The World Is a Ghetto

by War

Overview

War's third album as an act separate from Eric Burdon was also far and away their most popular, the group's only long-player to top the pop charts. The culmination of everything they'd been shooting for creatively on their two prior albums, it featured work in both succinct pop-accessible idioms ("The Cisco Kid," etc.) as well as challenging extended pieces such as the 13-minute "City, Country, City" -- which offered featured spots to all seven members without ever seeming disjointed -- and the title track, and encompass not only soul and funk but elements of blues and psychedelia on works such as the exquisite "Four Cornered Room." "The Cisco Kid" and "The World Is a Ghetto" understandably dominated the album's exposure, but there's much more to enjoy here, even decades on. Beyond the quality of the musicianship, the classy, forward-looking production has held up remarkably well, and not just on the most famous cuts here; indeed, The World Is a Ghetto is of a piece with Marvin Gaye's What's Going On and Curtis Mayfield's Curtis, utilizing the most sophisticated studio techniques of the era. Not only does it sound great, but there are important touches such as the phasing in "Four Cornered Room," not only on the percussion but also on the vocals, guitars, and other instruments, and the overall effect is a seemingly contradictory (yet eminently workable) shimmering blues, even working in a mournful and unadorned harmonica amid the more complex sounds. ~ Bruce Eder

Product Details

Release Date:	07/19/2024
Label:	Avenue Records
UPC:	0603497824281
Rank:	2791

Album Credits

Performance Credits

War   Primary Artist
Eric Burdon   Primary Artist,Vocals,Percussion
Charles Miller   Horn,Vocals,Clarinet,Woodwind,Percussion,Sax (Alto),Sax (Tenor),Sax (Baritone)
Lee Oskar   Vocals,Harmonica,Percussion
Howard Scott   Guitar,Vocals,Percussion,Co-Producer
Harold Brown   Drums,Vocals,Percussion
Papa Dee Allen   Bongos,Vocals,Percussion
B.B. Dickerson   Bass,Vocals,Percussion
Lonnie Jordan   Organ,Piano,Guitar,Vocals,Timbales,Keyboards,Percussion,Co-Producer

Technical Credits

Chris Huston   Engineer
War   Composer
Charles Miller   Composer,Lyricist
Lee Oskar   Composer,Lyricist,Album Concept
Howard Scott   Composer,Lyricist
Jerry Goldstein   Composer,Producer
Richard Warner   Composer
Thomas Allen   Composer
Harold Brown   Composer,Lyricist
Papa Dee Allen   Composer
B.B. Dickerson   Composer
Dee Allen   Composer
Lonnie Jordan   Composer,Lyricist,Producer
Morris "B.B." Dickerson   Composer,Lyricist
Thomas Sylvester Allen   Composer,Lyricist
Bill Inglot   Digital Remastering
Ken Perry   Digital Remastering