Animal (Bar-Kays album)

Animal
Studio album by the Bar-Kays
Released	1989
Studio	Kiva Studios
Genre	R&B [1]
Label	Mercury [2]
Producer	Kenni Hairston and Trevor Gale (tracks 1, 2 and 8), Harvey Henderson, Larry Dodson and Winston Stewart (co-producers on tracks 1, 2 and 8), James Mtume (tracks 3, 7 and 9), Jerry Goldstein (tracks 4–6 for Powder Horn Entertainment), Sly Stone (co-producer on track 7)
The Bar-Kays chronology
Contagious (1987) Animal (1989) 48 Hours (1994)

Animal is an album by the American R&B band the Bar-Kays, released in 1989. ^{[3] [4]}

The album peaked at No. 36 on the Billboard Top Black Albums chart. ^[5] Its first single was "Struck By You", which peaked at No. 11 on the Hot Black Singles chart. ^{[6] [7]} The title track was also released as a single. ^[8]

Production

Produced at Kiva Studios, in Memphis, the album was recorded by a three-member lineup. ^{[9] [10]} Joe Walsh played guitar on the title track. "Just Like a Teeter Totter" was cowritten and coproduced by Sly Stone. ^[6]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[11]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[10]
Orlando Sentinel	[12]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[13]

The Orlando Sentinel concluded that, "although modern, metallic sounds shape the bouncing, bending rhythm of the title song, for instance, there's a touch of old- fashioned call-and-response interplay in the vocals." ^[12] USA Today opined that "what's nice about this album, though, is the band's mature, unfunky handling of slow tunes ... 'Leaving You' shows they can be true balladeers." ^[14] The New York Amsterdam News determined that although Animal "is thigh-high in funk-fortified R&B, the music is never dated." ^[1]

AllMusic wrote that "it's important to remember that the Bar-Kays never stopped being a good band—it was taste and fashion that twisted the knife and pushed them aside." ^[11] The Rolling Stone Album Guide thought that "their best cuts resemble lite pastiches of other bands' refinements." ^[13]

Track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Animal"	5:14
2.	"Struck by You"	5:45
3.	"Stop! Look What You're Missing"	5:15
4.	"Someone Else"	4:49
5.	"Are U Available"	5:37
6.	"Get Your Fingers Wet"	5:45
7.	"Just Like a Teeter Totter"	4:14
8.	"I Adore You"	5:16
9.	"Leaving You"	5:15

References

1. Rogers, Charles E. (February 18, 1989). "Different Stages". New York Amsterdam News. p. 27.
2. "Jet's Top 20 Albums". Jet. Vol. 75, no. 25. March 27, 1989. p. 62.
3. Vincent, Rickey (April 15, 1996). Funk: The Music, the People, and the Rhythm of the One. Macmillan. ISBN   978-0-312-13499-0.
4. Calloway, Earl (January 31, 1989). "Mercury Records Releases Bar-Kays Trio's New LP". Chicago Defender. p. 15.
5. Thompson, Dave (October 22, 2001). Funk. Hal Leonard Corporation. ISBN   978-0-87930-629-8.
6. Persall, Steve (February 26, 1989). "The latest Bar-Kays cook up a tasty, nostalgic party mix". St. Petersburg Times. p. 2F.
7. Whitburn, Joel (2006). The Billboard Book of Top 40 R&B and Hip-Hop Hits. Billboard Books. p. 30.
8. Wynn, Ron (August 18, 1989). "Music: 3 videos finished". The Commercial Appeal. p. E5.
9. Wynn, Ron (February 3, 1989). "Recordings". The Commercial Appeal. p. E19.
10. Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 1. MUZE. p. 413.
11. "Animal". AllMusic.
12. Duffy, Thom (January 15, 1989). "Bar-Kays". Calendar. Orlando Sentinel. p. 6.
13. The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. pp. 36–37.
14. Jones IV, James T. (February 8, 1989). "The Listening Room". USA Today. p. 5D.