Artist: Betty Davis Album: They Say I'm Different Original Release Date: 1974 Original Label: Just Sunshine Reissue Date: 2009 Label: Light in the Attic Catalog No: 027 Genre: R&B Styles: Funk, Soul
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Betty Davis Producer, Arranger, Vocals Cordell Dudley Guitar, Vocals Larry Johnson Bass Hershall Kennedy Clavinet, Keyboards, Organ, Piano (Electric), Trumpet, Vocals Tony Vaughn Bass (Vocal), Clavinet, Keyboards, Piano, Piano (Electric), Vocals Crusher Bennett Percussion Ted Sparks Drums Willy Sparks Drums, Vocals Merl Saunders Piano (Electric) Mike Clark Drums Buddy Miles Guitar Fred Mills Keyboards, Vocals Carlos Morales Guitar, Vocals Nicky Neal Drums, Vocals Victor Pantoja Conga, Percussion Pete Escovedo Timbales Jimmy Godwin Guitar, Guitar (Rhythm) Mary Jones Vocals Trudy Perkins Vocals James Allen Smith Keyboards Debbie Burrell Vocals Elaine Clark Vocals Tom Flye Mixing Jack Adams Engineer, Mixing
Betty Davis' second full-length featured a similar set of songs as her debut, though with Davis herself in the production chair and a radically different lineup. The openers, "Shoo-B-Doop and Cop Him" and "He Was a Big Freak," are big, blowsy tunes with stop-start funk rhythms and Davis in her usual persona as the aggressive sexual predator. On the title track, she reminisces about her childhood and compares herself to kindred spirits of the past, a succession of blues legends she holds fond -- including special time for Bessie Smith, Chuck Berry, and Robert Johnson. A pair of unknowns, guitarist Cordell Dudley and bassist Larry Johnson, do a fair job of replacing the stars from her first record. As a result, They Say I'm Different is more keyboard-dominated than her debut, with prominent electric piano, clavinet, and organ from Merl Saunders, Hershall Kennedy, and Tony Vaughn. The material was even more extreme than on her debut; "He Was a Big Freak" featured a prominent bondage theme, while "Your Mama Wants Ya Back" and "Don't Call Her No Tramp" dealt with prostitution, or at least inferred it. With the exception of the two openers, though, They Say I'm Different lacked the excellent songs and strong playing of her debut; an explosive and outrй record, but more a variation on the same theme she'd explored before. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide |