Fans of hip-hop, groove music, funk, and jazz will all be able to find something to enjoy on the collection. Although it doesn’t get too out there – the funky bossa nova of It Ain’t Your Sign, It’s Your Mind rails against those who took the whole horoscope thing too far.Įverybody Loves the Sunshine was much loved, and is one of the principal reasons Roy Ayers still visits the UK for a string of sold out concerts each year. During the 1970s, Ayers and his band, Ubiquity, progressed from political- and social-commentary funk to blaxploitation to disco to some surprisingly touching R&B ballads, and this two-disc set covers it all with grace and a smooth flow. The latter, with its cosmic overtones and talk of “secrets of numbers, secrets of sound”, chimes with the late 60s ‘Age of Aquarius’ atmosphere that still permeated in 1976. Tracks such as The Golden Rod and The Third Eye, both vibes showcases for Ayers, border on the generic. It was an approach that Arthur Russell would later emulate as Dinosaur L, gaining the support of the underground press. Keyboard player Philip Woo and guitarist Ronald “Head” Drayton play off each other, while John Solomon’s fluid, underrated bass holds it all together. The opening Hey Uh-What You Say Come On is a chant over a driving rhythm with instrumental interludes. The more conventional ballad Keep on Walking follows a similar groove it can be seen as a direct influence on British funk ensembles such as Light of the World.Įlsewhere, the album is far from down-tempo. As the tempo seems as enervated as the sweltering day the song describes, Ubiquity’s massed vocals joyously state the obvious: “Folks get down in the sunshine / Folks get brown in the sunshine / Everybody loves the sunshine.” Few records make you feel so pleasantly exhausted. By 1976, vibraphone legend Roy Ayers and his group Ubiquitys music had become dirtier, funkier, and more repetitive. Piano dribbles out over lazy ARP synthesiser flourishes. Much of this was to do with its title-track, a woozy, off-kilter tribute to the summer. Unbelievably, Everybody Loves the Sunshine was Roy Ayers’ 14th album, but it was the one that really struck a chord in the UK. The outfit were square pegs that refused to fit in any holes that suggested straightforward jazz, soul or disco. Yet it was still in turns mellow and soothing. It moves along lazily, hypnotically, and sluggishly as the sun slows things down to the right speed and "folks get down in the sunshine." The rest of the album contains Ayers classics such as the burning percussive funk of "It Ain't AYour Sign It's Your Mind," the spacey cosmic soul of "the Third Eye," the bumping rubbery disco in "People and the World," and the two horn-scorched closers "Tongue Power," and "Lonesome Cowboy.By 1976, vibraphone legend Roy Ayers and his group Ubiquity’s music had become dirtier, funkier, and more repetitive. Entirely sung by a choir repeating the same lines throughout, the rhythm section rolls along with a perfectly looped laid-back groove. It evokes that feeling of sweltering concrete in Brooklyn where the only relief is the local fire hydrant. While it might not have slammed the charts like Wild Cherry's "Play That Funky Music," it's still a revered classic. The title track, "Everybody Loves the Sunshine," is a quintessential song from the mid-'70s. His recordings of this period can be very hit and miss, and in this particular record, you get both. Roy Ayers's had long made his shift into R&B/soul by 1976's Everybody Loves the Sunshine. See More Your browser does not support the audio element. It moves along lazily, hypnotically, and sluggishly as the sun slows things down to the right speed and "folks get down in the sunshine." The rest of the album contains Ayers classics such as the burning percussive funk of "It Ain't AYour Sign It's Your Mind," the spacey cosmic soul of "the Third Eye," the bumping rubbery disco in "People and the World," and the two horn-scorched closers "Tongue Power," and "Lonesome Cowboy."
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