Track Listing

1. MAGGOT BRAIN
2. CAN YOU GET TO THAT
3. HIT IT AND QUIT IT
4. YOU AND YOUR FOLKS, ME AND MY FOLKS
5. SUPER STUPID
6. BACK IN OUR MINDS
7. WARS OF ARMAGEDDON
8. MAGGOT BRAIN (Alt Mix)
9. WHOLE LOT OF BS
10. I MISS MY BABY (US MUSIC WITH FUNKADELIC)

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #22546 in Music
• Released on: 2005-05-02
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Extra tracks
• Dimensions: 1.00 pounds

CD Description
Jimi Hendrix's untimely death in September of 1970 left a gaping hole in the funk-rock genre. With 1971's MAGGOT BRAIN,Funkadelic showed that they were rightful heirs to Hendrix's throne. This is the album where, all at once, everything seems to come together for the legendary band. Most obviously, the songwriting is sharper and more focused. As on their previous releases, epic instrumental compositions dominate. But this time they are much more coherent and less reliant onstudio trickery and psychedelic effects (with the exceptionof the album's closer, the instrumental freak-out "Wars of Armageddon").
The stunning title track provides the ultimate vehicle for Funkadelic's late and great guitarist, EddieHazel. This moving ten-minute instrumental has Hazel playing through many peaks and valleys, wringing passion from his six-string, and leaving the listener drained by its conclusion. Another highlight is "You And Your Folks, Me and My Folks", a song about interracial relationships that is one of Funkadelic's most soulful tracks ever. Also included are the heavy metal thrasher "Super Stupid", the prime funk workout "Hit It And Quit It" (featuring the great Bernie Worrell on organ), and "Can You Get To That", one of the sunniest, most memorable funk-gospel-soul songs in the band's--or anyone's--catalogue. MAGGOT BRAIN is unquestionably one of rock and funk's all-time classics.

Customer Reviews

Perfection
I already owned the previous edition of this on CD, as will some of you, so I'll break this review in two. First the basic album, second the add-ons.
Maggot Brain is one of Funkadelic's three best albums of the pre-Warner era (along with Funkadelic and Standing on the Verge). It's a move away from the bluesy, very Hendrix like funk-tinged rock of their first album into harder territory. When I first got it (on tape of all things) back in '91 I thought it was too rocky for me and some convinced soul boys may still take that view. I've come to see it for what it is, one of the best pieces of music ever made in any genre. It'll appeal to rock and funk fans alike: it's what guitar music should sound like, hard-edged AND soulful. The title track, at something like 10 minutes long, is the killer, almost a solo by Eddie Hazel, surely one of the finest performances with a guitar ever. if you don't own this track, stop reading now and just add the album to your basket. Can you get to that (Clinton used some of the lyrics before with Parliament; it was also covered by, I think, Boby [sic] Franklin's Insanity), You and Your Folks, and Hit it and Quit it are all superior quality funk rock tunes; Back in our Minds is a stoned return-from-Vietnam bit of psychedelic funk while the final track, Wars of Armageddon may be the most straightforwardly funky. It's a long guitar and organ driven frenetic jam with added crying babies, air raid sirens and protesters (which work, even though they shouldn't!). Like the whole album, it's superb, taking the best qualities of funk and rock and fusing them together into a perfect whole.
The Add-ons: There are three bonus tracks. The first two, Whole lot of BS and I miss my baby are from non-album 45s, but have appeared on comps before. Still, if you ain't got em...
The real bonus here is the alternate take of Maggot Brain. This loses the 'Mother Earth is pregnant for the first time...' bit at the start, but includes the rest of the band in a less scary but perhaps more rounded tune, with more prominent drums and ?kalimba. If you already have the album on CD you won't regret getting it again for this version. It's superb. Maggot Brain is one of my favourite tracks of all time, but after listening to this I'm not sure which version I like best. They're both superb. At first the difference seems minimal, but the whole atmosphere of the song is really changed. It also makes you listen to the original differently. Well worth getting for this track alone, and it won't break the bank.