index page for Delicado Album Details
Acid/Hard Hands  - Ray Barretto (Compilation) - 1967-1968
Label: Demon nsbtb004 (UK)
Format: CD
From: USA
My rating: 7/10

Entered: 08/30/2002
Last updated: 05/03/2003

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This disc seemed a must-buy to me - 2 of Barretto's most sought-after late 60s albums on one CD. In fact, it wasn't really what I expected. It's not bad at all though.

Acid has 8 tracks, and Hard Hands has 9. Almost without exception, the tracks are 2 or 3-chord jams, played perfectly with immaculate percussion, great brass solos, and quirky vocals. The sound is undeniably cool, but most of the songs go on a little too long for me. That said, this would make a great party CD, because pretty much all the tracks are upbeat and funky, and if you're not actually listening too hard, you probably wouldn't get bored.

The album sounds like it was a lot of fun to make, with throwaway lyrics chanted out. The 'Hard Hands' album has a more overt James Brown influence, with some wailing horns, grunting, and a funky beat.

Some of the tracks, while hilarious, are simply too cheesy for me. These include 'A deeper shade of soul', 'The teacher of love'. In other places, Ray is a dead ringer for Austin Powers (e.g. in 'The soul Drummers', in which he keeps exclaiming 'Yeah Baby!'. 'Love beads' is pleasant, but sounds just a bit too much like it was created in 2 minutes for me. The execution is immaculate, but the composition doesn't really deserve such great performance!

My favorite tracks include 'El Nuevo Barretto', 'Abidjan', 'Espiritu Libre' (a nice free-sounding piece, more jazzy and complex than many of the tracks here). 'Acid' has an incredible introduction, which I believe was sampled on 'De la soul is dead' (either this or something that sounds a lot like it). Still, I guess this proves I'm a snob, but to me, 5:03 is too long for a track with 2 chords!

In all, as you can tell, I'm a little mixed about these albums. While I think the simplicity of the tracks here is actually deceptive, I need to listen more (probably over a few drinks) in order to truly appreciate it. I'm not crazy about the vocals, and would probably have liked the albums more if they had been left off. That said, just listening now makes me want to throw a party, which can only be a good thing!

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