Rhastus said:

co-sign you and everyone else praising this track. I would pay plenty good money to see this performed live. I wouldn't even care if this was the only thing he did and then walked off the stage. "Merciful" is just, like, DAAAAAMN!
[Edited 11/16/09 8:39am]

"Verbal Penetration" Has a Sly Stone feel
"U&I R We R US" and "Don't Throw Yourself" these two tracks have
a Curtis Mayfield and D'Angelo sound
I like "Slave 2 the Freedom" as well.

Jesse won me over with this album, and I'm very particular about the music I buy, so it looks like I'll be purchasing this album, love the sound, and Jesse is still fine.
[Edited 11/15/09 17:15pm]

"100 Wats of Funky" sounds like Jesse covering a Camille track. Awesome!

Loving this album.

LinnLM1 said:

Which is ironic since Camille did a "SHOCKADELICA" song.

pzlyprk said:

^ the oldschool "Horns" were never meant to sound 'authentic'

they had that fat analog feel to them.once you hear them you just know they arent real brass instruments.

these cheesy new age sounding synthesizers cant compete with the classic sounds of the 80s


Modernized RnB isnt going anywhere while the throwback sound he helped put on the map is practically extinct. while i can come up with my own obvious conclusions to why he didnt go that route i truly believe he NEEDED to bring that to the table.

its not like it would have affected his sales or anything. everyone knows jesse isnt going to do major numbers and thats not why he makes music. man i need to get up with these cats and tell them whats going on.

i know i cant be the only one who is missing the mplsound of the past. being a younger guy who was born in the twin cities its an issue im quite concerned with. i cant look forward to any new music.

FUUUUU-

Just got this in the mail from Amazon today & DAMN!!! The best thing i've heard this year other than "The Way I see it" by Saadiq. Let me say , its like Jesse broke into my brain and took the words for Slave To Our Freedom.Me and my boy discuss this subject matter quite frequently. VP , Merciful , Sadie. Disc one is an ass kicker.

Ditto to what everyone else said about disc 2...too many interludes - however I do like the audio liner notes. Even my 13 year old said "is this disc all talking?"...I wish that radio wasnt like it is , so that more people would get a chance to hear this.....GOOD SHIT.
[Edited 11/18/09 15:37pm]
[Edited 11/18/09 15:38pm]

minneapolisFunq said:

Everything has it's time. I dug the Minneapolis scene too and old classic
Jesse but let's be real homes. Some of it is dated. Look when Mint Condition
came on the scene the Minneapolis sound had hit a wall. Their first album
they produced themselves along with Jellybean Johnson the grooves were
funky and only had 3 ballads on them. Their first single was Are You Free.
It had the classic Minneapolis(Jam and Lewis) touch to it but the record was dated. You could tell from the other singles Pretty Brown Eyes and Forever in
Your Eyes and another song Single to Mingle that they put their own stamp
on those songs and they didn't sound dated. Even in the nineties Jam and Lewis
wasn't putting that dated 80's Minneapolis stamp on the artists they were
producing they moved on. As for Jesse,he has moved on somewhat but to say
Verbal Penetration,Propaganda,100 watts of funky,and Slo Burning isn't vintage
Jesse is insane. I guess you might not be back into the throwback soul he's
presenting on this album but to me it only adds to his arsenal. He's showing
on this album that he's more than just a guitarist laying licks,he's showing
he's improved miles as a vocalist and a songwriter.

minneapolisFunq said:

yeah- but you got plenty to listen to. I think if someone who started there ends there - well- that's not much growth. Take a listen to how poorly Prince did it on MPLsound. Go talk to some 20 somethings into grabbing that sound and running with it. Young kids would be all over it from other kids their age.

phunkdaddy said:

Everything has it's cycles and now like Prince did on "Musicology", Jesse's comin back 2 the classic R&B thing but at the same time making it progressive.

Zannaloaf said:

^

i saw how greatly Jesse has done it in the past and could have been cool with atleast ONE mplsound joint.

the mpls might have hit a wall but someone has to be willing to reinvent the wheel.

im just dissapointed in the lack of GROOVES.

its not like jesse fans dont already know how good of an all around artist he is anyways.

minneapolisFunq said:

Lack of grooves??? Listen to Slo Burnin, 100 Watts of Funky, and Merciful for starters.

im just dissapointed in the lack of GROOVES.
its not like jesse fans dont already know how good of an all around artist he is anyways.[/quote]


Honestly, I can not understand some of these ridiculous responses! I know everyone's opinion should be equal but this is straight idiotic. Jesse puts a classic album out and people complain. WHo else can play like him? Who else has these kinds of songs?

Who do you listen to? Or do you just not listen to anything b/c it's not good enough for you.

Stupid.

LinnLM1 said:

There is definately no lacking of grooves on V.P., but if I'm understanding correctly, I think he means that the hardcore MPLSound snare drums and LINNs r missing - i.e. "FREE WORLD" parts 2, 3, 4...

I think Jesse's moved well passed all that tho', he's on a different level now... "Good God!"

why shouldnt i hold jesse to a high standard?
he is one of my favorite artists after all.

there isnt one song on the joint that makes me want to dance.


again,

the LACK OF GROOVES is what really ruined the project for me

it wasnt like bmns which was straightforward rock/blues.

this was a combination of slow RnB cuts that would have been a perfect project to throw some FUNK into the mix.


sorry if im stupid because i prefer uptempo synthesizer driven music. i still like jesse i just needed a new song that i could jam at max volume and lose my mind.



I hear BrownMark is releasing a new album soon. i will have to contact him via myspace and let him know the lowdown

minneapolisFunq said:

When you say "lack of grooves", are you sure you're listening to the same monster heavy fucking FUNK album I am?

Jam and Lewis sold out in the 1990s. Instead of trying to beat the enemy, they joined the enemy. If they were tired of their sound, I would have had more respect for them if they had done country music.

It will be the same. Nothing past midtempo and weak sounding drum machines that barely tap. Nobody is going to throwdown these days because they are so busy trying to gain acceptance from a new generation that was raised on nothing but Lawrence Welk tempoed music. Hell, that's not moving forward, that's going backwards into time to the days when classical music ruled the music scene.
.
.
.
[Edited 11/24/09 1:18am]

vainandy said:

Are you trying to accuse Jesse of this?


phunk waits for Vainandy to turn the corner in his
Prince boots singing Lady Cab Driver

I'm accusing Jesse, Morris, The Barkays, The Isley Brothers, Charlie Wilson from the Gap Band, Lionel Richie, Chico DeBarge, Rick James, and any other artist that came out in the 1970s or 1980s making uptempo jams but made recent albums in the 1990s or 2000s with very little if any jams on them. I realize that people get older but they ain't that old. Just because the younger generation has the taste of someone 86 years old doesn't mean they have to accommodate them by stop making jams completely.

Now, you know I'm gonna speak my mind regardless of who the artist is no matter how much I love them and then includes Jesse too. I hold artists I like at a much higher standard than those that I don't like. I've been more than nice concerning Jesse because Rick James' last album which was a complete sellout, I shit all over it up and down, back and forth, sideways and forwards and those Rick James "fams" (yeah, he has some fams too) lost their everloving minds. Those crazy motherfuckers declared war on my ass that day. I guess I've been nicer towards Jesse because I didn't lose any money on it like I did with Rick's last album. And I don't give Prince no slack either. With Prince, I at least know there are going to be some jams on it but I'm getting sick of seeing shit hop influenced tracks on his later albums also. Each album of his has at least one and I shit on those tracks each time ten times harder than I shit on Rick's last album. I'd like to put Prince's balls over a hot open flame until the hairs start to smoke every time I hear "Valentina" and "Ol Skool Company". But y'all know how I am, that's just me, I gotta speak my peace. Nothing personal towards the artists, but I just gotta be fair and criticize their work just like I do with artists that I don't like. Now you wanna see mean....just mention a shit hopper and I will tear this place up shitting all over them.

vainandy said:

For the record,i would definitely put the Barkays and Charlie Wilson in
that category now. As for Lionel the recent shit he's done with Akon
make Deep River Woman with Alabama sound like a hit song.

Here is a review that I wrote of Jesse Johnson's latest release.

"Verbal" Penetrates the Soul
Verbal Penetration, Volume One and Two
Jesse Johnson (Bellavenix Music)
Four and one half stars (out of five)
By J David Silva, Sr.

Jesse Johnson has arrived.
Not "arrived" in the sense that he has finally found musical success. That happened almost 20 years ago when, as an original member of the seminal funk -rock group The Time, the guitarist melded snaky funk riffs with hard driving accents to help blur the lines between so called "black" and "white" music and create one of the most electrifying sounds of the eighties and early nineties. Johnson continued along this path by forging a successful solo career after leaving The Time. Through such albums as "Jesse Johnson's Review," Shockadelica," "Every Shade of Love" and the terrific "Bare My Naked Soul", Johnson deftly continued creating an extrordinary brand of funk, rock and pop that showcased his mastery of each of these musical styles.
But on his latest release, the stunning, 2 disc, 29 track "Verbal Penetration Volume One and Two," Johnson has reached a point of creative utopia. What has come before seems to have brought him to the place he is now.The artist still blends styles and defies labels, but he appears to do so now from a point of musical nirvana. At times the results leave the listener absolutely breathless.
From the opening groove of the title track, Johnson is in musical command. Johnson is an excellent guitarist and the songs don't skimp on his talents. "Verbal Penetration" (the song) is a gem, a workout with a sense of urgency that includes one of those classic guitar solos. The song builds until you know Johnson is going to explode through his instrument. "Merciful" is an instrumental track again highlighting the artist's guitar prowess. Johnson seems to be one with his instrument; you can feel the passion in his playing, almost see the funk faces he was sure to be making when recording this one. The hard driving "In the Key of Nudity" keeps the guitar heroics going. Like great lovemaking, you actually don't want it to stop.
But Penetration isn't all about Johnson's guitar superpowers; the artist also knows how to blend his instrument into his songs with the right balance. On "Get Next to You" Johnson shows he knows how to hold back. The guitar is subtle, perfectly balanced in the groove. The guitar fills on the jazz influenced "Love Letters" show Johnson's guitar complementing all the other sounds around him. They never threaten to ruin the vibe.
To be fair, however, "Verbal Penetration Volume One and Two" is about much more than Johnson's chops on the guitar. Johnson impresses most when he displays an array of musical genres. "Sheila Rae" is a gorgeous slice of soul/pop/funk."Ali vs. Frazier" is firmly rooted in jazz, an intellectual and passionate piece of musicianship that actually forces listeners to think about what they are hearing. Lyrically, Johnson is also in fine form, touching on a variety of topics, such as unity ("U & I R We R Us"), blindly believing everything we see and hear ('Propaganda"), and social conciousness ("Slave 2 R Freedom.")
The collection also takes chances and shows a striking sense of innovation. "V.P. Credits" takes the artist's thanks usually reserved for the cd's packaging and presents them verbally, over a funky groove. "Reflections" is an "interview" with Johnson, where the musician answers questions put to him, with music in the background. There are also several spoken interludes, some of which serve as bridges between songs. Risky? Yes. Does it work? Absolutely.
The 2 discs close with the instrumental "Peace Be With You (Reprise)", where Johnson seems to be wishing us well and thanking us for taking this journey with him. The song is a rewarding and satisfying close to what appears to be the work that Johnson was born to create. If indeed with "Verbal Penetration Volume One and Two" Jesse Johnson has truly arrived, you would do yourself well to go where he wants to take you. It's a fascinating trip.

J David Silva, Sr.

jds311 said:

Great REVUE - a fascinating trip indeed.

jds311 said:

Great review JD

Rhastus said:

And Albert King's Killing Field

phunkdaddy said:

Great post!

Ok. You all convinced me and I just ordered it.

vivid said:

If u don't like it, u'll b in a minority...

This is such a great album. Gets better and better with every listen. Jesse is a talented mofo - that's for certain. You can hear the way he took his time with this album b/c of the wonderful attention to musical detail. There's a lot going on the more you listen. This album is a must for anyone who frequents this board.
[Edited 12/5/09 12:10pm]