I Feel Good: Very Best of James Brown

by James Brown

Overview

While the title might lead fans to expect a collection of the soul icon's biggest hits, I Feel Good: The Very Best of James Brown devotes relatively little space to Brown's best-known tracks, and instead focuses on JB's legendary reputation as an indefatigable groove machine. Sure, there are some major hits on board -- "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag," "I Got You (I Feel Good)," and "It's a Man's, Man's, Man's World," among others -- but they're outnumbered by lengthy workouts that testify to Brown's well-deserved legacy as one of the pioneering architects of funk, including the surreal 13-minute "Dead on It" and the intense nine-minute "People Get Up and Drive Your Funky Soul." I Feel Good doesn't shy away from some of the more obscure and eccentric moments in Brown's catalog, such as "The Future Shock of the World" and "The Soul of a Black Man," letting the groove alone seemingly dictate what makes the cut, and if this collection isn't meant for casual observers or folks just looking for hits, the track selection is made to order for DJs looking to move the crowd with heavy-duty funk, or fans who want to study at length the staggering power and finesse of Brown's various backing bands of the '60s and '70s. (It's all the more amazing to contemplate that most of this material was cut live in the studio, with Brown and his musicians locking in to these rhythms in real time). I Feel Good isn't a James Brown hits collection for dabblers or folks looking for his radio hits, but as a study of his groundbreaking funk sessions, this is crucial stuff. ~ Mark Deming

Product Details

Release Date:	04/09/2013
Label:	Universal
UPC:	0600753424483
Rank:	82156

Tracks

Disc 1

1. I Got the Feelin'
2. Bring It Up
3. I Got You (I Feel Good)
4. Stone to the Bone
5. Get Up I Feel Like Being a Sex Machine
6. You Got to Have a Mother for Me
7. It's a Man's, Man's, Man's World
8. The Boss
9. People Get Up & Drive Your Funky Soul
10. She's the One
11. Talking Loud and Saying Nothing, Pt. 1 & 2
12. Shhhhhhhhhh (For a Little While)
13. The Popcorn
14. Night Train
15. Papa's Got a Brand New Bag, Pt. 1
16. Cold Sweat

Disc 2

17. Dead on It
18. Superbad, Superslick
19. Get Up Offa That Thing
20. For Goodness Sakes, Look at Those Cakes
21. Give It Up Or Turnit a Loose [Remix]
22. Coldblooded
23. The Future Shock of the World
24. World, Pt. 1
25. Brother Rapp
26. There It Is
27. Say It Loud, I'm Black & I'm Proud, Pt. 1
28. Soul Power
29. Take Some, Leave Some
30. Papa Don't Take No Mess
31. Use Your Mother
32. Nose Job
33. Soul of a Black Man

Album Credits

Performance Credits

James Brown   Primary Artist,Conductor
Maceo   Primary Artist
The James Brown Band   Primary Artist
The J.B.'s   Primary Artist,Featured Artist,Ensemble
James Brown & His Famous Flames   Primary Artist
Sammy Lowe   Conductor
Johnny Chandler   Sequencing
New York Studio Orchestra   Ensemble
The James Brown Orchestra   Ensemble

Technical Credits

James Brown   Composer
Fred Wesley   Composer
Charles Bobbit   Composer
John Starks   Composer
Pee Wee Ellis   Composer
Jimmy Forrest   Composer
Bud Hobgood   Composer
Hank Ballard   Composer
Ian McCann   Liner Notes
St. Clair Pinckney   Composer
Lewis C. Simpkins   Composer
Deanna Brown   Composer
Yamma Brown   Composer
Oscar Washington   Composer
Deidra Brown   Composer
Deidre Brown   Composer
Ronald Lenhoff   Composer
Bobby Byrd   Composer
Paul Fernandes   Project Coordinator
Alfred James Ellis   Composer
Betty Jean Newsome   Composer