FUNKADELIC — Free Your Mind...And Your Ass Will Follow (review)

FUNKADELIC — Free Your Mind...And Your Ass Will Follow album cover Album · 1970 · Jazz Related Rock Buy this album from MMA partners
3/5 ·
dreadpirateroberts
There's an inordinate amount of messing around on this album - it really does sound like everyone is trashed. Nearly everything is awash with distortion or reverb, or is at least treated in some way (Worrell's piano for instance) and the mix sounds as if Clinton and co had stumbled into the control room and started wrestling with dials and knobs in a gleeful quest to unsettle the listener - a kind of acid experiment.

He claims as much in the reissue liner notes and despite the attempt, the pyrotechnics don't completely conceal a few actual songs alongside the freakout experiments. Beneath the heavy blanket of psychedelia the P-Funk team play the blues with 'Some More' or protest-funk songs like the catchy 'Funky Dollar Bill' (an attack on materialism) or the excellent rocker, 'Friday Night, August 14th' which features typical Hendrix-inspired Hazel (not a bad thing.)

But 'Free Your Mind and Your Ass will Follow' is dominated by two longer jams, one being 'I Wanna Know if it's Good to You?' and the opener, title track and ten minute sonic exploration, touching on space rock keys while the guitars play the blues, albeit a heavily (almost casually somehow) distorted blues. Clinton fills the song with snippets of vocals rather than anything resembling a song, basically riffing as it were, while the piece eventually leads into a massively distorted organ before Hazel solos the song off to a fade.

An album with much more in common with its predecessor than with its stellar successor, 'Free Your Mind...' has its moments, and it's certainly interesting sonically, but the songwriting had yet to peak. This one's still fun, but not my favourite Funkadelic release.

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer
Please login to post a shout
No shouts posted yet. Be the first member to do so above!

Review Index

Member Zone

Username:
Password:
Stay signed in

Jazz Subgenres

Artists Alpha-index

JMA TOP 5 Jazz ALBUMS

Rating by members, ranked by custom algorithm
Albums with 30 ratings and more
A Love Supreme Post Bop
JOHN COLTRANE
Buy this album from our partners
Kind of Blue Cool Jazz
MILES DAVIS
Buy this album from our partners
The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady Progressive Big Band
CHARLES MINGUS
Buy this album from our partners
Blue Train Hard Bop
JOHN COLTRANE
Buy this album from our partners
My Favorite Things Hard Bop
JOHN COLTRANE
Buy this album from our partners

New Jazz Artists

New Jazz Releases

Bruno Tommaso & Barga Jazz Ensemble : Dagli Appennini Alle Madonie Avant-Garde Jazz
BRUNO TOMMASO
Buy this album from MMA partners
East by Midwest Eclectic Fusion
CHARLIE BALLANTINE
Buy this album from MMA partners
Big & Lovely Progressive Big Band
ALLISON MILLER
Buy this album from MMA partners
Bittolo Bon / Grillini : Spell/Hunger Jazz Related Improv/Composition
PIERO BITTOLO BON
Buy this album from MMA partners
Sylvie Courvoisier & Mary Halvorson : Bone Bells 21st Century Modern
SYLVIE COURVOISIER
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Jazz Online Videos

Maria João - AO SOL
MARIA JOÃO
js· 1 day ago
That Dada Strain
PRESERVATION HALL JAZZ BAND
js· 2 days ago
Kinetic
BLACK FLOWER
js· 4 days ago
Jeff Goldblum & The Mildred Snitzer Orchestra feat. Scarlett Johansson - The Best is Yet To Come
JEFF GOLDBLUM
snobb· 4 days ago
I'm Just Say'n
JOE MCPHEE
snobb· 5 days ago
More videos

New JMA Jazz Forum Topics

More in the forums

New Site interactions

More...

Latest Jazz News

members-submitted

More in the forums

Social Media

Follow us
Follow us on Twitter Become a Facebook fan RSS Feed