Search - Taj Mahal :: Music Fuh Ya' Musica Para Tu

A Neglected Gem

Frank Rawland | 02/19/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"What would you think if Taj Mahal took a moderate step outside the blues and tried his hand at calypso music? Well, here is your chance to find out. For my money he pulls it off brilliantly. There isn't a single bad track here. Every song is inflected with steel drums and/or Caribbean rhythms, some more than others, but all to good effect. Even the Elizabeth Cotton blues classic "Freight Train" gets the treatment. Don't let that scare you though; Taj clearly respects the original and his interpretation enhances rather than diminishes it.



If I have one complaint it's that the album is too short.



Track List:

-You Got It

-Frieght Train

-Baby, You're My Destiny

-Sailin' Into Walker's Cay

-Truck Driver's Two Step

-The Four Mills Brothers

-Honey Babe

-Curry"

Nice time capsule piece

Far Lefkas | Balto.-WDC metro area | 03/03/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Long ago when I was a cultural virgin & was only remotely aware of the "blues," I somehow infered that this Taj Mahal had something to do with them & bought this. Thirty years later I think this is one of best musical recordings ever & probably led to this white boy being mesmerized by reggae.



From the opening "You Got It," the ubiquitous steel drums anounce "calypso," but you can tell that Taj is truly moved by this music; if I remember the album label, they're all orig. tunes but for Liz Cotton's "Freight Train."



To the newcomer, some of the name allusions may sound foreign: Adam Clayton Powell & Percy Heath from "Walker's Cay" & Rudy Vallee from the album's hi-lite, "The Four Mills Brothers." This is a true orig., tho, although as the previous reviewer noted, it's a bit short."