▄▄███████▄ IGR - Infinite Grooves
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┌───────────────--·(Infinite Grooves ·· Proudly Presents)·-─────────────────┐
└─┬╥─--∙· ·∙-──╥┬─┘
│║ Curtis Mayfield-A Man Like Curtis-Best Of ║│
└╢ ╟┘
╚═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝
┌────────────────────────────--·(Release Info)·-────────────────────────────┐
└─┬╥───────────────────────────────--∙·∙-────────────────────────────────╥┬─┘
│║ Record Label: MCI No Of Tracks: 16 ║│
│║ Genre: Soul Quality: 192K HQ ║│
│║ Rip Date: Sep-06-2001 Total Size: 97,1 MB ║│
└╢ Ripped By: vega Original Media: [x] CD - [ ] Vinyl ╟┘
╚═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝
┌─────────────────────────────--·(Rip Notes)·-──────────────────────────────┐
└─┬╥───────────────────────────────--∙·∙-────────────────────────────────╥┬─┘
│║ ║│
│║ Tracklisting: ║│
│║ ║│
│║ 01 - Move On Up 03:47 ║│
│║ 02 - Superfly 03:52 ║│
│║ 03 - If There's A Hell Below 07:04 ║│
│║ 04 - You Are, You Are 03:38 ║│
│║ 05 - Give Me Your Love 04:16 ║│
│║ 06 - Never Stop Loving Me 03:31 ║│
│║ 07 - Tripping Out 03:52 ║│
│║ 08 - Soul Music 04:00 ║│
│║ 09 - This Year 03:46 ║│
│║ 10 - Ain't No Love Lost 03:11 ║│
│║ 11 - Pusherman 05:03 ║│
│║ 12 - Freddie's Dead 05:27 ║│
│║ 13 - Do Do Wap Is Strong In Here 05:30 ║│
│║ 14 - Hard Times 03:59 ║│
│║ 15 - In Your Arms Again (Shake It) 04:25 ║│
│║ 16 - So In Love 05:13 ║│
│║ ║│
│║ ║│
│║ ║│
│║ Wussup folks?! ║│
│║ ║│
│║ This is my first contribution to the IGR crew. Much love to IGR ║│
│║ for letting me do this (thanks felony..) =] ║│
│║ ║│
│║ As a tradition IGR has always brought to you the classics of funk ║│
│║ and soul. This release is no exception! ║│
│║ "A Man Like Curtis" is a really nice sampling of Mr. Mayfield's ║│
│║ work, and an example of how you can put together CD's like this ║│
│║ with the care and respect these performers deserve. (artistic ║│
│║ direction 5 color printing, retrospective text, and a full CD) ║│
│║ Mayfield, originally fronted the band The Impressions, but really ║│
│║ started to shine upon striking out on his own. His soulful ║│
│║ ballads about urban social issues paint rich visions of life on ║│
│║ the streets in the 70's. (like Iceberg Slim, but not as dated) ║│
│║ It's not all about pimpin and hustlin, but you will find all the ║│
│║ classics like "Superfly", "Pusherman", "Fredie's Dead", "Move On ║│
│║ Up", and one really cool song "(Don't Worry) If There's A Hell ║│
│║ Below We're All Gonna Go". ║│
│║ ║│
│║ ║│
│║ Curtis Mayfield: ║│
│║ Perhaps because he didn't cross over to the pop audience as ║│
│║ heavily as Motown's stars, it may be that the scope of Curtis ║│
│║ Mayfield's talents and contributions have yet to be fully ║│
│║ recognized. Judged merely by his records alone, the man's legacy ║│
│║ is enormous. As the leader of the Impressions, he recorded some ║│
│║ of the finest soul vocal group music of the 1960s. As a solo ║│
│║ artist in the 1970s, he helped pioneer funk, and helped introduce ║│
│║ hard-hitting urban commentary into soul music. "Gypsy Woman," ║│
│║ "It's All Right," "People Get Ready," "Freddie's Dead," and ║│
│║ "Superfly" are merely the most famous of his many hit records. ║│
│║ But Curtis Mayfield wasn't just a singer. He wrote most of his ║│
│║ material, at a time when that was not the norm for soul ║│
│║ performers. He was among the first ù if not the very first ù to ║│
│║ speak openly about African-American pride and community struggle ║│
│║ in his compositions. As a songwriter and a producer, he was a key ║│
│║ architect of Chicago soul, penning material and working on ║│
│║ sessions by notable Windy City soulsters like Gene Chandler, ║│
│║ Jerry Butler, Major Lance, and Billy Butler. In this sense, he ║│
│║ can be compared to Smokey Robinson, who also managed to find time ║│
│║ to write and produce many classics for other soul stars. Mayfield ║│
│║ was also an excellent guitarist, and his rolling, ║│
│║ Latin-influenced lines were highlights of the Impressions' ║│
│║ recordings in the '60s. During the next decade, he would toughen ║│
│║ up his guitar work and production, incorporating some of the best ║│
│║ features of psychedelic rock and funk. ║│
│║ ║│
│║ Mayfield began his career as an associate of Jerry Butler, with ║│
│║ whom he formed the Impressions in the late '50s. After the ║│
│║ Impressions had a big hit in 1958 with "For Your Precious Love," ║│
│║ Butler, who had sung lead on the record, split to start a solo ║│
│║ career. Mayfield, while keeping the Impressions together, ║│
│║ continued to write for and tour with Butler before the ║│
│║ Impressions got their first Top 20 hit in 1961, "Gypsy Woman." ║│
│║ ║│
│║ Mayfield was heavily steeped in gospel music before he entered ║│
│║ the pop arena, and gospel, as well as doo wop, influences would ║│
│║ figure prominently in most of his '60s work. Mayfield wasn't a ║│
│║ staunch traditionalist, however. He and the Impressions may have ║│
│║ often worked the call-and-response gospel style, but his songs ║│
│║ (romantic and otherwise) were often veiled or unveiled messages ║│
│║ of Black pride, reflecting the increased confidence and ║│
│║ self-determination of the African-American community. Musically ║│
│║ he was an innovator as well, using arrangements that employed the ║│
│║ punchy, blaring horns and Latin-influenced rhythms that came to ║│
│║ be trademark flourishes of Chicago soul. As the staff producer ║│
│║ for the OKeh label, Mayfield was also instrumental in lending his ║│
│║ talents to the work of other Chi-town soul singers who went on to ║│
│║ national success. With Mayfield singing lead and playing guitar, ║│
│║ the Impressions had 14 Top 40 hits in the 1960s (five made the ║│
│║ Top 20 in 1964 alone), and released some above-average albums ║│
│║ during that period as well. ║│
│║ ║│
│║ Given Mayfield's prodigious talents, it was perhaps inevitable ║│
│║ that he would eventually leave the Impressions to begin a solo ║│
│║ career, as he did in 1970. His first few singles boasted a ║│
│║ harder, more funk-driven sound; singles like "(Don't Worry) If ║│
│║ There's a Hell Below, We're All Gonna Go" found him confronting ║│
│║ ghetto life with a realism that had rarely been heard on record. ║│
│║ He really didn't hit his artistic or commercial stride as a solo ║│
│║ artist, though, until Superfly, his soundtrack to a 1972 ║│
│║ blaxploitation film. Drug deals, ghetto shootings, the death of ║│
│║ young Black men before their time: all were described in ║│
│║ penetrating detail. Yet Mayfield's irrepressible falsetto vocals, ║│
│║ uplifting melodies, and fabulous funk-pop arrangements gave the ║│
│║ oft-moralizing material a graceful strength that few others could ║│
│║ have achieved. For all the glory of his past work, Superfly ║│
│║ stands as his crowning achievement, not to mention a much-needed ║│
│║ counterpoint to the sensationalistic portrayals of the film ║│
│║ itself. ║│
│║ ║│
│║ At this point Mayfield, along with Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye, ║│
│║ was the foremost exponent of a new level of compelling auteurism ║│
│║ in soul. His failure to maintain the standards of Superfly ║│
│║ qualifies as one of the great disappointments in the history of ║│
│║ Black popular music. Perhaps he'd simply reached his peak after a ║│
│║ long climb, but the rest of his '70s work didn't match the ║│
│║ musical brilliance and lyrical subtleties of Superfly, although ║│
│║ he had a few large R&B hits in a much more conventional vein, ║│
│║ such as "Kung Fu," "So in Love," and "Only You Babe." ║│
│║ ║│
│║ Mayfield had a couple of hits in the early '80s, but the decade ║│
│║ generally found his commercial fortunes in a steady downward ║│
│║ spiral, despite some intermittent albums. On August 14, 1990, he ║│
│║ became paralyzed from the neck down when a lighting rig fell on ║│
│║ top of him at a concert in Brooklyn, NY. In the mid-'90s, a ║│
│║ couple of tribute albums consisting of Mayfield covers appeared, ║│
│║ with contributions by such superstars as Eric Clapton, Bruce ║│
│║ Springsteen, and Gladys Knight. Though no substitute for the man ║│
│║ himself, these tributes served as an indication of the enormous ║│
│║ regard in which Mayfield was still held by his peers. He died ║│
│║ December 26, 1999 at the age of 57. ù Richie Unterberger ║│
│║ [cut from allmusic.com] ║│
│║ ║│
│║ ║│
│║ /vega - RAC member, flirting with IGR... =P ║│
│║ ║│
│║ ║│
│║ Remember to support these artists by some method if you like them ║│
│║ by going to their concerts / buying more of their material / etc. ║│
└╢ ╟┘
╚═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝
┌───────────────────────--·(About Infinite Grooves)·-───────────────────────┐
└─┬╥───────────────────────────────--∙·∙-────────────────────────────────╥┬─┘
│║ ║│
│║ Infinite Grooves was founded in early 1999 with the belief that ║│
│║ the best music has already been made. This was a neglected part ║│
│║ of releasing in the MP3-scene - now that has changed with Infinite ║│
│║ Grooves at the top. We will constantly keep bringing you the very ║│
│║ best in disco-soul, rare grooves, jazz-funk etc. Like wine, a good ║│
│║ groove only gets better with age - so we will bring you back to ║│
│║ the olde school! ║│
└╢ ╟┘
╚═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝
┌──────────────────────--·(We Are Infinite Grooves)·-───────────────────────┐
└─┬╥───────────────────────────────--∙·∙-────────────────────────────────╥┬─┘
│║ ║│
│║ Founder: Felony ║│
│║ ║│
│║ Members: Burro, Draua, The Funkateer, Grifter, Han-Zo ║│
│║ I-Way, JLG, jNa, Kaptain Koin-Op, Kelloggi ║│
│║ Midnight Rambler, Rufus, Scuba, Sevsxp, Sml ║│
│║ Spectral, Voodooism, Walpe ║│
│║ ║│
│║ ║│
│║ Old Schoolers: Cld, El Nino, InSpirit, LukeDogg, Phreaknes, Xylene ║│
└╢ ╟┘
╚═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝
┌─────────────────────────--·(R-E-S-P-E-C-T To...)·-────────────────────────┐
└─┬╥───────────────────────────────--∙·∙-────────────────────────────────╥┬─┘
│║ ║│
│║ Everybody contributing to the MP3-scene, but these in particular: ║│
│║ ·∙-───────────────────────────--∙·∙-───────────────────────────--∙· ║│
│║ Individuals: Imo, Morgoth, Flaev, StepH ║│
│║ ║│
│║ Groups: RNS, EGO, RADIUM, ATM, ROTATION, iMPG, SB, IDM, kW ║│
└╢ ╟┘
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┌─────────────────────────--·(How To Contact Us)·-──────────────────────────┐
└─┬╥───────────────────────────────--∙·∙-────────────────────────────────╥┬─┘
│║ ║│
│║ Infinite Grooves is always open for new true funk-friends to help ║│
│║ us in our efforts to spread groovy music. This includes rippers, ║│
│║ site-ops, box-ops and just about anybody with skills or services ║│
│║ to offer that could be of interest to a group like us. People with ║│
│║ no talent, brains, patience or couriers needn't bother contacting ║│
│║ us... All you gotta do is to love the funk! ║│
│║ ║│
│║ IRC: #IGR (EFNet) or email: felony@thainter.net ║│
└╢ ╟┘
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·∙-─(Updated 01/06/03 by Felony)-∙·∙-(logo by imo, nfo by univerz)─--∙·