Smoke
Band members Related acts
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line up 1 - Clifford Ervin -- trumpet, flugelhorn, backing vocals - Anthony Fisher -- bass, vocals - Michael Wells Fisher -- lead guitar, vocals - Raymond Genovese -- drums - Buddy MacDaniels -- sax, flute, backing vocals - Arnold Riggs Jr. -- vocals - Rodney Thompson -- keyboards, synthesizers, backing vocals - Bradford Henry Thoelke -- trombone, backing vocals
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- Black Smoke - Blacksmoke
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Genre: funk Rating: 3 stars *** Title: Smoke Company: Chocolate City Catalog: CCLP
2001 Country/State: Compton, California Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+ Comments: -- Available: 1 Catalog ID: 831 Price: $20.00
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Ah, Compton, California's Smoke ...
By the time they were signed to Neil Bogart's Casablanca label in 1975, Smoke was an eight piece showcasing an integrated line-up featuring the talents of bass player Anthony Fisher, brother/guitarist Michael Fisher, drummer Raymond Genovese, singer Arnold Riggs Jr., keyboardist Rodney Thompson and a three piece horn section consisting of Clifford Ervin, Buddy MacDaniels, and Bradford Henry Thoekle.
Signed to Casabalance the band recorded and album, only to see the set shelved. That didn't stop Casablanca management from using some of their material for the soundtrack to the John Daniels starring blaxploitation flick "The Candy Tangerine Man". Luckily the band found a supporter in the former of Cecil Holmes. Holmes had worked with Bogart for years and recently established the Casablanca associated Chocolate City label. Seemingly interested in finding acts for the label, Holmes latched on to the previously recorded LP, making it the first release for Chocolate City.
Produced by Wayne Henderson, 1976's "Smoke" featured a mixture dance tunes and more pop and ballad oriented material. With Michael Fisher responsible for all of the material, the band sounded a bit like a more cosmopolitan version of War, or perhaps a less dynamic Earth, Wind and Fire. They were quite funky, but were more than willing to experiment and check out different genres, including old school soul and even jazzy moves ('Turn This Thing Around'). Sometimes the willingness to stretch out worked, and sometimes it didn't ('Screaming'). The group were also blessed with a couple of real talents. As lead singer Riggs had a nice and versatile voice. Check out his performance on 'Gotta Bad Feeling'. That said, the real find was the Fisher-Genovese rhythm section. Fisher was a killer bass player adding interesting facets to everything he touched, while Genevese was rock solid, serving as a sampler's delight. To a large extent, your overall opinion about this one is going to depend on how you feel about horns in your funk. Technically the horns were quite good (on a couple of tunes they gave the EW&F horn section a run for their money - check out the frenetic 'Don't Care (What You Do)').
"Smoke" track listing: 1.) Gotta Bad Feeling (Michael Fisher) - 3:10 The
rollicking 'Gotta Bad Feeling' showcased Riggs' likeable voice, Tony
Fisher's innovative bass moves, and the punchy horn section (who could have
given the Earth, Wind and Fire horns a run for their money). Funky,
but not threatening, this one's always reminded me a bit of what Chicago
might have sounded like had they decided to try their hands at funk - great
harmony vocals and contains an all time classic lyric "a
friend of mine in Washington says something to this effect I've got nothing
to say".
rating: **** stars The
opening with Riggs apparently going orgasmic was a bit disconcerting
and from there 'Screaming' went into standard dance/funk mode though
Fisher's bass work was again pretty intense. rating:
** stars 'Turn
This Thing Around' found the group attempting a jazz-funk mash-up with
middling results. Technically it was actually quite impressive
(lots of stuff going on here), but to my ears it was a bit on the cluttered
side ... I'm not a big dancer, but have to admit this one would
have sent me scurrying for the wall.
rating: *** stars 'There
It Is' wasn't so much a fully formed song as it was a breezy, horn-powered
chant/jam session. Raymond
Genovese's work on this one has attracted some sampling interest, while
Michael Fisher turned in a nice jazzy solo. rating:
*** stars Side
one's best performance, 'Don't Care (What You Do)' had a great funk melody,
surprisingly poignant lyrics, and one of the horn sections' best
performances - check out Buddy
MacDaniels' sax solo. This is probably the track I would have tapped
as a single. rating:
**** stars (side
2) A
big, gorgeous old-school ballad, 'You
Needn't Worry Now' was Riggs moment in the sun. Beautiful
performance with a nice Ervin solo for effect. Wonder how many kids
were conceived to this tune ... rating:
**** stars Michael
Fisher's opening guitar lick gave the song a momentary country-tinge, but
then 'What Goes Around Comes Around' shifted into galloping Free
Design--meets-The 5tn Dimension mode. What a cool, if
hard-too-describe song. Another album standout and a personal
favorite. rating:
**** stars 'Sunshine
Roses And Rainbows' found the group delving into a more adult contemporary
style of soul. Its one of those tracks hard core funk fans would
probably find irritating. rating:
*** stars With its uplifting message, 'Freedom of the Mind' sounded like a cross between Maurice White and Chicago ... The song had an easy-going pop-jazz hybrid that wasn't bad, but wasn't exactly earth-shattering. Nice trumpet and trombone solos from Ervin and Thoelke. rating: *** stars
Unfortunately for the band and potential sales, shortly after the album was released they were threatened with a lawsuit over the name - Smoke was apparently being used by another entity. (My guess is a Kansas City-based entity that had just released an album on the J Bridge label.) The band quickly morphed into Black Smoke (I've also seen it as Blacksmoke) and Chocolate City reissued the album under the revised nameplate.
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