Burdon becomes Black-Man's burden
olofpalme63 | auf der flucht! | 04/09/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Here we're offered a clean and more polished Burdon backed up by some of the greatest musicians of the day. The Black-Man's Burdon didn't produce any hits, but it did showcase the raw power of War itself. Although Burdon's rhetoric is held somewhat in check here, it still manages to get in the way of the band at times on this 1970 MGM release. Eric Burdon & War's second offering (a double LP) would also be their last together. Burdon would never sound this poignant in his career again, and Spill The Wine (from Burdon declares "War") would be remembered as the only relevant material Burdon performed in the post-Animals era.
A point worth mentioning is that it's War's noodling (The Bird And The Squirrel and Nuts, Seeds & Life) in the wake of the classic Beautiful New Born Child that hold your attention. Setting you up for the relentless Out Of Nowhere (that should've been released as a single). In the twilight of the hippie era Jerry Goldstein produced some of the most social and introspective material of the year. Gun hints at a country sick and tired of the Vietnam conflict, while Sun/Moon soothes the listener for the pop sounding Pretty Colors. War's innovative fusion sound would carry them through the entire decade of the 70's, producing a string of 8 gold records in a row.
olofpalme63"
Excellent
Bill Your 'Free Form FM Handi Cyber | Mahwah, NJ USA | 03/13/2010
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Eric Burdon was smart. When Animal R&B goes out of style, hook up with a Latin Funk band and do hippie grooves for as long as the movement lasts.
This is not the War you know from the later 1970s, doing polished singles like All Day Music. But it is an absolutely kicking feast of Latin gooves. Burdon had the voice and the improvisation skills to work wonders over these long jams, and this band is both tight and loose enough to sail right along with him
This stuff cooks. Eat it."