Mr. Moo's What Da Funk

Artist: Doris Duke

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Deep soul diva Doris Duke was born Doris Curry in Sandersville, GA, in 1945. After stints in a series of gospel units, including the Raspberry Singers, the David Sisters, and the Caravans, by 1963 she was settled in New York City, working as a session vocalist in addition to backup duties at the legendary Apollo Theater. Under her married name of Doris Willingham, she cut her debut solo single, “Running Away from Loneliness,” for the tiny Hy-Monty label in 1966; “You Can’t Do That” followed two years later on Jay Boy. Despite solid reviews, neither record made a commercial splash, and she returned to her session career, often commuting to Philadelphia to record with the production team of Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. When former Atlantic Records producer Jerry “Swamp Dogg” Williams Jr. struck out on his own, he signed the singer and renamed her Doris Duke, recording the 1969 LP I’m a Loser at Capricorn, Phil Walden’s studio in Macon, GA.

Though considered the finest deep soul record of all time by no less than soul expert Dave Godin, I’m a Loser was rejected by dozens of labels before it finally surfaced on Wally Roker’s Canyon label. Although the first single, “To the Other Woman,” cracked Billboard’s R&B Top Ten, Canyon soon spiraled into financial disaster, destroying the album’s commercial momentum. Duke spent the next several years in creative limbo, finally reuniting with Swamp Dogg for 1975’s Mankind label release A Legend in Her Own Time — their partnership ended acrimoniously prior to its release, however, and the record received scant attention. Duke next resurfaced on the British label Contempo with Woman, a much-acclaimed set released stateside on the Scepter imprint. After 1981’s Manhattan set Funky Fox, she retired from music, and at the time of this writing her whereabouts and activities are unknown. Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide

A pretty bland set from Southern soul singer Doris Duke, who scored with “To the Other Woman (I’m the Other Woman).” The only winner here is a remake of Holland/Dozier/Holland’s contradictory “Love Is Here and Now You’re Gone,” made popular by the Supremes. If you play this LP once, there’s no need to play it again; you didn’t miss anything the first time, and it doesn’t get any better the second time around. Andrew Hamilton, All Music Guide

Quite possibly the best album ever from deep soul diva Doris Duke – a set that’s produced with a slight undercurrent of sophisticated funk – and put together in ways that take Duke way past the rougher soul of earlier years! The album’s a rare UK production – with backing from Ultrafunk and the Armada Orchestra, and a sound that’s a great mix of Doris’ roots back home with some of the sweeter, funkier sounds of the mid 70s – never in a way that’s too commercial, and always with a quality that resonates strongly with the best US indie soul of the time. The album begins with a sublime remake of Marlena Shaw’s “Woman Of The Ghetto” – and Doris takes the tune into whole new territory with her reading – and other tracks include “A Little Bit Of Your Love”, “To Chicago With Love”, “Love Is Here & Now Your Gone”, “Grasshopper”, “Hey Lady”, and “Pick Up The Pieces”.

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Review By RDTEN1

The mid-’70s were a tough time for American soul artists. With popular tastes having moved on to mindless disco and punk anarchy, like hundreds of other soul acts, Doris Duke found herself struggling to remain relevant. At least briefly, she found a little solace and appreciation among European fans – particularly English fans. Recorded by the English Contempo label (Scepter releasing the set in the States), 1975’s “Woman” was the brainchild of Contempo Records founder and music magazine publisher John Abbey. Abbeys’ affection for American soul was apparent throughout the collection. The downside was that he really didn’t seem to know what to do with Duke’s talents. The end result was a hodgepodge collection heavy on cover tunes (there was one Duke original), that spanned a wide spectrum of musical styles; none particularly suited for Duke. Maybe because the material didn’t strike a chord with her, Duke’s earlier fire was largely absent across these seven songs. On material like her cover of The Supremes hit ‘Love Is Here and Now You’re Gone’ you got the feeling she was going through the motions, trying to force her way through the performance. The results weren’t helped by the fact Duke’s voice seemed to be showing the effects of time. Her earlier fire and effortless power were largely absent. She could still be impressive, but those moments were far and few between. The album’s best performances were her cover of Marlena Shaw’s ‘Woman In the Ghetto’, the Duke original ‘Please Come Back’ and the funky single ‘Grasshopper’.

“Woman” track listing: (side 1) 1.) Woman In the Ghetto (Miller – Marlena Shaw – Evans) – 7:35 rating: **** stars There must be thousands of early-’70s songs that included the word “ghetto” in the title. There’s an interesting subject for a book there… Of those, this has to be one of the best. I’m not sure it beats the quiet fury and interesting arrangement of the Marlena Shaw original, but while Duke’s stab at raising social consciousness may have been a little less in-you-face, it started slowly and built and built over the seven minute + arrangement. Imagine Curtis Mayfield working with The Staple Singers and you’ll get a feel for this one. The song was tapped as a US single: – 1975’s ‘Woman In the Ghetto’ b/w ‘Woman In the Ghetto’ (SAM catalog number 75-5001) 2.) Hey Lady (Kilbourn – Tarry) – 5:44 rating: *** stars Not to sound picky, but Duke seemed to be trying a little too hard on ‘Hey Lady’. Her performance was still enjoyable on this classic slice of Southern soul with one of those bittersweet cheatin’ story lyrics. Clarence Carter would have loved it. And those horns were awesome. 3.) Love Is Here and Now You’re Gone (Brian Holland – Lamont Dozier – Eddie Holland) – 5:45 rating: ** stars As much as wanted to like her cover of ‘Love Is Here and Now You’re Gone’, I just couldn’t feel it. Duke’s performance sounded brittle and forced with the spoken word segments reminding me how much better The Supremes’ version was (and it wasn’t one of their better performances).

(side 2) 1.) Please Come Back (Doris Duke) – 5:05 rating: *** stars The lone original composition, ‘Please Come Back’ was a nice enough ballad, but the heavy arrangement seemed to rush Duke into Hal David and Burt Bacharach territory. 2.) Grasshopper (Bunny Sigler – Hurtt) – 3:30 rating: **** stars The album’s standout performance, ‘Grasshopper’ offered up a flashback to earlier creative peaks. Commercial and funky, the tune recaptured the spunk and sense of energy that made Duke such a joy. The track was released as a US single: – 1974’s ‘Grasshopper’ b/w ‘Please Come Back’ (Contempo catalog number CS 7703) 3.) To Chicago with Love (Howard) – 2:40 rating: ** stars The sickly sweet opening strings weren’t a good harbinger of what was to come – Duke simply struggled with the song and the spoken word segment just pushed the mess off the rails. Probably that album’s worst performance.. 4.) A Little Bit of Love (Kenny Gamble – Leon Huff) – 3:06 Penned by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, the song was given a light disco feel which again didn’t seem to be a good match for Duke. I’m not sure about the title disconnect. Not a major crises, but interesting – on the album the song was shown as ‘A Little Bit of Love’, but released as a single the title was shown as ‘A Little Bit of Lovin”. The song was released as the album’s second UK single: – 1974’s ‘A Little Bit of Lovin’ b/w ‘Hey Lady’ (Contempo catalog number CS 2047) 5. Full Time Woman (Stuart) – 3:45 ‘Full Time Woman’ was another big, overblown and over-orchestrated ballad where Duke sounded like she was trying to power her way through the performance. Forgettable. The song also served as the third and final UK single: – 1974’s ‘Full Time Woman’ b/w ‘Your Best Friend’ (Contempo catalog CS 2064)

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Album: Woman

Release date: 1975

Tracklist:

1. Woman Of The Ghetto
2. Hey Lady
3. Love Is Here And Now You’re Gone
4. Pick Up The Pieces
5. Please Come Back
6. Grasshopper
7. To Chicago With Love
8. A Little Bit Of Your Love
9. Full Time Woman

‘Woman Of The Ghetto’ On YouTube

Vinyl Covers, Labels & Promo (Click On The Thumbnails)