![]() ![]() Though it wasn’t the first choice by Columbia Records as the debut single off Scagg’s seventh album Silk Degrees, Lowdown. The laid-back singer hit the R&B charts in a big way with the addictive, sly 'Lowdown' (which has been sampled by more than a few rappers and remains a favorite among baby-boomer soul fans) and expressed his love of smooth soul music. It would grow smoother and more assured over the years, but the slight bit of raggedness suits the funky, down-home performances and helps make this not only a great debut, but also an enduring blue-eyed soul masterpiece. Lowdown (1976) Written by Boz Scaggs and David Paich. Both artistically and commercially, Boz Scaggs had his greatest success with Silk Degrees. But even with that show-stealing turn, and even with the Muscle Shoals musicians giving this album its muscle and part of its soul, this album is still thoroughly a showcase for Boz Scaggs' musical vision, which even at this stage is wide and deep. If the country shuffle "Now You're Gone" sounds just slightly a shade bit too vaudeville for its own good, it only stands out because the rest of the record is pitch-perfect, from the Jimmie Rodgers cover "Waiting for a Train" and the folky "Look What I Got!" to the extended 11-minute blues workout "Loan Me a Dime," which functions as much as a showcase for a blazing Duane Allman as it does for Boz. Boz Scaggs entry in this series - which claims to balance hits, audience favorites, and obscure tracks - is a curious one. Most importantly, they are sold for a budget price. Even at this early stage Scaggs wasn't content to stay in one place, and he crafted a kind of Americana fantasia here, also dabbling in country and blues along with the soul and R&B that grounds this record. They provide both CD quality music and downloadable mp3 files, and instead of liner notes and photos in the printed booklet, they provide them digitally on the CD. The Muscle Shoals rhythm section, occasionally augmented by guitarist Duane Allman, gives this music genuine grit, but this isn't necessarily a straight-up blue-eyed soul record, even if the opening "I'm Easy" and "I'll Be Long Gone" are certainly as deeply soulful as anything cut at Muscle Shoals. Boz Scaggs considers Out of the Blues to be the final installment in a (primarily covers) trilogy that began with 2013s Memphis and continued with 2015s A Fool to Care, excellent outings that reflected Scaggs desire to reach back into the cradle of inspiration. Rolling Stone publisher Jann Wenner, his friend, helped him sign with Atlantic Records and the label had him set up shop in Muscle Shoals, recording his debut album with that legendary set of studio musicians, known for their down-and-dirty backing work for Aretha Franklin and Wilson Pickett, among many other Southern soul legends. Warthog and the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers had many characters himself. Departing from the Steve Miller Band after a two-album stint, Boz Scaggs found himself on his own but not without support. The Do Dah man is a character created by artist Robert Crumb in the 1960s. ![]()
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