GIL SCOTT-HERON — Gil Scott-Heron And Brian Jackson : From South Africa To South Carolina (review)

GIL SCOTT-HERON — Gil Scott-Heron And Brian Jackson : From South Africa To South Carolina album cover Album · 1975 · RnB Buy this album from MMA partners
2.5/5 ·
Sean Trane
Another GSH & BJ collaboration featuring a poignant and impressive artwork, but unfortunately the music inside has a bit of a hard time living to its epic album sleeve and title. Don’t get me wrong, the lyrics are still often in the region of the CRM, but they don’t have the poignancy of GSH’s early days. Indeed, while some lyrics and texts still are still quite denunciatory, the music is definitely and resolutely in the middle of the road and insipidly mid-tempo.

On the opening South Africa side, only Summer of 48 seems to really deliver some kind of worthy energy, but there isn’t much else to write home about. The South Carolina flipside opens on its strong title track (about a toxic waste dump) then follows on a plaintive blues with an interesting sax-filled intro, before breaking into an interesting piece, that is probably the album’s highlight. After an also-interesting jazzy flute-filled Fell Together, but the insipid Lovely Day closes the album on a dwn note.

Definitely not GSH’s stronger album, but it is not exactly one of his weaker ones either… Just something that can be called a “run-of-the-mill” album, whose best assets come too late in the album to save it from averagedom.
Share this review
more

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer
Please login to post a shout
No shouts posted yet. Be the first member to do so above!

Review Index

Member Zone

Username:
Password:
Stay signed in

Jazz Subgenres

Artists Alpha-index

JMA TOP 5 Jazz ALBUMS

Rating by members, ranked by custom algorithm
Albums with 30 ratings and more
A Love Supreme Post Bop
JOHN COLTRANE
Buy this album from our partners
Kind of Blue Cool Jazz
MILES DAVIS
Buy this album from our partners
The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady Progressive Big Band
CHARLES MINGUS
Buy this album from our partners
Blue Train Hard Bop
JOHN COLTRANE
Buy this album from our partners
My Favorite Things Hard Bop
JOHN COLTRANE
Buy this album from our partners

New Jazz Artists

New Jazz Releases

Cassie Kinoshi's Seed. With NikNak & London Contemporary Orchestra : Gratitude Fusion
SEED ENSEMBLE
Buy this album from MMA partners
Giant Beauty Avant-Garde Jazz
AHMED أحمد
Buy this album from MMA partners
Green Lights Hard Bop
TROY ROBERTS
Buy this album from MMA partners
Story Of Mankind Vocal Jazz
BENJAMIN KOPPEL
Buy this album from MMA partners
Benjamin Koppel & Mames Babegenush : World of Yesterday Pop/Art Song/Folk
BENJAMIN KOPPEL
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Jazz Online Videos

Miles Away
ALEX MERCK
js· 1 day ago
Stablemates
RON BLAKE
js· 3 days ago
Critique of Swing in Two Parts, Pt. 1
PIOTR ORZECHOWSKI (PIANOHOOLIGAN)
js· 4 days ago
FULL ALBUM - Oliver Lutz - Utopia w/ Leif Berger, Constantin Krahmer
OLIVER LUTZ
js· 4 days ago
Lift
DAVE WILSON (US/NZ)
js· 6 days ago
More videos

New JMA Jazz Forum Topics

More in the forums

New Site interactions

More...

Latest Jazz News

members-submitted

More in the forums

Social Media

Follow us
Follow us on Twitter Become a Facebook fan RSS Feed