Search - Tower of Power :: Ain't Nothin Stoppin Us Now

The Real Review

hilliard dillepree | san diego, ca | 03/15/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"While this LP wasn't their best, it has to be rated high because of CT's exceptional sound on the organ, especially when he leads off on the title track. Doin Alright is a nice song that kinds of reminds one of old black southern gospel quartets. You Ought to be Having Fun is one of those tunes that back in the day you couldblast through your car stereo system and have everyone on the street that heard it jammin or at the park dancin"

Not the best, but not the worst

07/15/2004

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This album provides a mixture of reactions. While some of the tunes have the fire this band is known for producing, others will leave you scratching your head, wondering, "What were they thinking?" The title track is one of those catchy tunes that never gets old, helped by a light-hearted yet drving bass line. "Doin' Alright" and "You ought to be Havin'Fun" are also gems that have to be listened to multiple times to be appreciated, from the soulful singing of Edward McGee to the bump in the horn section. Then there's "I Think the World of You", and "While We Went to the Moon" with goofy synthesizers and lame horn licks that will make you laugh at the absurdity of it. Overall, though, I recommend this record for everyone but especially those fans who have some knowledge of TOP's history so that you can play this after listening recordings made with Warner Bros. and proceed onto albums they produced with Epic. A neat little music history lesson of one of music's greatest underappreciated bands."

One of their worst; two fair funk tunes and a lotta crappy d

K. Swanson | Austin, TX United States | 01/29/2010

(2 out of 5 stars)

"Every TOP album has a bunch of filler, but this one takes the cake. There are exactly two funk tunes, and not even very good ones (Slaughter and Deal, though Rocco is typically superb on Deal). The rest are laughably boring, cheezy pseudo-soul semi-disco string-laden ballads worth hearing all of once. McGee is a decent singer but the arrangements are as weak as the tunes themselves.



Why did these guys write and commit to wax so many execrable ballads? Did they think they'd sell a million to teenage girls with a lucky single? Or were they just trying to get girls to come to the shows? Whatever the reason, they usually had the sense to include a few really smokin' funk tunes per album, which let their stellar talents unwind: Rocco on bass, Garibaldi on drums (Ronnie Beck here, though), CT on keys, and that wicked horn section were made to funk, not to drip.



But drip is what they do all over this album.



Absolutely forgettable, though as a big Prestia fan I can listen to him play anything and be entertained, but he does much better playing on funk tunes. I'd advise those reading all the five star reviews of just about every TOP album here to listen for themselves; if it's cheese you're after, believe those reviews. But one listen to all the filler on these records, especially this turd, will prove that there are clearly a lot of TOP fanboys whose ears are full of the wax of nostalgia.



Get the best-of collections, Urban Renewal or the live records, and avoid this turkey with all due haste."