Brooklyn Funk Essentials - Cool And Steady And Easy (1995)

Brooklyn Funk Essentials is a music collective who mix jazz, funk, and hip hop, featuring musicians and poets from different cultures.

The band was conceived in 1993 by producer Arthur Baker and bassist and musical director Lati Kronlund. In the mid-1990s, the group became a staple of the New York City club scene. Their debut album Cool And Steady And Easy (1995) scored an underground hit with the rendition of Pharoah Sanders' "The Creator Has a Master Plan". This is one funky album. Its funky but not too hip-hoppy, not too acid jazzy either. A solid rythm section holds the bottom end while horns and/or vocals literally bounce and float over the top. The Brooklyn Funk Essentials are more funky and jazzy with some reggae and world beats thrown in. This is outstanding funk with a spiritual, "feel good" influence. Check out tunes like "The Creator Has a Master Plan" and "Take the L Train." Brooklyn Funk Essentials is able to shift gears between instrumental jazz ("Take the L Train"), jazz-influenced funk (" The Creator Has A Master Plan," "Bop Hop," "Blow your Brains Out"), and tracks like "The Revolution Was Postponed Because Of Rain," that are just funny. The latter song describes the many pitfalls that befall a group planning a revolution, including being delayed by a new trainee cashier at a fast-food restaurant who wails, "Ahh, where's the button for the fries?" as the revolutionaries' moment of opportunity slips away. The musicians are excellent (they were all professional studio musicians before forming BFE), as are the vocalists. The sampling is appropriate to the music and adds texture - too many groups don't seem to be thinking when they throw in another James Brown sample. The music is loaded with energy as opposed to the more mellow offerings by other jazz-influenced groups like Morcheeba or Massive Attack. A good soundtrack to an urban summer, this album showcases the flamboyant side of New York ("Big Apple Boogaloo" can be heard in the film "Party Girl") and is appropriate for just about any occasion.


01. Take The L Train (To B'klyn)  (Kronlund)   - 5:50
02. The Creator Has A Master Plan   (Thomas, Sanders) (Vocals by: Joi Cardwell)  - 5:51
03. The Revolution Was Postponed Because Of Rain   (Kronlund, Allen) (Vocals by: David Allen)   - 4:59
04. Bop Hop   (Arthur Baker)  - 5:13
05. Brooklyn Recycles   (Baker, Roseman)  - 5:25
06. Mizz Bed-Stuy   (Arthur Baker)   - 4:10
07. A Headnaddas Journey To The Planet Adidi-Skizm   (Baker, Shapiro, Sha-Key) (Vocals by: Sha-key)  - 6:15
08. Big Apple Boogaloo  (Baker)   - 6:21
09. Blow Your Brains Out   (Baker, Parker) (Saxophone [Tenor] by: Maceo Parker)   - 4:59
10. Stickman Crossing The Brooklyn Bridge  (Baker, Brockman, Allen) (Vocals by: David Allen)   - 7:27
11. Dilly Dally  (Sylvester, Roseman)  - 5:10
12. Take The L Train (To 8th Ave.)  (krolund)  - 4:05

Release: 1995
Label:  RCA Records
Genre:  Funk, Acid Jazz
Length:  65:45

Credits
Bass, Guitar, Keyboards - Lati Kronlund
Drums - Yancy Drew Lambert
Featuring [Samples] - Arthur Baker
Flugelhorn, Trumpet - Bassy Bob Brockmann
Flute, Saxophone - Paul Shapiro
Percussion - E.J. Rodriguez
Scratches [Turntables] - DJ Jazzy Nice
Synthesizer - Kristoffer Wallman
Trombone - Joshua Roseman
Vibraphone - Bill Ware III
Vocals - Everton Sylvester, Papa Dee, Paul Shapiro

Produced-by:  Arthur Baker, Lati Kronlund
Engineer [Editing]:  Jim Betteridge, Sam Park
Engineer [Mix]:  Bassy Bob Brockmann, Louis Scalise
Executive Producer:  Arthur Baker, Bill Coleman, Lati Kronlund
Mastered By:  Miles Showell
Mixed By:  Arthur Baker, Bassy Bob Brockmann, Lati Kronlund, Louis Scalise