"Get On The Good Foot"
James Brown

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Twelve minutes
James Brown isn't really considered in terms of the studio albums he recorded; as another reviewer pointed out, the average CD with his name on it is a collection of hit singles, rather than an organized, preconceived single album.

I can't imagine why this is the case, since every studio album I've heard from him is excellent, especially There It Is and Hell, but most of all this one, 'Get on the Good Foot', my personal favorite, which features a twelve minute version of his signature ballad, 'Please, Please, Please', involving Mr Brown narrating part of his life story and singing snippets of songs from his own favorite artists.

'The Whole World Needs Liberation' and 'The Funky Side of Town' are other highlights.

JB meets Purdie and the Brecker Brothers !
O.K. I have to be honest... when it comes to JB, I often find myself more enamored by the BETTER anthologies than his actual albums... take for example DEAD ON THE HEAVY FUNK (back in the day), FUNK POWER, IN THE JUNGLE GROOVE, MOTHER LOAD, etc. - - and while definitely PAYBACK, HELL, HOT PANTS, REALITY and THERE IT IS are all time favorites, I always liked the anthologies because they cut straight to the chase - - That said, even if you come from this school, if there is one JB MUST HAVE album that stands up to ALL the anthologies, and that's GOOD FOOT. - - To further explain,hindsight may be foresight (and James Brown certainly re-invented American music, dance and culture) but the truth is, JB was a very ambitious man (meaning experimental, impulsive, righteously up on himself) On many of his albums he took strange risks which lesser artists would have kept on the cutting floor in fear of public reaction... Take HELL with its heartwarming disco/funk rendition of WHEN THE SAINTS GO MARCHING IN... you might laugh and say, "Why not have just kept it a single instead of double album?" but considering the other material on the album - - its almost as if JB is saying, "Yeah, I'm going to give you what you expect of me, but that doesn't mean I'm not going to try other stuff!" - - In the end, GOOD FOOT was new and revolutionary for its time, yet at the same time so classic JB you can't call yourself a JB fan unless you own a copy... and I'm sure I'm not the only person who wore the grooves off the LP so much, I practically praised God with the advent of the relatively "indestructible" CD... and aside from being a funk classic, JB also demonstrates his ability to sing ballads, soulful powerhouse pop and dominate both inside and outside the ring. - - No doubt, there will never be another JB... and GOOD FOOT is part of the proof...

As a foot note, many JB buffs note that this album lacks the original JBs line-up as the Collins Brothers had already left... (To such die hards, the album probably sounds a bit too slick) however, the presence of JB + some of the era's top NY studio session players like The Brecker Brother, John Faddis, Bernard Purdie and a billion others too long to list, definitely makes it one heck of an album...

If this album is your thing, aside from PAYBACK, be sure to get a copy of BLACK CEASAR !

Must buy for real JB fans
James Brown, like Johnny Cash, has more greatest hits albums than actual studio albums. So when you can find an actual studio album, you should get it. And this is an actual studio album. And it happens to be filled with some of his greatest hits, some of which are actually different versions than you may have heard already. One of the tracks, Funky Side of Town, isn't a greatest hit, but should be. It may be one of the first "shout out" songs ever recorded even. JB even gives a shout out to Johnny Cash ("Nashville Johnny Cashville"). If you love James Brown and old school JB's, then get this.

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