Music Review: Chaka Khan Funk This

One of the major reasons for the moribund nature of popular music these days is the fact that the major providers of content are primarily concerned with producing music that appeals to as broad a cross section of the population as possible. The result is a product that's as bland as it is lacking in personality.

Sometimes it seems that the majority of the acts are interchangeable; any of them could perform the songs produced in their genre and you wouldn't be able to tell the difference. Gone are the days of the distinct voice or style that allowed listeners to distinguish among the different groups and individuals whose songs played on the radio. If you want to get signed by one of the major labels today, you had better not only sound like everybody else, but look like them as well.

Some genres are worse then others, and by far the worst offender is what passes for Dance music these days. Part of the problem is that the majority of the music is performed by machines and has little or no human emotions or spirit involved in the process. Watching people dance to this "music" is like watching a computer respond to the commands of a program, repeating the same actions endlessly. Occasional glitches in the software can cause confusion, but there is always something else standing by to replace it.

It used to be that Dance music was performed by live musicians, even in the Disco era no one would presume to use all electronics to create something that was supposed to inspire movement in people. In fact, before Disco, there wasn't even a separate category for dance music. Some music might have been more conducive to dancing because of its rhythm, but that didn't stop you from also sitting and enjoying listening to it.

One of the most consistently strong performers of Funk, Rhythm & Blues, Blues, and Soul music from the early '70s onwards has been the great woman vocalist Chaka Khan. When she was younger, she was known for her small frame and huge Afros almost as much as her amazing voice. If you can remember back to the early 1970's, you'll remember songs like "Tell Me Something Good" which she performed as a member of the band Rufus.

Well the hair isn't quite as big anymore, and she looks a heck of a lot healthier with a few more pounds on her frame, but one thing that hasn't changed is her voice. In fact judging by her latest release, Funk This on Burgundy Records, in the ten years since she last made a studio album her voice has matured into an even more sophisticated instrument.

She used to get by on sheer power alone, attacking a song with growls, squeals, and trips up and down the scale. She could reach up into the sky and grab those notes you only usually see opera singers consider singing as easily as she growled out a blues number in a sultry alto. Now, not only is she still gifted with an extraordinarily powerful and agile voice, she has learned subtleties of phrasing allowing her to infuse her songs with even more character than before.

Article Author: Richard Marcus

Richard Marcus is the author of the forthcoming book What Will Happen In Eragon IV? and has had his work published in print and on line all over the world. The not so long-haired Canadian iconoclast writes reviews and opines on the world as he sees …

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