DOIN' IT TO DEATH by JBS

For starters, this platter begins with one of the great intros of all time: �Ladies and gentlemen, there are seven acknowledged wonders of the world. You are about to witness the eighth�� Lodged in a deep groove between the JB�s� debut LP Food For Thought (1972) and the more complex and at-times political Damn Right, I Am Somebody (from 1974) sits the ridiculously vampy and infectious classic, Doing It To Death. First moving hips and making heads nod in 1973, the James Brown-produced, 5-song album is one big funk lick, broken up into many delicious moving parts.As with pretty much everything produced by the JB�s � led by Fred Wesley with heavy help from a supporting cast that included saxophonist Maceo Parker, guitarists Jimmy Nolen and Hearlon �Cheese� Martin and drummer John �Jabo� Starks � all songs began and revolved around a devastating riff. The title track is most certainly guilty-as-charged, as it starts strutting right out of the gate and continues for just over 10 minutes, driven by a guitar lick and MCed by the inimitable James Brown, with soloists stepping up and out while the song chugs on. The other centerpiece of the album is the 8-minute �You Can Have Watergate Just Gimme Some Bucks And I�ll Be Straight,� whose groove is interestingly teased two times before it arrives in full form. The song title itself is provocative, and the music keeps a stone-cold groove despite the less than cheery undertones. Again driven by an infectious guitar morsel, the breakdowns in this song gave sampling producers and DJs sweet dreams in the �80s, and Fred Wesley�s trombone solo rides beautifully over the group�s cries of �We need some money.� Beyond the aforementioned sure-shots, the twitchy �More Peas,� �La Di Da La Di Day� and the much jazzier, solo-heavy �Sucker� round out this incredible album. It�s just another perfect example of how James Brown�s funk machine could stop the world when they hit a groove.