Thermonuclear Sweat

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Thermonuclear Sweat
Thermonuclear Sweat.jpg
Studio album by
Defunkt
Released1982
StudioOlympic, London; Vanguard and Electric Lady, NYC
Genre Jazz, funk, punk [1]
Label Hannibal
Producer Joe Boyd
Defunkt chronology
The Razor's Edge
(1981)		Thermonuclear Sweat
(1982)		 In America
(1988)

Thermonuclear Sweat is an album by the American musical group Defunkt. [2] [3] It was released in 1982 via Hannibal Records. [4] [5] The group broke up after the release of the album, reforming in 1986. [6]

Contents

Production

The album was produced by Joe Boyd. [7] Aside from the leader and trombonist Joseph Bowie, the guitar player Kelvyn Bell was the only other member who had played on the debut. [8] Vernon Reid played guitar on six of the album's tracks. [9] "Big Bird (Au Private)" is a tribute to Charlie Parker. [10]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [11]
Robert Christgau B+ [12]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [4]
MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [9]

The Washington Post wrote: "As a dance band, Defunkt is best at break-neck rhythms—'Illusion', the tongue-in- cheek, feet-firmly-in-the-groove 'Avoid the Funk', and the boppish escapade and tribute to Charlie Parker, 'Big Bird (Au Private)' on which the band's jazz roots are well displayed." [1] Trouser Press called the album "sweeter-sounding and jazzier" than the group's debut. [13]

Robert Christgau lamented that the group's cover of "For the Love of Money" "sounds like slumming, especially from a guy who couldn't outsing Kenny Gamble in the shower." [12] The New York Times thought that "when this band plays funk, it plays hard, dance-floor funk, with a cavalier disregard for the pop sweetening most funk bands add to their records in order to get radio play and hits." [8]

Reviewing the reissue that paired Thermonuclear Sweat with the debut, The Independent called the albums "groundbreaking" and among the 1980s' "alternative essentials." [6]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."Illusion"5:33
2."I Tried to Live Alone"5:08
3."Cocktail Hour (Blue Bossa)"3:26
4."Ooh Baby"6:05
5."Avoid the Funk"4:26
6."Big Bird (Au Private)"2:07
7."For the Love of Money"5:54
8."Believing in Love"7:14

References

  1. 1 2 "The Defunkt Power Trip". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 7, 2021.
  2. ↑ "Defunkt Biography & History". AllMusic.
  3. ↑ Vincent, Rickey (November 4, 2014). Funk: The Music, The People, and The Rhythm of The One. St. Martin's Publishing Group. ISBN   9781466884526.
  4. 1 2 Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 2. MUZE. pp. 828–829.
  5. ↑ Thompson, Dave (August 7, 2001). Funk. Hal Leonard Corporation. ISBN   9780879306298.
  6. 1 2 "Cult Classics". Books. The Independent. November 30, 2007. p. 12.
  7. ↑ The Encyclopedia of Record Producers. Billboard Books. 1999. p. 84.
  8. 1 2 Palmer, Robert (September 22, 1982). "The Pop Life". The New York Times. p. C21.
  9. 1 2 MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1998. p. 159.
  10. ↑ Denselow, Robin (June 11, 1982). "Dancing man". Arts. The Guardian. p. 10.
  11. ↑ "Thermonuclear Sweat". AllMusic.
  12. 1 2 "Defunkt". Robert Christgau.
  13. ↑ "Defunkt". Trouser Press. Retrieved August 7, 2021.
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