Kool & The Gang have never really been my thing. They had their hits, I thought they were okay, but nothing that I necessarily walked around humming all day. As I worked to fill gaps in my CD collection, I eventually turned by sights towards the band, first picking up their albums that had the hits, and then filling in a couple more from there.
Celebrate marked the second from the band to feature new singer, James "J.T." Taylor. High on their success from their 1979 entry, Ladies Night, The Gang were keen to strike hard and keep this resurgence of relevancy to their career high. The end result of their efforts was a platinum selling album, as well as their first, and only, Billboard Hot 100 number one, Celebration.
Both the album and band were highly praised, noted as one of the few funk bands of the 70's to successfully transition into the disco scene. However, it would also mark the end of an era, as their move away from their funk roots brought with it an adoption of a more dance-oriented sound. This wasn't something that some of their prior fans appreciated, but as a whole, paid off in a wave of hit singles.
If you were to ask me what my favorite song from Kool & The Gang was, I wouldn't say Celebration. In fact, I'm not necessarily a fan of that track at all. Truthfully, this album ended up in my collection to check a box, and I wasn't expecting much from it.
It's definitely driven by a funky groove of bass, and a lot of ballads. Sadly, it's also quite generic in nature, at least for me. Personally, I didn't really hear anything on the record to make me jump up and down for joy, but frankly, I didn't think I would.
That's what happens when you buy an album just because you know that one song on it. That's totally my fault. I got an itch to buy their albums, and being the impulsive type that I am, immediately dove in full bore. Candidly, it's why it's taken me so long to get around to playing through their albums, and why, to date, I've only played through Emergency, the aforementioned having my favorite song from the band.
I'm still committed to making my way through the remainder of their albums that I have, and I'll be back at it tomorrow with 1981's Something Special. I'm hoping that I start to find some hidden gems as I progress.
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