Y'all know the album I'm talking about...

"Squeeze The Fruit" (3:02)
"Funny Feelings" (5:56)
"Heaven Knows" (6:17)
"Zoom" (7:06)
"Won't You Come Dance With Me" (4:09)
"Brick House" (3:46)
"Funky Situation" (4:12)
"Patch It Up" (4:03)
"Easy" (4:53)


In March 1977,The Commodores released this masterpiece,and it completely took them to another level.It is the strongest,most impressive album of their careers,and the world really took notice.Two singles---the funk fest "Brick House" and the slighty country-ish ballad "Easy"---became monster hits.But that's not all.The album also boasts a mesmerizing Lionel Ritchie slow jam "Zoom",which is over 7 minutes of pure bliss;you can really get lost in this song! Then there is the hook-filled "Funky Situation",which I can never get out of my head after playing this record.The repeated lines "could it be love?...it's funky...it's funky...it's funky...it's a Funky Situation" are undeniably addictive!! "Heaven Knows" features gorgeous harmonies and a smooth-as-silk arrangement.Really,there isn't a bad cut anywhere on the record.

This CD has been re-mastered but,amazingly, NOT in the U.S.(what's the deal with that??). You have to order it as an import.There are no added bonus tracks or anything,but you do get a special treat.Here's a note from the engineer...

"In using the original mixdown master for this digital remaster,we discovered that,except for tracks # 1 and 8,all of the songs are longer than when they appeared on the original vinyl LP and CD release.Songs were often edited or faded early in the vinyl era due to the restrictions of the format.As a bonus,we have retained the longer versions here."


Let's hear YOUR memories/thoughts/opinions of this landmark album...






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[This message was edited Mon Mar 17 1:13:54 PST 2003 by DavidEye]

I agree!
The other one I really love is the live album.
/peace manki

manki said:

Yeah,the 'Live' album is great,isn't it? It was released in November of '77.Back then,it was the norm for a band or artist to release an album early in the year,then follow it up with a Live album by year's end.

man... remember that album came with a poster? i had it on my wall when that album came out.Great album and the live album. withthat live version of Zoom? ghat dayum it doesnt get better good picks, there

A little trivia about this album...


***Outside of the U.S.,in many other countries,this album was titled 'Zoom'.I can't see why Motown didn't go with that title in the States.

***In 1995,our very own Prince resurrected the song "Brick House" for Mayte's (awful) debut album.It was re-titled "House Of Brick" though.

***The song "Funny Feelings" features the often-heard phrase "sexy lady...drive me crazy",which many other R&B/funk bands later used.

***Am I the only one who thinks that "Funky Situation" should have been a single? That's one of the highlights of this album.

***During their 1977 tour to promote this album,the guys would have "Brick House contests",where they would try to find the sexiest women in the audience...lol...

Hot on the Tracks and Machine Gun are hot albums too.

I Love this Album as well.I got this plus Other Albums by them&the Live Album.this Album Cover&Inner Picture was Used in a Scene from "Saturday Night Fever".I forgot what scene it was but it was early in the film with John Travolta getting ready to Go Disco Down&you see the Album Picture in the background.Props for this thread David.

DavidEye said:

is it worth the extra money for the extended remastered version of this..?

EllisDee said:

Yes! I bought it from Amazon last year,and it wasn't that much more than the regular CD would have been.I think it was around $19.The sound quality is great,and most songs have a longer fade-out (especially "Zoom").

DavidEye said:

i'm sold...

btw Ellis,I have ssen you mention something called "Eargasm" on a few threads? What is that? Johnnie Taylor had a 1976 album with that title,but I don't think that's what you're referrring to,is it?

DavidEye said:

no... it's the radio show that i used to host from 9 to midnight every saturday on power 90.5 (a radio station out here)... eargasm was the program dedication to the feeling of good and bringing you all thangs fonky... :LOL:... i played mostly funk, but we saved plenty of room for soul and blues as well...

and of course, there was the unfunky moment of the night, where i spotlighted a song by an artist that wasn't getting recognition on the radio's regular format or on mtv or vh1 or anything and wasn't funky but still kicked ass nonetheless...

the show was sometimes cohosted by my wife, who dj-ed under the name of judith priest (:LOL:)...

i also did all kinds of production work for the station, under the guise of funky sweet nasty goodness productions...

i also co-hosted the thursday night all request and dedication program with my buddy will (who was the hard-rock/heavy metal dj on sunday nights)... we have a very interesting dynamic together...

eargasm became the most popular show on the station, after a slow start, and remained the most popular show for a over a year, before i pulled the plug on it for various reasons...

the show is named after the johnnie taylor album, yes... my wife and i were brainstorming for a name one day, and i was really struggling with it... so, while we were thinking, she decided to put in something funky to get us in the spirit... and she put in "eargasm," and as soon as i heard the opening licks of "disco lady" i knew what the show would be called...

we did a lot of great stuff and it was a ton of fun...

thanks for asking...

DavidEye said:

here is the website... http://www23.brinkster.co...asm905funk ... it's not really that great at all... a friend of mine kinda threw it together for us...

Ellis,in those pictures,you look like a member of the Time...lol...all pimped out there

DavidEye said:

you should see my wedding photos... :LOL:... we were all pimped out... everyone had the pimpin' suits with the godfather styled hats... shades... and tootise roll pops... ... :LOL:... it was great...


speaking of the time, we were in talks with monte moir to come on the show... he was gonna do an interview, guest host, and maybe perform a song or two from his solo album... he said that he would see if any of the other guys in the group were interested...

then their gig in columbia, sc (which is what we were trying to synch it up with) got canceled... and he was in the middle of moving into a new house, so i called it off... it would've been too much of a hassle... but we were very close...