Back is the final studio album by the American band Ohio Players, released in 1988.[1][2] The first single was "Sweat".[3] It was Ohio Players' only album for Track Record Company.[4]

The band supported the album by headlining a SOS Racisme show during the New Music Seminar and with a North American tour.[5][6] "Sweat" and "From Now On (Let's Play)" were minor chart successes.[7]

Production

The album was produced primarily by Ohio Players; the band was made up of five members for the reunion.[8] Some of the tracks incorporated hip hop-influenced sounds.[9] Herbie Hancock contributed to the album, after Leroy "Sugarfoot" Bonner had guested on Perfect Machine.[10][11] "I'm Madd!" is about the dangers of drunk driving.[12]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[13]
Los Angeles Times[14]

The Los Angeles Times wrote that "the OPs attempt to reconcile their greazy, yowl 'n' growl attack with the stacks of microchips that go into creating le funk moderne."[14] Spin determined that the band "sound as good as ever, sweet and nasty funk played just right."[10] The Christian Science Monitor called the album "a continuation and expansion of the jazzy powerhouse funk style that popularized the Ohio Players in the mid-1970s."[12] The New York Daily News praised the "live, groove-oriented sound."[15] The Washington Post deemed the sound "hypnotic rhythms geared to maximum danceability, fueled by the dual guitars of Chet Willis and Leroy 'Sugarfoot' Bonner."[16]

AllMusic concluded that, "while the Players deserve credit for trying something different and attempting to be relevant to the hip-hop/urban contemporary scene of the late 1980s, Back simply wasn't strong enough."[13]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."Get 2 the Good Part" 
2."Sweat" 
3."From Now On (Let's Play)" 
4."Show Off" 
5."Just to Show My Love" 
6."I'm Madd!" 
7."Vibe Alive" 
8."Rock the House" 
9."Just a Minute" 
10."Reputation" 
11."Try" 

References

  1. ^ Bream, Jon (6 May 1988). "Quick Spins". Star Tribune. p. 25E.
  2. ^ "Ohio Players Biography by Jason Ankeny". AllMusic. Retrieved 23 September 2023.
  3. ^ Gliatto, Tom (19 Apr 1988). "And funk-popsters...". USA Today. p. 1D.
  4. ^ Goldmine Record Album Price Guide. Penguin Publishing Group. 2019. p. 483.
  5. ^ Watrous, Peter (21 July 1988). "Sexy Soul and Gold Lame". The New York Times. p. C26.
  6. ^ Nager, Larry (21 Jul 1988). "Re-Souled". The Cincinnati Post. p. 4B.
  7. ^ "Ohio Players". Dayton Daily News. 11 May 1989. p. 6C.
  8. ^ Holman, Rhonda (4 Nov 1988). "Ohio Players Back on Charts, Tour with 'Back'". The Wichita Eagle. p. 1B.
  9. ^ Thompson, Dave (2001). Funk. Backbeat Books. p. 174.
  10. ^ a b Cullman, Brian (Aug 1988). "Spins". Spin. Vol. 4, no. 5. p. 76.
  11. ^ "Ohio Players Stage Unlikely Comeback". St. Joseph News-Press. Los Angeles Daily News. 2 Sep 1988. p. 3D.
  12. ^ a b Duncan, Amy (15 Aug 1988). "Slimmed-down Ohio Players jazz/funk group is back - on Track". Arts. The Christian Science Monitor.
  13. ^ a b "Back Review by Alex Henderson". AllMusic. Retrieved 23 September 2023.
  14. ^ a b Waller, Don (19 June 1988). "If they weren't exactly innovators on the '70s funk scene...". Calendar. Los Angeles Times. p. 60.
  15. ^ Farber, Jim (29 May 1988). "Back from Obscurity". City Lights. Daily News. p. 24.
  16. ^ Himes, Geoffrey (September 9, 1988). "Ohio Players: They're 'Back' ... in the Groove". The Washington Post.
Allikas: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Back_(Ohio_Players_album)
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