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Johnnie Taylor: "Funksoulbrother"

True North Records Johnnie Taylor was one of those artists that transcended time and style, offering literally dozens of recordings to his modest fan base throughout the '60s, '70s, '80s and '90s. Despite his dabbles (and platinum success) in disco in the 1970s, Taylor was affectionately known as "Philosopher of Soul" throughout the music world. A protégé of Sam Cooke, Taylor had all of the bases of the rhythm-and-blues repertoire covered, floating from Deep Soul to Retro-Soul to Southern Soul to plain old Soul. His music was a smart blend of seductive vocals and smooth melodies, evident in such hits as "Who's Making Love", "I Believe in You (You Believe in Me)" and "Jody's Got Your Girl". Funksoulbrother, True North Record's latest offering, brings listeners back to a 1970's Johnnie Taylor steeped in spiritual love. EMusic FREE Trial MP3 Subscriptions  Market your band or artist Get 100 Free 80's MP3s at EMusic Although the exact recording dates of this release is unknown, it is widely believed to have been cut between the mid-to-late 1970s. Songs like "Never My Love" and the remarkably cheese-flavoured "I Wanna Get Into You", although not as prolific as some of Taylor's earlier works, display both the diversity of his music and how the decades can work in both directions for, and against, an artist. Lyrically, this isn't the best stuff that Taylor has released (eg: "Girl you know you got a flavour / Like good old vintage wine") but it still maintains a seductive quality much in the tradition of Shaft or the hit television show WKRP in Cincinnati. Funksoulbrother is a testament to a timeframe long since gone, and another brick in the wall for an artist whose massive catatlog is a treasure to behold. Taylor died suddenly from a heart attack in 2000, and this release only furthers his legendary status. By Dave Brosha, CanEHdian.com Submit a review, comment or article on Johnnie Taylor: Express your views online: Do you have an article, album or concert review you wish to share with others? Do you just want to simply comment on this review? Submit it here! We will review your contribution and potentially publish it! Album review copyright CanEHdian.com 2001 (All Rights Reserved)