Chocolate Milk - Action Speaks Louder Than Words

It is fair to say that funk dominated the New Orleans music scene in the 70's. This band, however, was really built to make a national impact on that front more so than even the mighty Meters. I think that Toussaint envisioned these guys as the New Orleans version of Earth, Wind and Fire and for a hot moment when this album hit that looked like a possibility. To the average young black man in New Orleans in 1974, THIS was the the sound of contemporary New Orleans much more than the more familiar SeaSaint products that appear on most compilations today. For one thing these guys did not play Toussaint's music; the only band he produced that didn't as far as I can remember. I'm listening this morning as I write and that EWF comparison seems more and more on the mark. These guys were musicians, singers and song writers (sound familiar?) and where early EWF is more rooted in jazz, these guys were funky from the git-go. The title cut cracked the Hot 100, but beyond that they never really caught on despite being far more talented than 90% of the competition.

btw The only tune here that the guys didm't write themselves is that utterly luminous version of 'Tin Man'.