ROSE ROYCE — Car Wash (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (review)

ROSE ROYCE — Car Wash (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) album cover Album · 1976 · Jazz Related Soundtracks Buy this album from MMA partners
4/5 ·
js
Those who seek obscure funk jazz tracks and rare groove know that soundtracks from 70s African-American movies can sometimes be plentiful in exotic jazzy instrumentals. The movie “Car Wash” was a huge hit in the 70s, and is still popular to this day, but it seems much of its brilliant soundtrack has been overlooked. The main hits from the movie, including the title track, are all well known, but what a lot of people are missing is that this double album is loaded with excellent instrumentals. The main players here are the then brand new RnB group Rose Royce, famous Motown producer Norman Whitfield and guest guitarist Wah Wah Watson, who some may know from his work with Herbie Hancock. As the story goes, Whitfield was working with Royce on their new album when he got the call to do the soundtrack to a new movie that was bound to be big as it boasted the huge drawing power of both Richard Pryor and George Carlin. Whitfield decided the best thing to do was just take the work he had started with Royse and make that the soundtrack to the movie.

The handful of RnB pop tunes that Whitfield crafted for the album are all good, and they reflect his work with The Temptations, but the jazz and rare groove fans will want to check out the plentiful instrumentals. The hard charging funk of “Mid Day DJ Theme” and “Righteous Rhythm” are tops, and you can hear all of Wah Wah Watson’s signature guitar riffs, the same ones he used to build Herbie’s “Hang Up Your Hang Ups”. “Crying” is laid back space groove and “Sunrise” sounds like a modern nu jazz cut with its repeating minimal riffs. Really, everything on here is gold and all of it has that classic mid-70s funk sound that can’t be faked.
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

Goncalo Almeida / Rutger Zuydervelt : Eventual Jazz Related Improv/Composition
GONÇALO ALMEIDA
Buy this album from MMA partners
Illimitable Avant-Garde Jazz
MATT MITCHELL
Buy this album from MMA partners
The Hermetic Organ Volume 12 - The Bosch Requiem Jazz Related Improv/Composition
JOHN ZORN
Buy this album from MMA partners
Jonesville Eclectic Fusion
ACCELERATION DUE TO GRAVITY
Buy this album from MMA partners
Ivo Perelman + Tom Rainey : Duologues 1 - Turning Point Avant-Garde Jazz
IVO PERELMAN
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· 2 days ago
Critique of Swing in Two Parts, Pt. 1
PIOTR ORZECHOWSKI (PIANOHOOLIGAN)
js· 3 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