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betty davis, "betty davis" / "they say i'm different"
These two onslaughts of hard, relentless, unapologetic female funk could very well be the most brilliant albums I've bought all year. Born in Pittsburgh, PA, Betty Mabry's musical career began as a professional songwriter before she had even reached the age of 20. A brief marriage to Miles Davis gave her a new last name and turned Miles on to musicians like Sly Stone and Jimi Hendrix (by the way, that's her on the cover of 'Filles de Kilimanjaro').
MPC Ltd.
Her eponymous debut was released in 1973, four years after the divorce of her and Miles. For this, Betty gathered a fierce ensemble of some of the hottest musicians and backup singers, including members of Sly Stone's band and Santana, the Tower of Power horn section, and the Pointer Sisters. The result was loud and raw at times, with forceful drums and vocals like the opener, "If I'm In Luck I Might Get Picked Up," as well as sultry and dirty with songs like "Anti-Love Song," with a fabulous slap bass and banging piano complimenting Betty's up close and personal voice. The response, unfortunately was rather lukewarm.
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MPC LTD.
Her second album followed a year later and unbelievably featured even more intense and direct vocals, like the gangsta-bitch classic, "Shoo-b-doop and Cop Him," and a song rumored to be about John Coltraine, "He Was a Big Freak." ("I used to beat him with a turquoise chain!") The guitar breakdown on, "Your Mama Wants Ya Back" combined with the outlandish costumes Betty's wearing on the front and back cover gives me strong reason to believe David Bowie was a big fan of this record. Once again, however, the mainstream world wasn't ready for a forceful, powerful woman singing about things like S&M. Even worse, religious groups forced cacellations of numerous shows of hers. A third album followed in 1975, 'Nasty Gal,' and unfinished recordings from the later 1970s have surfaced, but Betty retired from the music world and has lived a very quiet life since. In 2000, these albums were issued on CD from the UK-based MPC, and, while the artwork looks almost bootleg-quality, the sound is fabulous and well-worth digging up. While I don't have her third album yet, I can safely say these two albums have made nearly everything I've heard this year sound, well, insignificant.
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