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By the time 1975 had rolled around, the funk had been around a few years and was starting to go through some stylistic changes. In order to please the dance crowd, the hard syncopations of James Brown were giving way to a steady thump thump thump on the kick drum. This four on the floor approach would eventually become disco, but in 75 disco had not yet taken over the RnB charts. The leaders of this new proto-disco funk style included Parliament, The Ohio Players and Earth Wind and Fire amongst others. Although Brass Construction did not enjoy the lasting fame of those bands, they certainly came on strong with their mid-decade debut LP, also called “Brass Construction”, which yielded two big hits on the RnB charts.
The Construction’s formula for success involved long jams, driven by a steady thumpin kick drum, that would usually open with jazzy horn riffs and minimal vocals before settling into a long groove in which soloists would snake in out of the mix with psychedelic guitars, flutes, synthesizers, clavinets and a myriad of other instruments. Each jam was like a long journey in which changing horn and string riffs would keep things moving along like a scenic train ride. Three of the major tunes on here use that formula, including their big hits, “Movin“ and “Changin“. Elsewhere on this album; “Love” is upbeat old school soul, “Talkin” loses the steady thump for some real funk and “Peekin” is just plain bizarre and tacky with its tale of voyeurism and its crude vocal delivery. “Peekin” might appeal to those looking for novelty weirdness.
If you like classic mid-70s fonk, Brass Construction will not disappoint, they are seriously funky, they have the jazz chops to deliver the solos and their long grooving arrangements are unique to them.