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Forums > Music: Non-Prince > Chaka Khan new album Hello Happiness out now
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Reply #90 posted 02/13/19 7:46pm

SoulAlive

OperatingThetan said:

It's dance, but still funky. Really a contemporary update of her funk roots. UK reviews have been very positive so far.


Have you heard it yet? Where can I hear it?
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Reply #91 posted 02/13/19 8:07pm

lool

Does the UK have to wait until March for their vinyl?
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Reply #92 posted 02/14/19 1:09am

SoulAlive

here's what the vinyl record looks like:

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Reply #93 posted 02/14/19 7:37am

kitbradley

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I can't wait for my CD to arrive in the mail tomorrow. headbang I know this probably won't rank amongst any of my favorite Chaka albums because it's dance-oriented but, other than "Classikhan", Chaka has never released an album that disappointed me.

"It's not nice to fuck with K.B.! All you haters will see!" - Kitbradley
"The only true wisdom is knowing you know nothing." - Socrates
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Reply #94 posted 02/14/19 11:16am

getxxxx

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listening to it now... very danceable...

Nick Ashford was someone I greatly admired, had the honor of knowing, and was the real-life inspiration for Cowboy Curtis' hair. RIP Nick. - Pee Wee Herman
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Reply #95 posted 02/14/19 1:44pm

KoolEaze

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Wow , she looks great in those pictures. I like the whole retro vibe of those photos, really well done.

Is it just me or does her Come 2 My House album she did with Prince always get swept under the rug? It is often not mentioned in her discography and rarely mentioned in interviews when they talk about past albums . I really liked it .

Vibe magazine called it a masterpiece back in the day, and I vaguely remember rapper DMX praising it in some of his interviews.

" I´d rather be a stank ass hoe because I´m not stupid. Oh my goodness! I got more drugs! I´m always funny dude...I´m hilarious! Are we gonna smoke?"
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Reply #96 posted 02/14/19 3:43pm

getxxxx

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digging LIKE A LADY

Nick Ashford was someone I greatly admired, had the honor of knowing, and was the real-life inspiration for Cowboy Curtis' hair. RIP Nick. - Pee Wee Herman
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Reply #97 posted 02/14/19 4:02pm

SoulAlive

Is there a place where I can stream the album? I wanna hear it now! smile
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Reply #98 posted 02/14/19 8:24pm

SoulAlive

waiting for my iTunes download to arrive at midnight smile gonna give it a few listens before going to bed
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Reply #99 posted 02/14/19 9:43pm

SoulAlive

getxxxx said:

digging LIKE A LADY



after one listen,I would say that this is the best track on the album
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Reply #100 posted 02/14/19 10:11pm

SoulAlive

“Don’t Cha Know” is musically interesting,but there aren’t enough vocals on it....seems to be mostly instrumental.
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Reply #101 posted 02/14/19 11:50pm

MattyJam

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KoolEaze said:

Wow , she looks great in those pictures. I like the whole retro vibe of those photos, really well done.


Is it just me or does her Come 2 My House album she did with Prince always get swept under the rug? It is often not mentioned in her discography and rarely mentioned in interviews when they talk about past albums . I really liked it .


Vibe magazine called it a masterpiece back in the day, and I vaguely remember rapper DMX praising it in some of his interviews.



I was pleasantly surprised to stumble across a live performance of Betcha eye that she performed at a Prince tribute presumably shortly after he passed. Was nice seeing her perform something from the album, although I would've preferred I'll Never B Another Fool.

She also performed Reconsider at a filmed and televised jazz show in the early 00's (it's on Youtube).
[Edited 2/14/19 23:51pm]
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Reply #102 posted 02/14/19 11:53pm

MattyJam

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SoulAlive said:

“Don’t Cha Know” is musically interesting,but there aren’t enough vocals on it....seems to be mostly instrumental.


What's the rest of the record like? I am holding off as my wife has ordered me the vinyl for my birthday.
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Reply #103 posted 02/15/19 12:26am

lool

This record is out there. The dancin' chirren will go apeshit for it. "Like A Lady" and "Isn't That Enough" are head and shoulders above the rest. If the label is going to push a single at US R&B radio those are the cuts.

I take that back. US R&B radio ain't ready! ?width=256&version=2361467


[Edited 2/15/19 0:34am]

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Reply #104 posted 02/15/19 12:57am

SoulAlive

MattyJam said:

SoulAlive said:
“Don’t Cha Know” is musically interesting,but there aren’t enough vocals on it....seems to be mostly instrumental.
What's the rest of the record like? I am holding off as my wife has ordered me the vinyl for my birthday.

It's a good album.The first two tracks ("Hello Happiness" and "Like A Lady") are superb."Too Hot" is a nice suprise.....it's a slow,fiery funk track with great vocals.

"Isn't It Enough" hasn't won me over yet.

The only real complaint is that,at 27 minutes,this album is way too brief.

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Reply #105 posted 02/15/19 1:24am

SoulAlive

"Like A Lady"

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Reply #106 posted 02/15/19 1:47am

SoulAlive

Chaka Khan: Hello Happiness review – funk legend gets vogueish update

3/5stars3 out of 5 stars.

(Diary/Island)

Ain’t nobody like her … Chaka Khan.


On paper, Chaka Khan’s first album in 12 years could be read as another attempt by a vogueish producer (in this case, former Major Lazer member Switch, alongside songwriter/producer Sarah Ruba) to drag a genre-breaking legend into the sound of now. However, unlike Will.I.Am remixing Michael Jackson, or Giorgio Moroderallowing external producers to bastardise his trademark Europop on 2015’s messy Déjà Vu, the seven-track Hello Happiness pays respect to Khan’s funk and disco heydays, drawing a through-line via modern production’s showy window dressing.

The album arrives at an interesting juncture in Khan’s career. In 2016, still reeling from the death of her friend Prince, Khan, along with her sister, checked into rehab to treat an addiction to painkillers, stating she “knew it was time to take action to save our lives”. That sense of clarity permeates the album’s title track, where Khan joyously sings “Music makes me say goodbye sadness, hello happiness” over an elastic bass line and chunky synths. She struts around the melody before finally letting go with a sky-rocketing cry of “Wanna dance, wanna dance” that makes the song feel sweaty. That sensation continues into the throbbing, disco-tinged Like a Lady, while the irresistible funk of lead single Like Sugar cleverly creates pockets of space for Khan’s rip-roaring vocal interjections to fade in and out, as if she’s having so much fun dancing she forgot to step up to the mic.

The album sags, however, when the production starts to encroach on the star. Don’t Cha Know is essentially an instrumental, with darting sonic textures, samples of crowd noise and a screeching central riff that drowns everything else out. The otherwise enjoyable Too Hot, in which Khan purrs her way through a lyric about feeding her hunger, is constantly interrupted by a juddering synth that sounds like it crept in from a different, less interesting song. Thankfully, Hello Happiness returns to what it does best.

The closing Ladylike is the album’s quietest moment, with a simple guitar riff and distant percussion carrying a song that effortlessly reminds you of Khan’s influence, on everyone from Whitney Houston to modern R&B practitioners such as Ella Mai. It ends, as it should, with Khan front and centre.

Chaka Khan: Hello Happine...e Guardian

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Reply #107 posted 02/15/19 2:56am

Vannormal

SoulAlive said:

Chaka recently did the theme song for the Quincy Jones documentary....a cool,retro jam called "Keep Reaching".I'm surprised that she's not including it on her album.It's a great track.

-

she did that track with Mark Ronson ;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZjZTnz_kTq0

-

it's a wonderful song !

-

"The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves. And wiser people so full of doubts" (Bertrand Russell 1872-1972)
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Reply #108 posted 02/15/19 6:45am

kitbradley

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KoolEaze said:

Wow , she looks great in those pictures. I like the whole retro vibe of those photos, really well done.

Is it just me or does her Come 2 My House album she did with Prince always get swept under the rug? It is often not mentioned in her discography and rarely mentioned in interviews when they talk about past albums . I really liked it .

Vibe magazine called it a masterpiece back in the day, and I vaguely remember rapper DMX praising it in some of his interviews.

Actually, "Come 2 My House" has come up quite often over the years during interviews when her relationship with Prince is discussed. Yes, it is kinda of swepted under the rug because the public just didn't know it existed. In her biography, she said she and Prince seriously miscalculated the possible success of their respective albums in 1998 when they thought they could sell records based on name recognition alone without the help of a major label for distribution and promotion. Big mistake! But at least Chaka's and Prince's albums both charted for a short period of time. Poor Larry Graham, his album failed to chart at all.


Yes, I remember that interview with DMX back in the 90s when he listed "Come 2 My House" as one of his favorite albums at the time. biggrin

Still waiting on my CD to arrive later today. I know I can go in a listen to my amazon digital download right now but I'm old school. I'd rather pop the CD into my player. Listening to a digital download just doesn't excite me, even if it is Chaka Khan. wink

"It's not nice to fuck with K.B.! All you haters will see!" - Kitbradley
"The only true wisdom is knowing you know nothing." - Socrates
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Reply #109 posted 02/15/19 7:39am

StrangeButTrue

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music Like a Lady bay bayyyyy

if it was just a dream, call me a dreamer 2
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Reply #110 posted 02/15/19 12:25pm

SoulAlive

so,what do you guys think of the new album? More thoughts/reviews,please smile
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Reply #111 posted 02/15/19 2:03pm

RJOrion

wow... i wasnt ready to be disappointed like this...i love Chaka Khan, but these songs are almost unlistenable...some songs dont even sound like her voice... "Ladylike" is Ok, but none of the other 6 songs deserve a replay.... very disappointed...
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Reply #112 posted 02/15/19 2:08pm

seand67

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I really tried to like Chaka's new EP but....smh. 12 years ??? At any rate, I purchased the title song from iTunes, along with better songs she recorded for other projects during the past few years. Nice pictures for the 'Hello Happiness' CD though!

SoulAlive said:

so,what do you guys think of the new album? More thoughts/reviews,please smile

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Reply #113 posted 02/15/19 2:10pm

tump

Hello Happiness = Hello boredom

Got the feeling it was too long at the 3-minute mark. Not keen on a re-listen. According to Wikiledia, she is also politically clueless, like Stevie Wonder. As long as they are invited to gig, they will do it, completely unaware of the crooks they support. Or worse, aware without a care.

I have read more about Chaka Khan over the past 10 years than I care to remember. I always thought she was way overhyped as a result of all the discussion. Just another great voice with a totally uninspired song and nothing to say.

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Reply #114 posted 02/15/19 2:36pm

kitbradley

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When Chaka said she didn't go into the studio over-thinking this project, she was right. This album is in no way, shape or form classic Chaka.

My biggest problem is the producers buried her vocals so far back into the songs. The music over-powered her voice. We are used to it being the other way around. lol I don't know. Even though I enjoyed it more than a lot of the releases from some of our veteran artists over the past several years, this is absolutely not an essential Chaka album. I am no club music fan. But, if that's your thing, then this is a release for you. Not enough substance here for me.

She may have had her issues with Warner Brothers while at the label but at least they never skimped on quality and she always had the best producers.

"It's not nice to fuck with K.B.! All you haters will see!" - Kitbradley
"The only true wisdom is knowing you know nothing." - Socrates
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Reply #115 posted 02/15/19 2:58pm

seand67

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Amen Kit.....

kitbradley said:

When Chaka said she didn't go into the studio over-thinking this project, she was right. This album is in no way, shape or form classic Chaka.

My biggest problem is the producers buried her vocals so far back into the songs. The music over-powered her voice. We are used to it being the other way around. lol I don't know. Even though I enjoyed it more than a lot of the releases from some of our veteran artists over the past several years, this is absolutely not an essential Chaka album. I am no club music fan. But, if that's your thing, then this is a release for you. Not enough substance here for me.

She may have had her issues with Warner Brothers while at the label but at least they never skimped on quality and she always had the best producers.

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Reply #116 posted 02/15/19 4:15pm

RJOrion

kitbradley said:

When Chaka said she didn't go into the studio over-thinking this project, she was right. This album is in no way, shape or form classic Chaka.

My biggest problem is the producers buried her vocals so far back into the songs. The music over-powered her voice. We are used to it being the other way around. lol I don't know. Even though I enjoyed it more than a lot of the releases from some of our veteran artists over the past several years, this is absolutely not an essential Chaka album. I am no club music fan. But, if that's your thing, then this is a release for you. Not enough substance here for me.

She may have had her issues with Warner Brothers while at the label but at least they never skimped on quality and she always had the best producers.




i was also thinking how much thinner her voice sounds...i wasnt sure if was just her aging, or the mix...but the music does seem to loud for the vocals at times
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Reply #117 posted 02/15/19 6:59pm

lastdecember

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kitbradley said:



KoolEaze said:


Wow , she looks great in those pictures. I like the whole retro vibe of those photos, really well done.


Is it just me or does her Come 2 My House album she did with Prince always get swept under the rug? It is often not mentioned in her discography and rarely mentioned in interviews when they talk about past albums . I really liked it .


Vibe magazine called it a masterpiece back in the day, and I vaguely remember rapper DMX praising it in some of his interviews.



Actually, "Come 2 My House" has come up quite often over the years during interviews when her relationship with Prince is discussed. Yes, it is kinda of swepted under the rug because the public just didn't know it existed. In her biography, she said she and Prince seriously miscalculated the possible success of their respective albums in 1998 when they thought they could sell records based on name recognition alone without the help of a major label for distribution and promotion. Big mistake! But at least Chaka's and Prince's albums both charted for a short period of time. Poor Larry Graham, his album failed to chart at all.


Yes, I remember that interview with DMX back in the 90s when he listed "Come 2 My House" as one of his favorite albums at the time. biggrin

Still waiting on my CD to arrive later today. I know I can go in a listen to my amazon digital download right now but I'm old school. I'd rather pop the CD into my player. Listening to a digital download just doesn't excite me, even if it is Chaka Khan. wink



Well there were a few mistakes Prince made with the 3 albums, first no one really cared who Larry was so what Prince should have done was package the three in one set similar to what he would do with Lotus. Second mistake billing this as a NPG album, as Morris Hayes said, this was not an NPG album they had almost no input and Prince played almost everything . Third mistake as always was Prince losing interest in the projects, he toured a bit, then the wheels came off and he went into Rave which was another mistake. The Chaka record was good but there was no marketing plan, he just put it out an assumed radio would jump on a new Chaka record, they didn’t.

"We went where our music was appreciated, and that was everywhere but the USA, we knew we had fans, but there is only so much of the world you can play at once" Magne F
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Reply #118 posted 02/16/19 5:42am

KoolEaze

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It´s interesting that she mentions Prince´s alleged and occasional use of acid in that interview.

We just had a thread about Moonbeam Levels being inspired by an acid trip the other day.

" I´d rather be a stank ass hoe because I´m not stupid. Oh my goodness! I got more drugs! I´m always funny dude...I´m hilarious! Are we gonna smoke?"
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Reply #119 posted 02/16/19 8:32am

TrivialPursuit

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She was on The Graham Norton Show (with Chris Pratt, Elizabeth Banks, Jennifer Connelly) and performed "Like Sugar". I think she was lip syncing, which is sorta odd for TGNS. It's a funky little bop, though.

"eye don’t really care so much what people say about me because it is a reflection of who they r."
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