be the Syd Barrett of any musical genre?

And, post-finally,- a caveat... Now then- don't come to this expecting something bluesy, or at least straightforwardly bluesy. You will be let down if you heard some of Shuggie's early bluies albums and are looking for something in that vein- just as I picked up his blues albums looking for more of this vein. This isn't a blues album- it's an album entirely of its own. It is one of those wonders that defies you to categorize it.

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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
Some INFORMATION to give you the INSPIRATION to buy this CD, August 25, 2004
Reviewer: hangar-eighteen (Fallbrook, CA United States) - See all my reviews
The first time you hear this album, you will be forced to ask yourself, "Why haven't I heard this before?" Or maybe you've heard the cover of "Stawberry Letter 23" by the Brothers Johnson and thought, "I wish there was more music like this!"

Well, you're in luck because the entire album is brilliant and flawless. If you like classic 70s era R&B or jazzy funk instrumentals or psychedelic soul music then you have just found your holy grail.

This album is intoxicating and addictive. I've had it in regular rotation in my stereo since this Cd reissue came out and I never get tired of it.

A word of warning. If you like your soul in nice little pop friendly radio ready snippets then you might not like this. This music goes deeper. If you like a more flowing, melodic, swirling kind of jazzy sound that envelopes you and lifts you off the ground then you should stop reading and buy this right away.

I hope I gave you INSPIRATION with this INFORMATION. Enjoy!!!… (más)