Chaka Khan | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | November 17, 1982 | |||
Recorded | 1982 | |||
Genre | R&B, funk, soul | |||
Length | 39:02 | |||
Label | Warner Bros. | |||
Producer | Arif Mardin | |||
Chaka Khan chronology | ||||
|
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Allmusic | [1] |
Robert Christgau | B+ [2] |
Chaka Khan is the fourth solo album by American R&B/funk singer Chaka Khan, released on the Warner Bros. Records label in 1982.
An excellent album from Chaka Khan, mixing tingling uptempo tunes with her characteristic soaring, glorious vocals. "Got to Be There" reached number five on the R&B charts, but it actually wasn't the album's high point. That was the marvelous "Be Bop Medley," which later led hardcore jazz purist Betty Carter to proclaim Khan the one female singer working outside the jazz arena with legitimate improvising credentials.
— Ron Lynn, Allmusic [3]
Two singles were released from Chaka Khan: the Michael Jackson cover "Got to Be There" (US Pop #67, US R&B #5) and "Tearin' It Up" (US R&B #48), the latter also as a 12" single including an extended remix (7:21) as well as an instrumental version (8:07), both mixed by Larry Levan and included on Warner Music Japan's 1999 compilation Dance Classics of Chaka Khan . The album track "Slow Dancin'" was a funky ballad duet with Rick James. On Billboard's charts, the album reached #5 on Black Albums and #52 on Pop Albums. The "Be Bop Medley" won producer Arif Mardin and Khan a Grammy Award in 1984 in the Best Vocal Arrangement For Two Or More Voices category.
Following the release of the Chaka Khan album and the greatest hits package The Very Best of Rufus featuring Chaka Khan , Khan reunited with the band Rufus later that year for one final album together, the double live/studio set Stompin' at the Savoy - Live (1983). Her next solo album I Feel for You followed in 1984.
Despite its many accolades and artistic achievements the Chaka Khan album remained unreleased on CD in both the United States and Europe, and was only available as an import from Japan, until it was finally issued on CD in the UK in 2010 as part of a Five disc set containing Khan's first five solo albums. [4]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Tearin' It Up" | Bunny Sigler, Jane Lumibao | 6:39 |
2. | "Slow Dancin'" (featuring Rick James) | Loz Netto | 5:22 |
3. | "Best In The West" | Dominic Bugatti, Frank Musker | 4:00 |
4. | "Got to Be There" | Elliot Willensky | 3:50 |
5. | "Be Bop Medley: 'Hot House' / 'East Of Suez (Come On Sailor)' / 'Epistrophy (I Wanna Play)' / 'Yardbird Suite' / 'Con Alma' / 'Giant Steps'" | Tadd Dameron / Lou Stein / Thelonious Sphere Monk / Charlie Parker / Dizzy Gillespie / John Coltrane | 5:22 |
6. | "Twisted" | Colin Campsie, George McFarlane | 4:20 |
7. | "So Not To Worry" | Mark McMillan | 5:00 |
8. | "Pass It On (A Sure Thing) (Pásalo Está Seguro)" | Lalomie Washburn, Tony Maiden | 5:04 |
Track 1 “ Tearin’ It Up” Low Voice - Alvin Fields Vocal Ad Libs - Hamish Stuart Electric Piano - Lenny Underwood Moog bass synthesizer, Prophet and Jupiter synthesizers - Robbie Buchanan Handclaps - Steve Ferrone Percussion - Sammy Figueroa Alto Saxophone Solo - Michael Brecker
Track 2 “Slow Dancin’” Vocal - Rick James Keyboards & Synthesizers - Robbie Buchanan
Track 3 “ Best In The West” Keyboards & Synthesizers - Robbie Buchanan Additional OBX Synthesizer - Bob Christianson Percussion - Sammy Figueroa Fiddle - Kenny Kosek Harmonica - Robert Bonfiglio Steel guitar & Jaw Harp - Eric Weissberg
Track 4 “Got To Be There” Keyboards & Synthesizers - Robbie Buchanan Background vocals – Hamish Stuart, Will Lee
Track 5 “Be Bop Medley” Additional OBX Synthesizer - Bob Christianson Electric piano & Synthesizers – Robbie Buchanan Vocoder & additional synthesizers ("Con Alma") – Bob Christianson Sitar - Eric Weissberg Darbuka ("East Of Suez") - Seyhun Çelik Tenor Saxophone - Joe Henderson
Track 6 “Twisted” Lead Guitar - Ray Gomez Keyboards & Synthesizers - Robbie Buchanan
Track 7 “So Not To Worry” Bass - Anthony Jackson Piano & Synthesizers – Robbie Buchanan Background vocals – Hamish Stuart, Will Lee
Track 8 “Pass It On (A Sure Thing) (Pásalo Está Seguro)” Tube Voice – Mark Stevens Piano & Synthesizers – Robbie Buchanan Alto Saxophone - Dave Tofani
Journeyman is the eleventh solo studio album by Eric Clapton. Heralded as a return to form for Clapton, who had struggled with alcohol addiction and recently found sobriety, the album has a 1980s electronic sound, but it also includes blues songs like "Before You Accuse Me", "Running on Faith", and "Hard Times." "Bad Love" was released as a single, reaching the No. 1 position on the Album Rock Chart in the United States, and being awarded a Grammy Award for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance in 1990. "Pretending" had also reached the No. 1 position on the Album Rock Chart the previous year, remaining at the top for five weeks.
I Feel for You is the fifth solo studio album by American R&B/funk singer Chaka Khan, released on the Warner Bros. Records label in 1984.
So Excited! is the ninth studio album by the Pointer Sisters, released in 1982 on the Planet label.
City Streets is the 14th album by American singer-songwriter Carole King, released in 1989. It was her first album after six-year hiatus from her recording career, co-produced by Rudy Guess who supported her as a backing guitarist in later years.
Naughty is the second solo album by American R&B and funk singer Chaka Khan, released on Warner Bros. Records in 1980.
Aretha is the twenty-sixth studio album by American singer Aretha Franklin. It was released on September 30, 1980, by Arista Records. This is Franklin's second eponymous album, and her first for Arista Records after a 12-year tenure with Atlantic Records.
Cut the Cake is the third album released by Average White Band, released in 1975. This album's hit title track reached #10 on the Billboard pop singles chart. It was dedicated to "our friend and brother Robbie McIntosh."
Chaka is the debut solo album by singer Chaka Khan. It was released on October 12, 1978 through Warner Bros Record label.
ck is the seventh studio album by American R&B/funk singer Chaka Khan, released on the Warner Bros. Records label in 1988.
Epiphany: The Best of Chaka Khan, Vol. 1 is a compilation album of recordings by American R&B/funk singer Chaka Khan, first released on the Warner Bros. Records label in 1996. Although the compilation, which reached #22 on Billboard's R&B chart and #84 on Pop, was given the "Vol. 1" tag, it remains without a sequel to date.
Hey Ricky is the title of the tenth album release by Melissa Manchester. It was issued on Arista Records in April 1982.
20/20 is the 22nd studio album by George Benson, released on the Warner Bros. record label in 1985. The lead single by the same name reached #48 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album was certified Gold by the RIAA. "You Are the Love of My Life" is a duet with Roberta Flack; it was one of numerous songs used for Eden Capwell and Cruz Castillo on the American soap opera Santa Barbara. Also included on 20/20 is the original version of the song "Nothing's Gonna Change My Love for You" which would later become a smash hit for Hawaiian singer Glenn Medeiros.
Soul Searching is the fourth album released by Average White Band.
The Camera Never Lies is a jazz vocal album by Michael Franks, released in 1987 by Warner Bros. Records.
In Your Eyes is a 1983 album by George Benson. It is his only album produced by producer Arif Mardin. It includes the hit "Lady Love Me ".
Feel No Fret is the seventh album by Scottish funk and R&B band Average White Band released in 1979 on the RCA label in the United Kingdom and the Atlantic label in the United States.
Right from the Heart is an album by the American pop singer Johnny Mathis that was released on March 18, 1985, by Columbia Records. It was his first album without songs that were previously recorded by other artists. The title track is one of the album's four ballads that, along with four of the remaining six up-tempo tracks, delve into the subject of relationships, but it is the synth-driven "Step by Step" and the anthemic "Hold On" on which Mathis take a break from the usual focus on love songs. The former offers the hope that can be found in change that comes gradually until "I can see the way free from yesterday to a new beginning". The latter stresses the importance of being oneself: "Life is a party. Why don't you come the way you are?"
Cupid's in Fashion is the ninth album by the Average White Band, a Scottish funk and R&B band. It was released in 1982 on the RCA label and peaked at #49 in the R&B album charts.
Return of the Brecker Brothers is an album by the American jazz fusion group, the Brecker Brothers. It was released by GRP Records in 1992, their first recording after a decade-long hiatus. The track "Big Idea" was released as an R&B single.
Take No Prisoners is the eleventh studio album by American singer-songwriter Peabo Bryson It was released by Elektra Records in June 1985 in the United States. Produced by Arif Mardin and Tommy LiPuma, the album peaked at number 102 on the US Billboard 200 and number 40 on the US R&B albums chart.