Funky Kingston

Funky Kingston is the name of two albums by Jamaican reggae group Toots and the Maytals. The first was issued in Jamaica and the United Kingdom in 1972 on Dragon Records, a subsidiary label of Island Records, owned by Chris Blackwell.[2] A different album, with the same cover and title, was issued in the United States in 1975 on Mango Records. That album peaked at #164 on the Billboard 200 and was voted the eleventh best album of 1975 in the annual Pazz & Jop poll.[3] In 2003, the American version was placed at #378 on Rolling Stone's list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time,[4] and 380 in a 2012 revised list.[5]

Funky Kingston
Studio album by
Toots and the Maytals
Releasedcirca March / April 1972 (UK)
1975 (US)
Recorded1972;[1]
Dynamic Sounds Studios (Kingston),
Island Studios (Notting Hill)
GenreReggae
Length34:56
LabelDragon Records (Jamaica, U.K.)
Mango Records (U.S.)
ProducerChris Blackwell,
Warwick Lyn,
Dave Bloxham
Toots and the Maytals chronology
Slatyam Stoot Funky Kingston
(1972)		 In the Dark
(1973)

Background

The Maytals had been consistent hit makers in Jamaica during the 1960s, and had even given the genre its name with their single "Do the Reggay". But when the music for Funky Kingston was recorded at Dynamic Sound Studios in Kingston, reggae music was little known outside of its native Jamaica, other than in musical circles. For instance, demonstrating unfamiliarity with the genre, a 1973 review in International Times called Funky Kingston's music "Jamaican rock'n'roll".[6] Awareness of reggae began to change in 1972 with the release of the seminal film The Harder They Come, which became a cult hit that year in the UK, with its soundtrack featuring two songs by the Maytals.[7] As he would with The Wailers the following year, producer Chris Blackwell tailored the Maytals for the international market on this album.[8]

Toots and the Maytals circa 1976

Music and lyrics

Funky Kingston's lyrics refer to the difficulties of being working-class, of living in the country in Jamaica, and celebrating life despite ongoing hardship.[9]

In general, Funky Kingston is considered an authentic reflection of Jamaican music at the time. While, other Jamaican recordings had additions by record producers in an effort to increase their international appeal, Blackwell made only minor additions to the recording. One notable addition is horn overdubs by the Sons of the Jungle, a Ghanaian band.[9]

The album acknowledges American rhythm and blues with covers of songs by Ike Turner and Shep and the Limelites, along with a reggae take on Richard Berry's composition, "Louie Louie". The American release also contains a cover of John Denver's "Take Me Home, Country Roads", with lyrics slightly altered to refer to Jamaica. The album's title came from a suggestion by producer Chris Blackwell who noted the success of The Beginning of the End's 1971 semi-crossover hit "Funky Nassau", with the "funky" referencing an increasingly popular genre at the time.[10][9]

Release
Producer Chris Blackwell

In 1975, a revised version of the album was released in the United States. It kept only three tracks from the Jamaican album, substituting six taken from the follow-up In the Dark, adding in the 1969 "Pressure Drop" single which had been previously issued on album with The Harder They Come.

On March 25, 2003, Funky Kingston was released on compact disc by Universal complete in its original format, along with the Jamaican In the Dark album and the "Pressure Drop" single.[11]

Reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[12]
Christgau's Record GuideA–[13]
Rolling Stone[14]
Sputnikmusic[15]
Pitchfork9.0/10[9]

Given the significant differences between the two versions of this album, critical reception varies depending on which version is being reviewed. The reception of the US release invariably regards it as a classic given its inclusion in several "best of" lists. The original Rolling Stone review states that "this is the cream of their crop, with a couple of exceptions".[16]

Funky Kingston, Toots and the Maytals’ first release to be distributed by Chris Blackwell’s Island Records label proved to be a critical triumph. Rock critic Lester Bangs, writing in Stereo Review, described the album as "perfection, the most exciting and diversified set of reggae tunes by a single artist yet released."[17]

Reviewing the 1975 American release, Robert Christgau wrote in Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies (1981): "The quick way to explain the Maytals is to say that in reggae they're the Beatles to the Wailers' Rolling Stones. But how do I explain Toots himself? Well, he's the nearest thing to Otis Redding left on the planet: he transforms 'do re mi fa sol la ti do' into joyful noise. I wish he had real politics—any Jamaican who can only pray to God about this time tough hasn't ever been compelled to explore all his options—and lately his arrangements have been looser than I'd like, but this is a gift."[13]

Funky Kingston was ranked at number 380 in Rolling Stone's 2012 list of greatest albums of all time, with the magazine saying, "Loose, funky, exuberant, Kingston is the quintessential document of Jamaica's greatest act after Bob Marley."[5]

In a retrospective review in 2020, Pitchfork's Wayne Marshall wrote that Funky Kingston is more "reflective of the core Jamaican sound" than Bob Marley's music. He called Funky Kingston a "classic", saying that it "captured the country soul of roots reggae at its creative peak", and that it is a "wry testament to the shared circumstances of the black and working-class masses".[9]

Appearances in other media

The title track, "Funky Kingston", appears in the Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas video game soundtrack, on the fictitious radio station K-Jah West. It also features as the opening theme for the reality show Miami Ink. It was the basis for the "Funky Vodka" track, which in turn fueled "Don't Stop The Party". The song can be heard in the film "Notes On A Scandal" where the Hart family can be seen dancing to it. The song "Time Tough" was featured on the soundtrack for Tony Hawk's Project 8.

Track listing

All songs written by Frederick "Toots" Hibbert except as indicated.

Side one
  1. "Sit Right Down" — 4:44
  2. "Pomps And Pride" — 4:30
  3. "Louie Louie" (Richard Berry) — 5:46
  4. "I Can't Believe" (Ike Turner) — 3:29

Side two
  1. "Redemption Song" — 3:26
  2. "Daddy's Home" (James Sheppard, Clarence Bassett, Charles Baskerville) — 5:05
  3. "Funky Kingston" — 4:54
  4. "It Was Written Down" — 3:04

1975 track listing

Side one
  1. "Time Tough" — 4:23
  2. "In the Dark" (F. Hibbert, E. Chin) — 2:48
  3. "Funky Kingston" — 4:54
  4. "Love is Gonna Let Me Down" — 3:15 listed as "Love's Gonna Walk Out on Me" on Jamaican release
  5. "Louie Louie" (Richard Berry) — 5:46

Side two
  1. "Pomps and Pride" — 4:30
  2. "Got to Be There" — 3:06
  3. "Country Road" (Bill Danoff, John Denver, Taffy Nivert) — 3:23
  4. "Pressure Drop" — 3:46
  5. "Sailin' On" — 3:35

Personnel

Charts
Chart (1976) Peak
position
Billboard Pop Albums[18] 164

References
  1. discogs.com Funky Kingston Dragon – DRLS 5002
  2. Katz, David. Funky Kingston/In the Dark. Island Records 440 077 076-2, 2003, liner notes.
  3. "The 1975 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. December 29, 1975. Retrieved 12 Aug 2011.
  4. Levy, Joe; Steven Van Zandt (2006) [2005]. "378 | Funky Kingston - Toots and the Maytals". Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time (3rd ed.). London: Turnaround. ISBN 1-932958-61-4. OCLC 70672814. Retrieved 12 Aug 2011.
  5. "500 Greatest Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. 2012. Retrieved September 5, 2019.
  6. "Toots & The Maytals interviews, articles and reviews from Rock's Backpages". www.rocksbackpages.com. Retrieved 2020-04-23.
  7. Miller, Jim, ed. The Rolling Stone Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll. New York: Random House, 1980, p. 447.
  8. Katz, liner notes.
  9. Marshall, Wayne (2020-03-22). "Toots and the Maytals: Funky Kingston". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2020-04-23.
  10. ‘Reggae Got Soul’ documentary film
  11. discogs.com Funky Kingston / In The Dark
  12. Deming, Mark. Toots & the Maytals Funky Kingston (Mango Reissue) at AllMusic. Retrieved 27 Apr 2007.
  13. Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: T". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 16, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  14. Miles, Milo (April 22, 2003). "Toots and the Maytals Funky Kingston/In The Dark > Album Reviews". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 9 June 2008. Retrieved 18 Aug 2011.
  15. g, manos (16 August 2014). "Review: CD Toots & The Maytals - Funky Kingston Album". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 2015-01-01.
  16. Davis, Stephen (December 4, 1975). "Toots and the Maytals Funky Kingston > Album Review". Rolling Stone (201). Archived from the original on 14 February 2008. Retrieved 27 April 2007.
  17. "Toots and the Maytals." Contemporary Musicians. . Encyclopedia.com. 6 Oct. 2016 <http://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/toots-and-maytals>.
  18. Toots & the Maytals Funky Kingston > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums at AllMusic. Retrieved 2007-04-27.
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