George Duke - Don't Let Go (1978)

Artist: George Duke
Title Of Album: Don't Let Go
Year Of Release: 1978
Label: Epic
Genre: Jazz Funk, Smooth Jazz, Soul
Format: FLAC (Tracks)+CUE, LOG
Quality: Lossless
Total Time: 00:42:53
Total Size: 282 mb

Review by Richard S. Ginell

With a hot funk band and a big hit, "Reach for It," behind him, George Duke appears mostly in his persona as R&B star on this ebullient package of sometimes Latin-inflected '70s funk. The centerpiece is a self-parodic bit of shuck and jive called "Dukey Stick," which became a number four hit single on the R&B charts (at his gigs, Duke used to flaunt a gaudy, lit-up, perhaps phallic wand, the "Dukey stick," during this number). The percussion section is pretty potent, staffed by Leon "Ndugu" Chancler and Sheila Escovedo in her pre-pop star days; they even get a Latin workout of their own simply titled "Percussion Interlude." While some of Duke's considerable keyboard and electronic prowess breaks through now and then, this album is mainly aimed at the R&B market, as the preponderance of soul vocals indicates. As such, it is a cut or two above the routine fare of the time, though not as infectious as its predecessor Reach for It.

Tracks:

01. We Give Our Love 4:33
02. Morning Sun 4:15
03. Percussion Interlude 2:02
04. Dukey Stick 6:07
05. Starting Again 4:29
06. Yeah, We Going 3:41
07. The Way I Feel 4:45
08. Movin’ On 4:22
09. Preface 1:29
10. The Future 3:25

Personnel:

George Duke - keyboards,vocals
Byron Miller - bass
Sheila Escovedo - congas,percussion
Leon Ndugu Chancler - drums,timbales
Charles Johnson - guitar
Josie James - vocals
Napoleon Murphy Brock - vocals
Robald Bautista - rhythm guitar

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